Jefferson County, NY jobs, unemployment and layoffs

Jefferson County’s unemployment rate is 4.2%. Employers filed 1 layoff notices here in the last 12 months. 20 open professional jobs are in its cities.

Jefferson County economy

4.2%
unemployment, Aug 2026
4.3% the month before
47,148
in the labor force
Source: BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics
116,130
people in Jefferson County
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
$64,978
median household income
Source: Census ACS
35%
of workers in white-collar occupations
Management, business, financial and professional; Census ACS

Jefferson County layoffs

1
WARN layoff notices, last 12 months
30
workers named
A floor: states may leave out counts
1
employer

WARN notices filed in Jefferson County, newest first
Notice date	Employer	City or county	Workers	Type	Source
Feb 10, 2026	Mizkan America, Inc.Takes effect May 11, 2026	Orleans	30	Layoff	State record

All layoff notices in the state

Employers hiring most in Jefferson County

Employers with the most open professional roles in this county’s cities. The county is taken from each job’s city, so roles with no city are not counted.

Colas4 open roles
Colas Rail3 open roles
Nexstar Media Group3 open roles
Nexstar2 open roles
Aldi US1 open role
Allient1 open role
Amazon1 open role
Charter Communications1 open role
Current USA1 open role
Jefferson-Lewis-Hamilton-Herkimer-Oneida BOCES1 open role

Workforce development and job centers

The public workforce board and American Job Centers serving Jefferson County. They offer free help with job search, training and filing for benefits.

Jefferson-Lewis Workforce Development Board
Jefferson, Lewis

The WorkPlace - Jefferson County
Watertown · Comprehensive · 315-782-9252
Monday - Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Cities in Jefferson County

Watertown20 jobs
Orleans

Other New York counties

All of New York

Laid off or looking for work in Jefferson County?

See what to do first and the jobs open near you.

See your options after a layoff

Sources: Census Bureau and BLS (county unemployment is not seasonally adjusted); WARN notices from New York’s published record; job counts from our live job board; IPEDS for colleges; CareerOneStop for workforce boards and job centers.