Hudson Valley jobs hit record high, Orange-Dutchess area declines

Orange County slipped into the Hudson Valley’s weakest pocket even as the region’s private sector climbed to a record 862,700 jobs in May 2026. The Orange-Dutchess area lost ground while Rockland County led the region with 3.2 percent year-over-year growth, a split that leaves Orange County lagging neighbors that are still hiring.

Across the 12 months ending in May, Hudson Valley private-sector employment rose by 9,400 jobs, a 1 percent increase, according to the New York State Department of Labor. The May total of 862,700 private jobs was the highest on record for the region dating back to 2000, a milestone driven by gains in mining, logging and construction, private education and health services, financial activities, leisure and hospitality, trade, transportation and utilities, and professional and business services. New York’s private sector added 11,800 jobs in May, so the Hudson Valley’s increase came as part of a broader statewide uptick.

The regional numbers show a labor market that is still expanding, but not evenly. Rockland County posted the fastest private-sector growth, followed by Sullivan, Westchester and Ulster counties. Putnam County was flat. In contrast, the Orange-Dutchess area was where losses were concentrated, a warning sign for Orange County employers trying to gauge how much hiring power remains close to home. When one part of the Hudson Valley is setting records and another is softening, the difference can show up quickly in local job postings, commute patterns and how confident businesses feel about adding staff.

The May report fits a larger pattern seen in the department’s April briefing. At that point, Hudson Valley private-sector employment had reached 850,300, also a record for April dating back to 2000, and the region’s unemployment rate stood at 3.4 percent, below New York State’s 4.2 percent. April gains were broad-based, led by private education and health services, trade, transportation and utilities, financial activities, professional and business services, leisure and hospitality, mining, logging and construction, and manufacturing. Sullivan County had led that earlier month with 3.6 percent growth, while losses were centered in the Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh MSA and Putnam County.

The Department of Labor says the Hudson Valley region includes Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster and Westchester counties, and it operates 11 career centers across those counties for job seekers and businesses. For Orange County, the latest figures matter because they show a local economy that is not moving in lockstep with the rest of the Hudson Valley, even as the region as a whole keeps setting benchmarks.