Georgia’s September unemployment rate holds steady at 5.8 percent

ATLANTA – The Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL) announced Thursday morning that the state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in September was 5.8 percent, unchanged from August. The preliminary August rate had been reported earlier at 5.9 percent, but was revised downward.  The state rate was 6.9 percent in September 2014. 

“While the unemployment rate held steady in September, our employers continued to grow jobs,” said State Labor Commissioner Mark Butler. “We saw 9,100 jobs created in September, which is one-and-a-half times the number we’ve averaged from August to September for the last three years.  We created well over 80,000 jobs over the year.” 

The number of jobs in Georgia increased to 4,269,400 in September, up 0.2 percent, from August. Much of the growth, 5,400 jobs, came in state and local government, as public schools reopened. Education and health services added 3,200 jobs. Additional gains include: manufacturing, 2,100; trade, transportation and warehousing, 900; other services, 700; leisure and hospitality, 500; information services, 400; and construction, 200. The job gains were offset somewhat by losses in professional and business services, 3,400, and financial activities, 700. Over the previous three years, the state has gained an average of 6,000 jobs from August to September. 

There were 84,200, or 2.0 percent, more jobs than in September 2014. Most of the job growth in Georgia came in trade, transportation and warehousing, 26,100; leisure and hospitality, 17,700; education and health services, 15,100; professional and business services, 12,800; government, 5,600; manufacturing, 2,800; financial activities, 1,900; information services, 1,400; and construction, 1,100.   

The number of initial claims for unemployment insurance, a measure of new layoffs, rose by 593 or 2.3 percent, to 26,928 in September, mostly due to an increase in temporary claims filed in manufacturing.   

However, over the year, claims were down by 3,271, or 10.8 percent, from 30,199 filed in September 2014. The decline came in a number of industries, including accommodations and food services, administrative and support services, manufacturing, health care and social assistance, and transportation and warehousing.     

From August to September, the state’s labor force decreased by 2,830 to 4,729,247.       

Butler urged job seekers to use the GDOL’s job listing service, www.employgeorgia.com, where 66,845 jobs were posted throughout the state in September.