Unemployment numbers in Fayette and Coweta counties are finally moving in the right direction – down. Jobless figures for both counties dropped nearly a full point in September after rising during the summer months.
It was during the summer that Coweta’s unemployment rate rose to 8 percent and Fayette’s rose to 7.5 percent. A slight decrease in jobless numbers occurred in August in both counties, but figures released by the Ga. Dept. of Labor showed significant improvement in September.
Fayette County’s unemployment rate dropped nearly a full point from 7.6 percent in August to 6.8 percent in September. That drop equates to 3,569 people out of work in a workforce of 52,554.
In Coweta, the 7.8 percent unemployment rate in August decreased to 7 percent in September, again almost a full percentage point. Coweta’s rate in September translated into 4,454 people out of work in a workforce of 63,692.
Unemployment numbers in Peachtree City also declined sharply in September to 6.7 percent compared to the 7.6 percent rate in August.
Similarly in Newnan, the August rate of 9 percent dropped to 8.1 percent in September.
The 10-county Atlanta Regional Commission area which includes Fayette also saw a significant drop in unemployment in September. The 8 percent rate in August gave way to a rate of 7.3 percent in September.
The 10-county Three Rivers Commission area which includes Coweta saw an August rate of 8.9 percent fall to 7.9 percent in September.
Meanwhile statewide, Georgia’s unemployment rate in September fell to 7.5 percent compared to a rate of 8.2 percent in August. The September figures represents nearly 355,000 people out of work in a workforce of 4.75 million.
