The Georgia Department of Labor announced today that the unemployment rate in the Three Rivers region in February was 5.8 percent, down two-tenths of a percentage point from 6 percent in January. The rate in February 2015 was 6.8 percent.
The rate declined as the number of initial claims for unemployment insurance decreased in the region by 3,315, or 66.5 percent, to 1,673 in February. Most of the decrease came in manufacturing, administrative and support services, and wholesale and retail trade, along with construction. Also, over the year, claims were down by 276, or 14.2 percent, from 1,949 in February 2015.
Metro Gainesville had the lowest area jobless rate at 4.6 percent, while the Heart of Georgia-Altamaha and River Valley regions had the highest at 7.1 percent.
Meanwhile, Georgia’s seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate for February was 5.4 percent, unchanged from January. It was 6.2 percent in February 2015.
State Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said job seekers and employers should use the GDOL’s online job listing service at www.employgeorgia.com to search for jobs or recruit new employees. In February, 2,053 jobs in the Three Rivers area were posted on Employ Georgia. Throughout the state, 77,004 jobs were posted.
Local area unemployment data are not seasonally adjusted. Georgia labor market data are available at www.dol.georgia.gov.
