SULLIVAN COUNTY -- According to October, 2018 data released last week by the New York State Department of Labor, for the ninth consecutive month Sullivan County posted the strongest gains year-over-year in the private sector. This is up 12.1 percent from October 2017.

The county also had a 9.7 percent increase in total nonfarm jobs. The highest areas of job growth were seen in the leisure and hospitality industries (+1,700), as well as the education and health services (+500) categories.

“As predicted Sullivan County's economy continues to steam along without an immediate end in sight given the projects slated for 2019 and beyond, particularly in hospitality,” Sullivan County Partnership for Economic Development President/CEO Marc Baez said. “We are working on some significant projects in hospitality, housing, logistics and others that will work to keep this momentum going.”

Local Economist James B. Huntington, Ph.D, of the Royal Flush Press, who hosts WORK SHIFT on WJFF, had the following to say about the Hudson Valley's employment upswing: “In the five-county WJFF listening area for latest-month September, Ulster County took the lead with 3.4 percent unemployment, followed by Sullivan with 3.5, Orange with 3.6, Wayne with 3.8, and Pike County with 4.9 percent. The overall 3.6% rate matched that month's national unadjusted figure, meaning that, with jobs, we are doing about as well as the rest of the country as a whole.

“A year before, it was 4.5% - since then, we have gained over 9,400 employed and lost over 2,800 unemployed.

“The Sullivan County labor force, over the year September 2017 to September 2018, is up over 1,900, with more than 2,200 net new nonfarm payroll jobs,” Huntington added. “It is clear that the Resorts World Catskills casino, whether profitable or not, has made a massive difference in our county's employment situation.”

Hudson Valley region

As for the Hudson Valley region, its private sector job count, 818,100, was the highest October employment count on record. The over-the-year picture remained positive, with five sectors adding jobs for the 12 months through October 2018 while four reported job losses. Year-over-year, the region's educational and health services sector grew by 3.7 percent - its strongest October growth since 2015.

According to the NYS Department of Labor, among the state's 10 labor market regions, private sector job growth in the Hudson Valley Region (+1.6 percent) trails only that of the NYC Region (+1.7 percent).