BUFFALO, N.Y. – The State Labor Department says New York added more than 97,000 private sector jobs since this time last year.
In Western New York, the state says the “Buffalo-Niagara Falls” market grew by 6,600 private sector jobs.
Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz bragged about the local numbers on Twitter Thursday, so 2 On Your Side set out to understand where job numbers come from and how they are determined.
The data is put together by New York State, and month-to-month job growth or decline is published monthly.
The latest report, out Thursday, substantiates the numbers Poloncarz tweeted about, showing between a 1.2 and 1.4 percent job growth for the metro region from Feb. 2017 to Feb. 2018.
How does the state come up with its numbers?
The data collected comes from joint state and federal surveys of area employers. There’s a certain margin of error to consider, since some of the data is self-reported, and the state’s press release itself indicates the numbers are not yet seasonally adjusted to take out the kinds of jobs that come and go.
Where are the jobs coming from?
The jobs report goes a step farther by showing that the largest percentage in growth for Western New York is in an industry described as "service providing," followed by "education and health services," and "professional and business services.”
Locally, hospital jobs were stagnant despite the growing Medical Campus in downtown Buffalo.
Manufacturing suffered the greatest job loss state-wide.
Do the new jobs pay well, and are they here to stay?
Poloncarz was unable to get back to 2 On Your Side for this report, so we spoke with Erie County’s minority leader, Joseph Lorigo.
Both parties agree: job growth is happening, and that’s good.
Lorigo, however, shared skepticism on how long he thinks job growth will last. He points out the importance of remembering what’s happening governmentally, both at the state and local levels.
"A lot of these jobs stem from historic tax credits, and the Buffalo Billion and government investment into the private sector. And when those dollars go away, which it looks like they might, will those jobs still be here?” Lorigo said.
In Niagara County, Deputy Commissioner for Business Development Michael Casale said he is seeing quality job growth.
Casale pointed out several advanced manufacturing opportunities going on right now in Erie County that he says are retaining jobs and pay well.
"What happens to that job when that building is done being built?” reporter Erica Brecher asked.
“Our plans is the jobs stick around. The jobs are here,” Casale said. “You're not going to see Bridgestone APM construct a building, start a brand-new line – Bridgestone is headquartering a brand new line here in Niagara County – and just put it up and take it out a few years down the road. We're pretty confident those jobs are going to be sticking around for quite some time.”
Casale believes Niagara County’s biggest problem is not availability of high-paying manufacturing jobs; he says it’s finding qualified people to fill them.
Regionally, our partners at Investigative Post found and reported about a year ago that the larger job growth is mainly in low wage jobs, such as those in the restaurant industry.