NEW YORK (PIX11) — While national March jobs numbers released today beat expectations, New York City’s job market is stagnant and losing workers.

“We have got to turn this trend around, we have to increase hiring in the city,” said NYC Comptroller Mark Levine. “This has to be a place where companies wanna locate, where they want to invest, where they want to grow.”

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Levine has been sounding the alarm about the city’s job market for about a month now. Now he says a new concrete number from the state labor department backs up his concern.

Over roughly the past year, from January 2025 to January 2026, New York City has lost a little more than 6,000 jobs. In the private sector alone, the city has lost nearly 20,000 jobs.

The expectation from economists had been that the city would gain tens of thousands of jobs.

The data also shows it is particularly tough for young people just out of college to find work in the city.

“So this to me is a cause of concern,” Levine said. “We are not creating jobs, and we see risk ahead with the tariffs and this horrible war and AI. I think jobs should be a much bigger topic of conversation in New York City right now.”

So far, Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s focus when it comes to the economy has been about equality– pointing to big upcoming events like the World Cup and saying he wants all parts of the city to benefit.

His team also argues that his investments in universal childcare will help boost the city’s economy.

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“Th same city that is the wealthiest city in the wealthiest country in the history of the world has one-in-four people living in poverty,” Mamdani said this week when asked about building out his economic team.

The Mayor said he just spoke to the administration that delivers opportunities to everyone

However, the conversation about our jobs is not happening in a vacuum. Mayor Mamdani is pushing for a tax increase on millionaires, and businesses admit a multibillion-dollar budget deficit. State lawmakers are trying to figure out if that would be a good idea as part of the budget process.

“Because of federal cuts to infrastructure and clean energy, chaotic tariffs, and economic uncertainty, job growth has stalled nationwide,” said Deputy Mayor of Economic Justice Julie Su. “The Mamdani administration is responding by building a stronger, fairer economy here in New York City. By leveraging public land, capital, contracting power, and the talent of millions of workers, we are making it easier to build, grow new industries, and create good jobs in every borough. The administration has targeted investments at our small business community by expanding loan programs and cutting red tape that drives up costs. Expanding child care and building affordable housing are pro-growth economic policy. They make New York a more attractive place to invest, and these policies make it possible for more New Yorkers to work, build wealth, and live with dignity.”

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