jobs

The most recent jobs report numbers for Genesee County aren't as healthy as in some months past.

Between December 2012 and January 2013, Genesee County lost 3,600 non-farm jobs, and there were 100 fewer jobs than January 2012.

At the same time, the county's unemployment rate climbed, reaching 9.5 percent, up from 9.4 percent the previous month and 8.2 percent a year earlier.

There are currently 28,500 people in the county with jobs, and the number of jobs in the county is an estimated 21,400.

A year ago, the jobs number was 21,500.

Neighboring counties' unemployment rates:

• Livingston, 10.4
• Orleans, 12.4
• Wyoming, 11.2 percent

Unemployment in NYS has climbed year over year from 9.1 percent to 9.4, while the nation's rate has dropped from 8.8 percent to 8.5 percent.

December job numbers are out and Genesee County once again saw an increase in the number of jobs in the county year-over-year, but also an uptick in the unemployment rate.

There were 29,000 jobs in Genesee County for December, according to Labor Department figures released today, which is 400 more than December 2011, but 300 fewer than were counted in November 2012.

The unemployment rate year-over-year went from 8 percent to 8.2 percent, and jumped from November 2012 when it was 7.4 percent.

Orleans County continues to lead the GLOW region in unemployment, with a 10.9 percent jobless figure, compared to 8.0 for Livingston and 9.5 for Wyoming counties.

The U.S. unemployment rate for December was 7.6 percent, up from 7.4 percent in November 2012, but lower than the 8.3 percent of December 2011.

New York's unemployment rate grew two-tenths of a percent, year-over-year, from 8 percent to 8.2 percent and it's up from November 2011 when it was 7.9 percent.

The number of people working in Genesee County in October is higher than in 2011, but so is the unemployment rate, according to figures released today by the Department of Labor.

There are 30,200 people working in the county, the DOL reports, which is up from 29,700 a year ago; however, the unemployment rate year-over-year went up from 6.8 percent to 7.2 percent.

The state counts 2,300 unemployed people in the county for October 2012 and 2,200 a year ago.

There were 30,300 people employed in the county in September 2012 and the unemployment rate that month was 7.1 percent.

Press release:

With the State Budget now passed, jump starting New York's economy and getting people back to work are at the top of the to-do list. That’s why I voted for legislation today in the State Senate to implement the 2012 NEW JOBS-NY Job Creation Plan.

Every new job created helps the state’s economy, helps strengthen a community, and most importantly, helps a family improve its quality of life.  This comprehensive plan will help create thousands of new private sector jobs by delivering tax relief and reducing energy costs for small businesses and manufacturers.

Among the highlights of the 2012 NEW JOBS-NY Job Creation Plan are:

• HIRE-NOW-NY Tax Incentive: New job-creating incentives to grant businesses a tax credit of up to $5,000 for each new job created; up to an $8,000 credit if the new job goes to someone on unemployment; up to a $10,000 credit if a business hires a returning military veteran.
• 10 % Personal Income Tax Credit for Small Businesses: This tax cut would save 800,000 small businesses $80 million.
• 20 % Corporate Tax Cut for Small Businesses: This cut in the corporate tax rate will save nearly 200,000 small businesses $49 million.
• Reducing the Job-Killing Tax Burden on New York Manufacturers: The plan would spur creation of thousands of manufacturing jobs by dramatically reducing taxes on manufacturers over a three year period ($495 million in tax relief).

Over the last two years, we’ve enacted two fiscally responsible State Budgets that reduced spending, excluded any new taxes or fees, and enacted billions of dollars in tax cuts. The 2012 NEW JOBS-NY Job Creation Plan will build on this progress, create thousands of new jobs and help to ensure a brighter, stronger future for the Empire State.

The year-over-year job and employment picture for Genesee County brightened in December, according to Department of Labor statistics.

The county's unemployment rate for December was 7.4 percent, a slight improvement over December 2010 when it was 7.9 percent, but not as good as last November when unemployment stood at 6.7 percent.

Overall, non-farm jobs increased from 22,600 in December 2010 to 23,800 last December. However, that's still below the November job figure of 24,100.

