December 7, 1985

Three million New York City residents were employed last month, the most in 12 years, the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics reported yesterday. And, the Government said, the city's unemployment rate for November was 7.3 percent - the lowest for the month since 1973. Samuel M. Ehrenhalt, the bureau's regional commissioner, said most of the job growth had occurred in the service industries and wholesale and retail trade, along with gains in government jobs. ''You are seeing the strength of the economy and the growth capacity that was in question during the 1970's for New York City,'' he said. ''I would give only two cheers for these figures, though, not three, because the manufacturing industry has not done as well.''

Britain signed an accord today with the United States allowing it to take part in research on an American missile-defense system. The pact, signed here by Defense Secretary Caspar W. Weinberger, was the the first such agreement that the United States has reached with any of its allies. The two Governments agreed that the terms of the accord would be kept secret ''in perpetuity.'' 'Real Jobs' Seen for Britain But Michael Heseltine, Britain's Defense Minister, said he was satisfied that there would be ''real opportunities, real contracts and real jobs'' for British science and industry.

Over the next few months, millions of New Yorkers will find light blue printed ballots in their mail boxes from New York Telephone asking them to vote for their favorite long distance phone company. The company will announce Wednesday that people who receive the ballots - those who have not yet chosen a long distance service - have just 30 days to vote and thus choose a long distance company. If they do not, the telephone company will select a long distance company for them. The ballot, sounding something like a warning on an overdue bill, says: ''Failure to respond will result in a long distance company being randomly assigned to you. This assignment will NOT be based on your particular calling needs.'' In short, the rules have changed. New York Telephone and the nation's other regional telephone companies have abandoned previous efforts to cajole telephone users into choosing a long distance company. New Jersey and Connecticut residents will receive similar ballots in the coming months.

Secretary of State George P. Shultz said today that the United States might take ''further steps'' on behalf of anti-Government rebels in Nicaragua. He said the action would be in response to what he called ''incontrovertible evidence'' that Cuban military advisers had become increasingly involved in combat against the American-backed insurgents. At a news conference, Mr. Shultz was not specific about these ''steps.'' But he strongly suggested that the Administration might ask for a prompt vote by Congress for military aid to the rebels to supplement the $27 million in what is defined as humanitarian aid permitted by current law.

House and Senate negotiators reached an ''agreement in principle'' today on legislation to require a balanced budget by 1991, ending a two-month struggle. The legislation, which first passed the Senate in early October, would set a series of declining ceilings on the deficit that would reach zero by 1991. The plan specified that if Congress and the White House could not agree on spending cuts and tax increases to reduce deficits to the annual ceilings, the President would be required to make spending reductions that would fall half in the military budget and half in domestic spending. Exemptions From Automatic Cuts Social Security, veterans' pensions, seven programs for the poor and interest on the national debt would be exempt from these automatic spending cuts. The automatic cuts would be limited in several health assistance programs and in Medicare, the health insurance program for the elderly.