The unemployment numbers in Newnan and Coweta County continue to fall as 2011 wears on. Newnan’s jobless rate in March fell to just over 10 percent while the jobless rate in Coweta hovered just above 9 percent.
Newnan’s jobless rate dropped six-tenths of a point in March, falling to 10.2 percent from the 10.8 percent rate in February. Just a year ago the rate was 11.5 percent. The current figures released this week by the Georgia Dept. of Labor means that 1,365 people in a workforce of 13,371 are without work.
The unemployment rate in Coweta during March also showed relatively significant improvement, with the jobless numbers dropping from 9.5 percent in February to 9.1 percent in March. That decrease translates to 5,421 people out of work in a workforce of 59,517. Coweta’s unemployment rate in March 2010 was 10.5 percent.
The 10-county Three Rivers area also saw a significant decrease in jobless numbers during March. The 11.3 percent rate from February fell to 10.8 percent in March, a full half-percent drop during the month. The 10.8 percent rate equates to nearly 24,000 people out of work in a workforce of 221,583. The Three Rivers unemployment rate in March 2010 was 11.7 percent.
The jobless rate across Georgia also declined in March. Figures from February showed 10.2 percent of the state’s workforce of 4.7 million out of work. But in March that 10.2 percent rate fell to 9.8 percent, or 458,883 people without work. The March rate compares to the 10.1 percent rate a year ago.
And finally, the unemployment rate nationwide also saw a decrease in March. The 9.5 percent rate in February decreased to 9.2 percent in March. That figure represents 14 million people out of work.
Government unemployment figures do not take into account the number of people under-employed, those who can only find part-time jobs. Estimates by private polling firms vary, though several continue to list the under-employment rate at 15-19 percent of the workforce.
