The number of layoffs in Georgia last month apparently dropped from the levels of August, state officials said.
The state Labor Department reported that 34,293 workers filed first-time claims for unemployment benefits in September, down 3.4 percent from the month before. Claims were down more significantly – 13.3 percent – from September of last year, officials said.
Among the sectors improving were manufacturing, construction, retail trade and educational services.
Claims numbers for September do not include any federal employees filing because of the shutdown, since the shutdown that ended Thursday did not start until October 1.
In metro Atlanta, claims were down 4.8 percent from August to September. Claims in Atlanta were down 9.9 percent from the year before.
Because of the federal shutdown, state officials were unable Thursday to provide the regular monthly data on job growth or the state’s unemployment rate. Those data are calculated by state and federal officials together.
No date has yet been set for releasing those reports, said Sam Hall, spokesman for the state Labor Department.