Historically, Genesee County sees a decline in jobs from November to December.

According to the latest report, there are 30,200 people in Genesee County with jobs, compared to 29,400 people with jobs in December 2010.

Year-over-year, goods producing jobs increased from 3,900 to 4,000.

Total service jobs increased from 18,700 to 19,800, including those in education. Health service jobs increased from 3,000 to 3,300, and leisure and hospitality jobs increased from 2,200 to 2,500

Government jobs increased from 6,100 to 6,200.

Press release: 

STATEMENT FROM CONGRESSWOMAN KATHY HOCHUL ON PRESIDENT OBAMA’S COMMENTS ON JOB CREATION 

“The message I have heard, loud and clear, during my seven ‘Congress On Your Corner’ meetings this month, is that our constituents expect us to work towards real job proposals that will help get our people back to work. I was sent to Washington to work with anybody and everybody willing to help create opportunities in Western New York. 

“Now is the time for us to come up with a critical infrastructure plan that will not only help our local governments build roads, bridges and airports, but also get our economy moving once again.

“When we return to Washington next week, our top priority must be cutting the exorbitantly high unemployment rate and revitalizing our economy. I intend to work quickly to renew the FAA Reauthorization and Surface Transportation Bill and ensure we don’t leave nearly one million workers on the sidelines, as was done to 4,000 FAA employees earlier this summer. As these pieces of legislation progress, I plan to work with my local municipalities to ensure they can apply for their proper funds.

“Congress cannot continue to act in the same hyper-partisan manner it did throughout the summer with the FAA Reauthorization and debt-ceiling negotiations, which is why I plan to continue to work with President Obama, as well as all Republicans, Democrats and anyone else willing to ensure we are creating opportunities for hard-working, middle-class families.”

Unemployment in Genesee County fell to 7.1 percent for May 2011, down from April's figure of 8.0, and lower than a year ago when unemployment was 7.6.

Total non-farm jobs increased from April to May by 1,300 positions, going from 22,500 jobs in Genesee County to 23,800.

The May figure is the same as it was in May 2010.

Private-sector jobs increased month-over-month from 16,300 to 17,600, which also represents a year-over-year increase for May of 100 jobs.

Government jobs remained unchanged month-to-month, and down by 100 jobs year-over-year, going from 16,300 to 16,200. 

Leisure and hospitality jobs, such as those jobs counted at Darien Lake Theme Park, were up 45 percent from April to May, going from 2,400 to 3,500. In May 2010, the category had 3,400 jobs.

Nationally, the unemployment rate for May was 8.7 percent and for New York was 7.7 percent.

Genesee County's jobs picture continues to improve, as the rate of unemployed residents has declined and some 200 new jobs were created in the county in March.

Data released from the State Department of Labor shows the unemployment rate for March in Genesee County at 8 percent, down from 9 percent in March 2010. 

There are 2,800 job seekers in Genesee County, down 100 from February.

Meanwhile, 100 new "goods producing" jobs were created in Genesee County, March compared to February. The number moved up from 3,600 to 3,700.

Government jobs also grew by 100 new positions, growing month-over-month from 6,200 to 6,300. That's the same number of government jobs in the county a year ago.

Other sectors of job creation remained steady.

There are now 22,300 non-farm jobs in Genesee County, compared to 22,100 in February and 21,900 in March 2010.

UPDATED 12:44 p.m.

Genesee County gained 300 non-farm jobs in February over January, according to NYS Department of Labor statistics.

For February 2011, there were 22,200 non-farm jobs reported in Genesee County compared to 21,900 in January.

Meanwhile, the unemployment rate dropped month-over-month from 9 percent to 8.7. That is down from February 2010 when it was 9.5 percent.

That's still higher than the 12-month low of 6.4 percent in August 2010.

The 12-month high in jobs is 24,400 in June 2010.

Month-over-month, manufacturing jobs held steady at 2,800, and up from 2,700 in February 2010.

Private-sector service jobs also held steady at 12,300 -- up from 12,100 in February 2010.

