The Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL) reported Thursday that the preliminary unadjusted unemployment rate in the Three Rivers area was unchanged at 11.1 percent from April to May. Meanwhile, the number of unemployed workers in the area increased to 24,607, up 144 from 24,463 in April.
The state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate declined to 10.2 percent in May, down one-tenth of a percentage point from a revised 10.3 percent in April. However, the jobless rate remains seven-tenths of a percentage point higher than the 9.5 percent at this same time last year. This is the 32nd consecutive month Georgia has exceeded the national unemployment rate, which is now 9.7 percent. The jobless rate in the Three Rivers area in May 2009 was also 11.1 percent.
Statewide, 57,919 laid-off workers filed initial claims, a decline of 17,517, or 23.2 percent, from 75,436 filed in May 2009. Most of the first-time claims were filed in wholesale and retail trade, manufacturing, construction, and administrative and support services.
State Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond said, “We will not see a significant improvement in Georgia’s job market until small businesses begin hiring, which will lay a solid foundation for a sustainable economic recovery.”
The state showed a modest increase in new jobs in May for the fourth consecutive month. The number of jobs increased 24,700, or seven-tenths of a percentage point, from 3,818,700 in April to 3,843,400. However, the number of jobs remains less than in May 2009, when there were 3,911,400 payroll jobs, 1.7 percent, or 68,000 more than this year.
