Employment in New York State MAY 2018 At a Glance The death of traditional retailing is greatly exaggerated… New York State had 9,602,700 total nonfarm jobs in March 2018, including 8,152,500 private sector jobs, after New Mantra at the Mall: More Lifestyle, Less Retail seasonal adjustment. The state’s seasonally adjusted private sector job “We’re starting to see … the pendulum swing and offline sellers is becoming less clear. count increased by 200, or less than back to (brick-and-mortar) retailing, but it will We also show how some malls in New 0.1%, in February-March 2018, while the look different than in the past." York State adapt to the changing retail nation’s job count increased by 0.1% over Reid Greenberg, Executive VP, landscape by embracing a formula of this period. From March 2017 to March Kantar Consulting “more lifestyle and less retail” to keep 2018, the number of private sector jobs “Stores are still vitally important. But the people coming back. increased by 1.3% in the state and by 1.8% influence of digital touchpoints is huge." in the nation (not seasonally adjusted). ‘Retail Apocalypse’ Exaggerated Fiona Swerdlow, VP and Research Director, U.S. sales at department stores fell over In March 2018, New York State’s seasonally Forrester Research the year by $2.8 billion, or 1.8%, to $151.9 adjusted unemployment rate remained There has been a lot of press lately about billion in 2017. By comparison, sales at unchanged at 4.6%. The comparable rate the “demise of retail.” While online retailers online merchants in the U.S. grew by 16.0% for the nation in March 2018 was 4.1%. have captured a larger slice of retail sales that year. New York State’s seasonally adjusted labor over time, online sales figures can mislead. Macy’s and Sears Holdings, the parent force participation rate decreased from 60.7% To calculate e-commerce sales, the U.S. company of Sears and Kmart stores, in February 2018 to 60.6% in March 2018. government includes, among other things, continue to close locations. Over the past shipping and handling costs, mail-order 18 months, several retail chains, including prescription drug sales, and online Wet Seal, The Limited, Bon-Ton and Toys purchases from brick-and-mortar retailers. Change in Nonfarm Jobs “R” Us filed for bankruptcy and were March 2017 - March 2018 Here, we look at the current shift in retailing. eventually liquidated. (Data not seasonally adjusted, net change We note that the boundary between online in thousands) Continued on page 2 Net % In March... Total Nonfarm Jobs 105.9 1.1% ...NYS private sector jobs increased ...NYS unemployment rate held steady Private Sector 105.3 1.3% 8,170 In 000s 5.0 Percent Goods-producing 2.9 0.4% NYS Nat. res. & mining 0.1 2.2% Number of Private Sector 8,120 4.6 Construction 5.3 1.5% Jobs USA Unemployment Manufacturing -2.5 -0.6% Rates Durable gds. -3.5 -1.4% 8,070 4.2 Nondurable gds. 1.0 0.5% Seasonally adjusted Seasonally adjusted Service-providing 103.0 1.2% 8,020 3.8 Trade, trans. & util. 10.7 0.7% M A M J J A S O N D J F M M A M J J A S O N D J F M 2017 2018 2017 2018 Wholesale trade 3.7 1.1% Retail trade 5.0 0.5% ...NYS unemployment decreased ...NYS LF participation rate decreased Trans., wrhs. & util. 2.0 0.7% 463 In 000s 61.3 Percent Information 0.2 0.1% Financial activities 9.3 1.3% 458 61.0 Prof. & bus. svcs. 30.4 2.4% Labor Force Educ. & health svcs. 36.4 1.8% 453 Total 60.7 Participation Unemployment Leisure & hospitality 8.8 1.0% Rate Other services 6.6 1.6% Seasonally adjusted Seasonally adjusted 448 60.4 Government 0.6 0.0% M A M J J A S O N D J F M M A M J J A S O N D J F M 2017 2018 2017 2018 EMPLOYMENT IN NEW YORK STATE MAYAPRIL 2018 2015 Focus on the North Country Energy Farming in the North Country By Anthony Hayden, Labor Market Analyst, North Country Region The New York State Energy Plan calls for The northern tier of the region has already 50% of the state’s electricity to come from begun to leverage these resources. renewable energy sources – such as wind, Applications for three large projects – the solar and hydroelectric – by 2030. The North Bull Run Energy Center (Clinton County), “The North Country will play a major role in Country, with its unique landscape, will play Galloo Island Wind (Jefferson County) and New York’s long-term efforts to expand the a key role in helping New York to meet its Number Three Wind Farm (Lewis County) state’s green energy sector." renewable energy goals. – are already under review. Atlantic Wind has also submitted proposals for several running under Lake Champlain will be Renewable Energy Overview projects, including North Ridge Wind Farm replaced