Government jobs grew from 6,000 to 6,300.

There are 33,300 people -- up 100 from January -- in Genesee County's labor force. The total number of people employed is 29,500. That's up 200 from January.

I took the time to survey the GCEDC's annual report for 2009. In this report, they stated that all of the projects involved resulted in a net gain of 415 jobs. I tried to apply logic to this, but failed miserably. And the jobs I did see created, paid peanuts, which is fine for an elephant, but not a family.

Several things jumped out at me as I read this report. First, places I'm familiar with in Leroy, none of which are doing very well. Lapp Insulator had 318 jobs pre-IDA, and now has 144 FTEs (full time employees). Polymil has none. SJQ Properties, the old BOK building, has none. And R.J. Properties went from 82 FTEs to 9 FTEs after they became involved with GCEDC. Or the Creekside, which was to be open by summer 2010, sits vacant.

Jobs that were created, I'm sorry to say, are jobs at Darien Lake that pay $16,000 a year, or at Comfort Inn that pay 12,000 a year. Who could possibly survive on that amount of money? That's a month's salary for Mr. Hyde.

I also don't know how I feel about Assemblyman Hawley's insurance agency benefitting from government assistance. That seems to me to be a poor decision on both sides. To have him speak at the annual meeting with no reference to his own personal benefit seems a tad disingenuous.

While I appreciate the opportunity to view the latest report, I see nothing in there that warrants the extravagant bonuses the GCEDC gave themselves.

http://www.gcedc.com/pdf/reports/2009_OSC_Report.pdf

UPDATED 5:33 p.m. with comments from Steve Hyde.

While Genesee County Economic Development Center officials boast of 1,500 jobs created in the past five years, Department of Labor statistics don't show anything near that rate of job growth.

In 2005, according to labor statistics, there were 23,000 non-farm jobs in Genesee County; in 2010, there were also 23,000.

Since 2001, Genesee County has seen a net gain of 100 non-farm jobs.

That said, during the 2009/2008 recession, Genesee County fared better than the rest of the nation. While Genesee County lost 2.5 percent of its jobs from 2008 to 2010, as a whole the United States shed 5.1 percent of its jobs.

"Considering the past recession (Genesee County's job growth) numbers don’t look so terrible to me," said Tammy Marino, a researcher with the NYS Department of Labor based in Rochester. "They look reasonable compared to the rest of nation."

She added, "(The GCEDC) has probably done good job of bringing new jobs into the community, but it’s hard to see just because of the past recession, what we’ve been through in the past two years."

Steve Hyde, CEO of the EDC, said a lot of what his agency does is just try "stem the tide of decline" sweeping New York State.

"You look at the last 10 years and everyone around the country is shedding jobs and there are 100 more jobs in a recessionary environment than we had 10 years ago, on a relative basis, that’s a win for Genesee County," Hyde said. "New York is ranked the 50th most difficult state to do business in. Until we have systemic change in tax policy and and regulation policy, we're fighting hard just to buffer the tide of decline."

It's also hard, Hyde said, to compare DOL statistics with an EDC's job commitment numbers. Companies that get tax abatement and other assistance make a commitment to create a certain number of jobs over a four-year time frame. When the EDC says it created 1,500 jobs over the past five years, some of those jobs are still in the pipeline and wouldn't show up in labor statistics.

"We're working with companies working to grow or retain jobs," Hyde said. "What we're really trying to do is (incentivize) investments because when investment occurs by a company, it will create a long-term tax base and it builds roots in the community, which will lead to long-term job creation."

District 8 Legislator Hollis Upson, who sits on the GCEDC board, said just looking at the raw numbers doesn't tell the full story of job creation in Genesee County. 

"There's an awful of variables there and I don't know how to reconcile the Department of Labor statistics," Upson said. "If the EDC is creating jobs, they don't make any assumptions or have knowledge of jobs that might have been depleted. We (the county) might have lost 1,500 jobs."

In looking at job growth over the past 10 years, two sectors of employment for Genesee County stand out: Manufacturing, which has lost 800 jobs, and government, which has gained 700 jobs.

