ATLANTA - The number of jobless Georgians drawing unemployment benefits jumped 22 percent in July compared to the previous month, though the unemployment rate fell due to a shrinking workforce, the state Labor Department said Thursday.<br>
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In July, 100,335 jobless residents drew unemployment insurance benefits, compared to 82,278 in June.<br>
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The increase was driven largely by a surge in first-time claims for unemployment benefits. Last month, initial claims reached 63,023, an increase of 28.7 percent over the previous month.<br>
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The Labor Department said the state lost 16,600 jobs in July. The state workforce declined from 4,419,040 in June to 4,403,023 in July.<br>
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The decline in the size of the workforce, in turn, lowered the states unemployment rate to 5.2 percent, down from 5.4 percent in June.<br>
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Most of the July job losses came in the seasonal disappearance of maintenance and food service positions in public schools.<br>
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The seven metro areas of the state and their job changes from June to July are as follows:<br>
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_Albany, down 600, or 1 percent, from 57,700 to 57,100.<br>
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_Athens, down 100, or .1 percent, from 73,600 to 73,500<br>
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_Atlanta, down 5,900, or .3 percent, from 2,213,700 to 2,207,800<br>
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_Augusta, down 1,000, or .5 percent, from 199,300 to 198,300<br>
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_Columbus, down 1,000, or .9 percent, from 114,800 to 113,800<br>
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_Macon, down 800, or .5 percent, from 147,900 to 147,100<br>
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_Savannah, down 1,100, or .8 percent, from 139,600 to 138,500
