Unemployment Rate Shows Slight Increase in the Town of Smithtown

The unemployment rate for the Town of Smithtown increased slightly in November to 6.3 percent compared to 6.1 percent in November 2009, according to data released by the New York State Department of Labor.

"The unemployment rate did go up. It's hard to identify the cause of that," said Long Island Economist at the New York State Department of Labor Gary Huth. "The most likely culprit is the weak hiring in retail trade, and people going in to look for those jobs and not being able to find them. Most of the other indicators look more positive."

The Town of Smithtown's unemployment rate in November was the lowest in Suffolk County with the Town of Huntington having the second lowest rate at 6.4 percent, and was amongst the lowest on Long Island – only the Village of Rockville Centre at 6.1 percent and the Town of North Hempstead at 6.2 percent were lower.

The labor force in the Town of Smithtown decreased from 62,596 to 62,327 from October 2010 to November 2010, but increased from November 2009 when the labor force was 62,124.

"The good news is the job count stayed positive from a year ago," Huth said. "The momentum has been weaker than we'd like to see, but it's still positive."

Unemployment was higher in Suffolk County than Nassau County in November – Suffolk County saw 7.4 percent unemployment, an increase from the 7.1 percent rate in November 2009, while Nassau County came in at 7 percent, an increase from the 6.7 percent rate in November 2009.

"At this point my outlook is there can be ups and downs," Huth said. "My level of confidence has risen that we're on a track forward. There may be some bumps but the momentum definitely seems to be moving forward."

Adina Genn contributed to this report.