Marino said that Genesee County and the entire Rochester region is not immune from what is going on in the rest of the nation. Manufacturing jobs are being lost to free trade and greater efficiency driven by improved technology in factories.

"It doesn’t mean the existing companies are are not viable," Marino said. "But more manufacturers are taking advantage of technology to get more output with fewer workers. That trend has especially hit the metro area. We've had very steep job losses in the most recent years."

Genesee County has probably lost manufacturing jobs, just like the rest of the nation, Upson said, as it competes with China and other nations.

"Even Mexico is complaining now about losing jobs to China," Upson said. "Capital will flow to where the labor is cheaper."

But in the end, Upson said, a job is a job.

"We strive for those (manufacturing jobs)," Upson said. "We like those better then anything because they have the best ripple effect."

But, he added, New York is a mighty hard place to recruit manufacturers. He called New York punitive and overregulated.

"Even though manufacturing jobs would be the nice ones to attract, they are very difficult to do so given the umbrella we're working under in the State of New York," Upson said.

It's that climate that led to the EDC changing its public name about 10 years ago from Genesee Industrial Development Agency to Genesee County Economic Development Center, Upson said.

Genesee County's employment peaked in 2008 at 23,600 non-farm jobs.

The labor department tracks the county's jobs on a monthly basis, and online statistics go back 21 years. For this story, we're using the annual monthly average.

Looking at monthly comparisons, however, in a January-over-January match from 2010 to 2011, statistics show Genesee County picking up 300 jobs, from 21,600 to 21,900.

Typically, there are more jobs in Genesee County during summer months. In August 2010, there were 23,800 jobs. 

Over the past 21 years, the biggest month for non-farm jobs was June 2009 when Genesee County boasted 25,100 jobs.

Meanwhile, new unemployment statistics released this week show the county's unemployment rate rose from 7.9 percent in December to 9 percent in January. A year ago in January, unemployment was 9.6 percent.

As for the county's jump in government workers, Morino speculated that while schools have probably added staff, especially the community college, a lot of Genesee County's government job growth is probably driven by the presence of a Federal Detention Center and a Homeland Security office.

In fact, most of the county's government job growth came in 2002 and 2003 in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.

Western New York, Morino said, tends to remain pretty stable in both good and bad economic times.

"We don’t see any extreme highs and extreme lows," she said. "During the past recession, the auto industry was hit very hard and we didn’t see any of that because we’re not really dependent on the auto industry. Also, housing prices remained stable. We didn’t see that big build up in housing values, and didn’t see them fall either."

The economy seems to be turning around, according to Scott Gage, director of the Genesee County Career Center.

New job orders -- companies posting jobs at the career center -- are up to 80 to 90 a week, nearly double what job orders were last year.

And there are fewer people showing up for the center's weekly unemployment orientation classes.

"Obviously a lot of it is seasonal and service sector jobs, such as Darien Lake, but there is also some manufacturing being done, and some of the food processing people are actually increasing the number of year-around lines, too," Gage said.

He also said there are more supervisor-level jobs coming in.

Gage shared his news during the Ways and Means Committee meeting.

Legislator Ed Dejaneiro added his own anecdotal evidence of a turn-around.

“I received a call yesterday from a guy who has been unemployed for two years, and he just got a job, in Batavia," Dejaneiro said. "A good paying job."

The state's official employment numbers should be out next week.

As factory jobs have moved overseas, Western New Yorkers are making less and less money, according to a recent study from the University of Buffalo.

From 2004 to 2008, low-paying jobs -- those paying less than $30,000 per year -- increased 17 percent, while mid-wage jobs ($30,000 to $70,000) decreased 10 percent.

From the press release:

"These findings portray a new economic reality for Western New York that's in stark contrast to decades past, when the region paid some of the highest wages in the country," said Kathryn A. Foster, economics institute director. "It raises a host of questions about how to build and sustain economic security for Western New Yorkers."

During this same period, good-paying jobs -- above $70,000 -- have increased 6 percent. Those jobs comprise about 8 percent of the workforce, and the other two sectors are split evenly at 46 percent.

