Georgia's unemployment rate ticked downward in July, approaching the all-time low, according to numbers released Thursday morning by State Labor Commissioner Mark Butler.
Georgia’s rate dropped 0.1 percentage points to settle at 3.6 percent, Butler said. A year ago, Georgia’s unemployment rate sat at 3.8 percent. Georgia's all-time low of 3.4 percent was recorded in 2000. Nationally, the unemployment rate was unchanged in July at 3.7 percent.
"Georgia has consistently done as well or better than the national economy," Butler said. "Georgia has a very mature, diverse economy."
Butler also said Georgia businesses added jobs in record numbers to the market again in July.Georgia added 3,400 jobs during the month, pushing the total to 4.62 million jobs – a new record for the state. That number is up nearly 75,000 from the same time last year.
Georgia had two job sectors that added at least 1,000 jobs in July:
- Professional/business services, 1,800
- Trade/transportation/utilities, 1,000.
In terms of annual change, four sectors were up more than 10,000:
- Professional/business services, 16,700
- Education/health services, 15,900
- Construction, 12,400
- Leisure/hospitality 11,600.
"It seems like we are setting a record for jobs almost every month," Butler said. "I’d like to see the labor force start climbing, but we are creating jobs and people continue to get those jobs. Overall, I’m pleased with how Georgia did in July.”
In July, the number of employed residents went up again with a gain of 4,389 that pushed Georgia’s number of employed to 4.92 million.
However, Georgia’s labor force slipped again in July, dropping by less than 1,000 versus a total work force of more than 5.1 million. Even with the monthly loss, the labor force total remained higher than the same month a year ago, Butler said.
