State breaks 10 percent for first time ever

Fayette County continues to fare well better than the state average when it comes to unemployment rates, though the local rate increased one whole percentage point in the previous month.

While every other county in metro Atlanta is into double digits with its unemployment rate, Fayette’s is 8.8 percent, up from 7.8 percent in May. The state average is now 10.1 percent, the highest ever recorded, as more than 438,000 residents were looking for work, according to the Georgia Department of Labor. That’s a 65 percent increase in the jobless population since this time last year.

Statistics showed that the number of payroll jobs in Georgia were down 209,500 in June of this year compared to June 2008, The over-the-year losses came in professional and business services, including temporary employment agencies, manufacturing, trade, transportation and warehousing, and in the construction industry.

On the flip side, healthcare and educational services showed a combined increase of 12,000 jobs.

Fayette is 1 of just 27 counties in Georgia with an unemployment rate lower than 9 percent.