The federal poverty line for a single person is $10,830. For two people living together, it's $14,570. According to the report, Penn State’s Living Wage Calculator (meeting basic expenses), a single person should earn $18,300 in Buffalo. A single parent with a 5-year-old child needs $36,000 annually to meet basic needs.

A full-time, minimum wage job pays $15,000 annually. The median income in WNY is $31,080.

In 2008 dollars, a typical factory job from the 1970s might pay $60,000.

The report uses a fictional three-generation family to illustrate how the loss of good-paying factory work has forced both parents in a family of four to work and that family has less to fall back on.

But WNY is not alone. Low-paying service-sector jobs have been growing at about the same rate across the country, according to the report, though those jobs comprise just 43 percent of the work force.

As factories have closed, fewer and fewer workers enjoyed the benefits of organized labor:

"As both cause and reflection of the changing economy and wage structures, the percentage of workers represented by labor unions dropped steadily since the 1950s, from a national high of 35 percent to a current level of 12 percent. Unionization levels in the Buffalo Niagara region have mirrored national trends, particularly as manufacturing jobs have fallen. Yet the region’s unionization levels are consistently above national averages. Metro Buffalo’s 17-percent unionization rate in 2009 for private-sector workers was more than two times the 7-percent private-sector unionization rate for the nation."

Clearly, although the report concentrates on Buffalo as "Western New York," these issues do appear to be regionwide.

Full report available for download (pdf).

Got work? Here's a government press release about temporary jobs only offered every 10 years.

The U.S. Census Bureau is preparing to launch a major recruitment effort to fill hundreds of positions in Genesee County to work on the 2010 Decennial Census.

The newly opened Batavia office of the U.S. Census Bureau has a goal of screening approximately 3,000 applicants between now and April for jobs in suburban and rural Erie County, eastern Genesee and Wyoming counties, and all of Cattaraugus and Chautauqua counties. 

Anyone interested in signing up for the 30-minute qualifying test can call 1-866-861-2010.

The majority of the jobs involve going door-to-door to interview residents who do not send in their 2010 census questionnaire. The starting salary for entry-level field positions is $13 per hour.

For more information regarding census jobs you can go to www.2010censusjobs.gov.

This is from Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand's office.

National Grid USA is considering outsourcing much of its Northeast operations that would result in significant job losses across New York. Gillibrand is urging National Grid to reconsider its plans and keep jobs in New York.

The company is considering outsourcing much of its information-services work, including software programming, computer networking and other functions. One request for proposals (RFP) for outside vendors has already been issued, with possibly three more in the works. The plan could send as many as 1,200 jobs in New York and New England overseas.

Yet National Grid USA made nearly $1.5 billion in profits last year, due in large part to the quality American workforce it relies on.

In a letter to National Grid President Tom King, Gillibrand wrote:

“In this economic time, it is very disconcerting to hear that any company would consider outsourcing its jobs to overseas businesses when we have a competent and capable workforce here in the United States. A workforce that you have been utilizing since 2002.  It is even more upsetting to know that a company who made $1.43 billion in profits last year would look for ways to cut costs by reducing it employees.”

The senator is working with businesses in all sectors in all regions of the state to keep their workforces in New York, and she is working on new legislation that would encourage businesses to start hiring again – putting New Yorkers back to work.

A lot of times, people think of life-science workers as some nerds in white lab coats enthralled with Petri dishes and gaseous vials of God-knows-what simmering on Bunsen burners.

Of course, that's a stereotype and one that regional educators, employers and professionals are actively working to erase. They have a plan as to how to accomplish this and to enlightened people about the plethora of job opportunities available in life sciences.

The cornerstone was announced Tuesday by the Genesee County Economic Development Center. It's dubbed "iSciWNY," a collaborative effort out of the University of New York at Buffalo.

Touted as a "comprehensive life-sciences workforce development program," it's designed to prepare Western New Yorkers -- not just scientists -- for new positions in the region’s growing life-sciences industry.

