Cayuga County's unemployment rate continued its gradual decline in May, even as the state recorded its largest one-month increase in joblessness in more than 30 years.

The state Department of Labor on Thursday said that Cayuga County's unemployment rate in May was 8 percent, down from 8.4 percent in April and 9.6 percent in March. The percentage is still higher than the same month a year ago, 4.9 percent, but still better than the state average.

The state data for Cayuga County are not adjusted for normal seasonal fluctuations.

The number of New Yorkers out of work reached a 16-year high in May, reaching 800,000. The jump from April to May -- 51,000 -- is the largest one-month increase in state joblessness since July 1976.

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for the state increased from 7.7 percent in April to 8.2 percent in May, up considerably from 5.2 percent in May 2008.

In Cayuga County, about 3,400 people were unemployed in May, down from about 3,500 in April.