By Mark Scott
Albany, NY – The Buffalo area's unemployment rate dropped in March.
The number of people out of work here dropped to 6.5 percent last month, down six-tenths of a point from the February figure.
The state Labor Department report says 3,800 local jobs have been lost in the past year.
Statewide, unemployment was unchanged in New York State from February to March, remaining steady at 5.9 percent.
Upstate private-sector jobs declined 0.7 percent since March 2001, less than half the rate of decline in the nation. Upstate job losses were concentrated in manufacturing, down 7.2 percent.
State officials said the recession and the economic fallout from Sept. 11 are to blame for the state's declining employment numbers in the past year.