Georgia Mountains’ Unemployment Rate Declines to 4.6 Percent in August

Sept. 22, 2016

ATLANTA – The Georgia Department of Labor announced today that the unemployment rate in the Georgia Mountains region in August was 4.6 percent, down two-tenths of a percentage point from 4.8 percent in July. The rate in August 2015 was 5 percent.

The rate fell as employers laid off fewer workers. The number of initial claims for unemployment insurance declined by 1,065 or 42 percent, to 1,472 in August. Most of the decrease came in manufacturing and administrative and support services, which includes temporary staffing agencies. Over the year, claims were up by 254, or 20.9 percent, from 1,218 in August 2015.

Also, the labor force in the Georgia Mountains region, which consists of employed residents and those who are unemployed, but actively looking for jobs, declined by 2,128 to 322,453 in August. The number of employed residents decreased by 1,274 to 307,690, while the number of unemployed fell by 854 to 14,763.

Metro Gainesville had the lowest area jobless rate at 4.4 percent, while the Heart of Georgia-Altamaha region had the highest at 6.6 percent.

Meanwhile, Georgia’s seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate for August was 4.9 percent, down from 5 percent in July. It was 5.6 percent in August 2015.

Job seekers and employers are encouraged to use the GDOL’s online job listing service,www.employgeorgia.com to search for jobs or recruit new employers. In August, 2,060 new job openings in the Georgia Mountains region were posted on Employ Georgia. Throughout the state, 62,839 new job openings were posted.

Local area unemployment data are not seasonally adjusted. Georgia labor market data are available atwww.dol.georgia.gov

To learn more about career opportunities, Employ Georgia and other GDOL services for job seekers and employers, and to connect with us on social media, visit www.dol.georgia.gov

DATA FOR THE METRO AREAS ARE ATTACHED, TABLES AND GRAPHS REFLECTING LABOR MARKET DATA ARE AVAILABLE AT http://dol.georgia.gov/current-labor-force-data-and-graphs