Its funded in part by the Genesee County Economic Development Center (GCEDC) through a workforce development grant by the NYS Department of Labor (DOL).

iSciWNY uses its Web site, workshops, training programs and popular Career Pathways kit to demystify the life-sciences industry for Western New Yorkers and prepare them for jobs, whether they’re high school students looking for their first job or established professionals looking for a new challenge.

Through the DOL grant, the GCEDC was able to provide funding for Web site development as well as money to train nearly 50 teachers in Genesee, Livingston, Orleans, Wyoming, Monroe and Steuben counties. Funding and support was also provided to Genesee Community College (GCC) for two summer programs that trained 80 regional students in life sciences. Those students also earned seven college credits upon completion.

iSciWNY is available at no charge to Western New York organizations and individuals. According to Marnie LaVigne, Ph.D. -- director of business development at UB’s Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics and Life Sciences, and co-developer of iSciWNY -- many regional residents are unaware of the extraordinary diversity of the life-sciences industry here.

This includes companies that develop and test everything from powerful, new drugs and innovative medical devices to computational tools and new research and development methods.

“The iSciWNY slogan, ‘Stay here, go far,’ means that thanks to our growing life-sciences industry, Western New Yorkers can stay here and find successful careers in many more fields than the typical laboratory position people picture,” she said.

“It is incredibly rewarding to be involved in a career with great opportunities at all levels, in technical and nontechnical jobs that offer professional advancement, while helping people live better, healthier lives through innovative products and services.”

GCEDC’s President and CEO Steven G Hyde explained how iSciWNY has been launched and piloted in the GLOW region.

“We have had great collaboration with our local partners including GCC, the Business Education Alliance and Genesee Valley BOCES, along with the 22 school districts it serves. With our grant dollars, we were able to hire John Jakubowski, a well-known local educator, to implement iSciWNY materials into our schools and he’s done an excellent job.”

According to its developers at the UB Center of Excellence and the Educational Opportunity Center, iSciWNY is a unique program nationally because of the way it addresses workforce development needs.

“iSciWNY creates a pipeline approach,” says LaVigne. “It links all the organizations that need to be involved to develop a skilled workforce – whether through advising, educating training or employment – with the community-at-large.”

She added that other regions statewide and across the nation have expressed interest in using isciWNY as a model.

For more information, please visit  HYPERLINK "http://www.isciwny.com" http://www.isciwny.com

This information stems from a GCEDC press release.

Roughly 15 people lost good-paying jobs this week at Batavia-based Graham Corp.. The across-the-board cuts were a necessary belt-tightening measure in the midst of a lackluster economy.

That's according to Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Jeff Glajch, who confirmed the rumored layoffs this afternoon.

"I feel sorry for the workers," he said. "But we needed to adjust to the marketplace in this sluggish economy. Things aren't getting worse, but they aren't getting better either."

It's the second round of job cuts this year. Slightly more than 10 percent of the engineering and manufacturing company's workforce was eliminated in January. 

That amounted to about 30 jobs at a time when the company was facing a 40-percent loss in revenue, the CFO said. Nonetheless, in May it received Empire Zone tax incentives.

It is the rare, if not the only, publicly traded company in Batavia, with offices and a production plant at 20 Florence Ave.. It has been in business since World War II.

It engineers and makes vacuum and heat-transfer equipment that has broad applications, from making synthetic fibers, petroleum products, electric power and fertilizer, to processing food, pharmaceuticals, paper and steel. Half its good are sold abroad.

Things were going great guns for Graham by mid-2008, when it made Business Week's list of the fastest-growing small companies.

China and other foreign markets' thirst for oil in 2007-08 created a robust demand for Graham's goods. Orders placed then continued to have a postive impact on the company's finances over the first three fiscal quarters of 2008-09 (the company's fiscal year runs April 1 through March 31).

At its peak, it had more than 300 employees and its stock was trading at a high of $50.98 a share. Its stock closed today at $14.68 a share.

As with other industries, the orders tapered off and the forecast today is a question mark. Looking ahead, the CFO said he hopes there won't be pink slips come December, but "I can't promise anything, we have to wait and see."