New York state's private sector added more than 27,000 jobs last month as hiring continued on a similar pace with the rest of the country despite spiking inflation. 

The state's overall unemployment rate declined from 4.5% in April to 4.4% in May, according to the state Department of Labor on Thursday. 

New York's private sector jobs count increased by 0.3%, the same rate as the rest of the country. New York's unemployment rate overall still remains higher than the rest of the country, which stood at 3.6% in May. 

New York City's jobless picture continues to be higher than the rest of the state as a whole. Outside of the city, the unemployment rate is 3.1%, unchanged from a month ago. In New York City itself, however, it stood at 6.2% in May, a decrease from 6.4% in April. 

New York City was hit especially hard by the economic freeze in 2020 meant to contain the spread of COVID-19 at the onset of the pandemic. Restaurant, tourism and other hospitality-related businesses suffered as a result. 

New York has steadily seen its jobless picture improve over the last year in a tight labor market. In May 2021, unemployment stood at 7%.