to increase the reliability of the The North Country currently ranks among the (St. Lawrence County), Deer Run Wind Farm state’s electrical transmission system and to state’s top producers of renewable energy. (Lewis and Jefferson counties) and Mad River provide better access to renewable power. It has produced green energy for many decades. Wind Farm (Jefferson and Oswego counties). These upgrades will certainly create jobs. The region’s ties with large-scale renewable They are all part of a broader multimillion- energy trace back to 1958, with the opening Although they produce less power than wind farms, solar farms are growing at a faster dollar program to update the power line of the St. Lawrence-Franklin Delano infrastructure in New York State. Roosevelt Power Project and the Moses- rate in the region, increasing by 525% from Saunders Power Dam in St. Lawrence County. 2011 to 2017. Solar programs are increasing Another potential job creator is the proposed Both are cooperative projects between the capacity by providing incentives for installation. $260 million Pumped Storage Power Project U.S. and Canada. State and federal tax credits can reduce the in Essex County. This project would use cost of solar installations by 40%. abandoned iron mines to produce electricity New York State is the largest hydroelectric Green Energy Jobs by moving water from high elevation mines power producer east of the Rockies. It ranks through 100 turbines to lower elevation mines. Wind farm construction projects typically fourth in the nation in the generation of The project, one of the first of its type in the create several hundred temporary jobs, electricity from hydropower and fifth in country, would enable the storage of excess depending upon their size and scope. renewable energy production. The lion’s renewable power. As the power grid moves Associated job titles include laborers, heavy share of that production comes from the from centralized power plants to distributed equipment operators, electricians, linemen, North Country. power from wind farms, solar farms and electrical engineers and electrical engineering residential solar installations, the need to Wind and Solar Production Grow technologists. In contrast, the daily operations move and store power grows. The region continues to expand its of an established wind farm typically require renewable energy portfolio as wind and only a few permanent workers, with titles such Summing Up solar farms have opened in recent years. as site managers, administrative staff and wind Going forward, the North Country will play With eight wind farms in operation, the North turbine technicians. a major role in New York’s long-term efforts Country accounts for more than half of the Nevertheless, green energy infrastructure to expand the state’s green energy sector. state’s wind-generated energy. Maple Ridge While the region has been producing Wind Farm in Lewis County is the largest projects typically create a significant number of jobs. For example, the Moses-Adirondack hydroelectric power for many decades, the wind farm in the state. The region’s low more recent addition of wind and solar power population density and open space provide Smart Path Reliability Project will replace 78 miles of power lines running between St. production has placed it among the state’s enormous potential for future renewable largest green energy producers. energy projects. Lawrence and Lewis counties. Power lines New Mantra at the Mall… from page 1 These rather grim statistics might suggest expected sales during the holiday shopping for 4% of the $5 trillion U.S. retail market, has that traditional retailing is on life support. season in 2017. done so. This year, the company opened its However, a 2016 survey from PwC is first no-cashier grocery store, called Amazon Some chains have become “omni-channel” more encouraging. It found that while most Go, in Seattle. Amazon also bought upscale retailers; they sell both online and offline. shoppers now prefer to research products grocery store chain Whole Foods for $13.7 So the line that divides traditional retailers online, the store remains the favorite place billion in 2017. from online sellers has begun to blur. Some old- to buy in almost all product categories. line stores have bought online sellers to More Lifestyle, Less Retail Also, online transactions accounted for less boost their web presence and reach more than 9% of all retail sales in the U.S. in 2017. The U.S. has much more retail space per customers. For example, Walmart has In short, most shoppers still choose brick- capita than most other developed nations.