Metro Atlanta’s unemployment rate dropped to 6.9 percent in February from 7.1 percent in January as employers laid off considerably fewer workers, the state labor department said Thursday.
The number of new claims for unemployment insurance fell 23.3 percent to total 17,897 in February. Most of the decline in new layoffs came in trade, transportation, and warehousing; manufacturing, administrative and support services; and accommodations and food services.
Although the number of new unemployment claims dropped, metro Atlanta lost 1,900 seasonal jobs in February, mostly in leisure and hospitality, and retail trade. As a result, the total number of jobs declined to 2,409,000, down from 2,410,900 in January.
Still, the number of jobs in February rose 42,600 during the past year, driving down the unemployment rate from 8.4 percent in February 2013.
The big job gainers over the last year were in trade, transportation, and warehousing — 12,800 jobs; professional and business services — 8,200; leisure and hospitality — 8,100; construction — 6,400; education and health services — 5,900; financial services — 2,000; and manufacturing — 1,200.
With a loss of 2,600 jobs, government was the only sector that declined.
For the core metro Atlanta counties, Gwinnett had the lowest jobless rate at 6.1 percent. Cobb was next with 6.3 percent, followed by DeKalb (7.2 percent), Fulton (7.7 percent) and Clayton (8.8 percent).
Metro Athens had the lowest area jobless rate at 5.1 percent, while the Heart of Georgia-Altamaha region had the highest at 9.7 percent.
Last week, the labor department said Georgia’s unemployment rate was 7.1 percent in February, down from 7.3 percent in January.
Both the state and metro Atlanta continue to trail the national rate — currently 6.7 percent.
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