Long Island up 12,100 jobs in year

The Long Island economy had 12,100 more private-sector jobs in February of this year than it had the year before, according to preliminary data just released by the state Labor Department.

It was the second-biggest jump  since the Island's economy started adding jobs again in July 2010, after a nearly two-year drought. The biggest jump was in the November period, when 13,000 jobs were added.

But the latest private-sector number, a 0.9% increase, to 990,100, was weakened by the loss of 1,500 jobs in the public, or government sector.

The private-sector number jumped significantly from the 5,600 jobs reported for the January period. The department will release the local unemployment rate in a separate report on Tuesday. 

Photo: Participants in a job fair at Hofstra University earlier this month. 

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