Federal payroll statistics show strong employment growth in two areas of New Jersey — north and south.

Bruce Bergman, regional economist with the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics's New York-New Jersey Office, said there was over-the-year employment growth about about 2% in Hudson, Bergen and Passaic counties.

"Payroll numbers show that construction is booming in those three counties," he said Wednesday. "These are construction employers. So they could actually have sites outside Hudson, Bergen and Passaic. It could be anywhere in the New York metro area."

He says strong employment growth was also measured in Ocean City in goods-producing industries and transportation.

"Before I looked at the numbers, I thought that it was all basically centered in accommodation and food services, something related to the tourist industry or something like that. And I look at the numbers and I see that there were increases in goods-producing industries. There are other (gains) in transportation. So it looks like it is throughout the Ocean City economy. It definitely looks like things are picking up."

New Jersey's unemployment rate as of August is at a record low of of 3.2%.

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