New York state's economy added 15,000 private-sector jobs last month, a 0.2% increase as the overall unemployment rate remained unchanged, the state Department of Labor on Thursday announced. 

In a sign of a mixed result for the state, the number of unemployed people in New York increased by 1,900 in June. 

The state has slowly regained jobs lost during the initial months of COVID-19 pandemic in spring 2020, though nowhere near as quickly as the rest of the country. 

The June unemployment stood at 3.9%, essentially unchanged since May. Labor force participation has increased from 61% to 61.2% between May and June.

While New York has played catch-up with the nation as a whole, the state's job growth has started to surpass the rest of the U.S. private sector jobs in New York increased at a slightly faster clip, as did the more expansive category of non-farm employment. 

Nevertheless, the U.S. unemployment rate overall stood lower than New York's at 3.6%. 

A less bright spot for New York, too, is the New York City jobs picture. Unemployment in New York City increased from 5.3% to 5.4% last month while outside of the city the jobless rate stood at 2.9%.