Private employers in New York City hired more than 65,000 workers from February 2011 to February 2012 according to the New York State Department of Labor.  New figures released on Thursday also showed that during the same period, private companies in the state added over 138,000 jobs.

It confirms recent trends that job growth in New York City has been steadily improving.

Analysis by real estate investment firm Eastern Consolidated found that from January to February, employment increased by 9,800.  That same analysis found the city added nearly 35,000 jobs since the start of the year.

But for the second month in a row, those gains were not reflected in the unemployment rate, which increased to 9.6 percent from 9.3 percent last month. The discrepancy is explained by the differing methodologies in the two data sets.  The number of jobs created or lost comes is calculated through surveys of employers and their payrolls.  The unemployment rate is measured through surveys of individuals who are asked if they are working or looking for work.  While the two reports usually work in tandem — an increase in jobs leads to a decrease in unemployment — they can give different results.

The restaurant industry saw the biggest gain with 3,800 new jobs last month. That sector is now nearly 17 percent larger than in the trough of the city’s recession in September 2009.

Surprisingly, the private education industry lost 5,300 jobs, after adding 5,000 in January. It’s been the most volatile industry over the last 18 months. The securities industry also suffered losses, though on a much smaller scale — 900 jobs.