Georgia’s unemployment rate was unchanged in February at 5.4 percent, the state labor department said today.
That rate is improved from 6.2 percent in February of last year and has fallen from a recession high of 10.5 percent. It had been above 6 percent from May of 2008 until May of last year, so now, it has been below that 6 percent line for nine months in a row. Georgia’s rate is still higher than the 4.9 percent national average, but it’s been heading in the right direction.
Here’s what is going on:
— Employers are hiring more workers. The number of jobs grew by 11,900 during the month, totaling 4.3 million in the state.
— Over the past year, the state has added 116,000 jobs.
— There was job growth in trade, transportation and warehousing, as well as professional and business services.
— Employers laid off about the same number of people in February compared to a year ago, as measured by first-time claims for unemployment benefits.
— A hopeful sign: The jobless rate held steady even while the number of people in the labor force was going up. During February, the state’s labor force increased by 17,129.
— Roughly 261,200 Georgians are out of work and looking for a job. That is down 35,000 from a year ago. And it looks very good compared to nearly a half-million unemployed at the worst of the post-recession job loss. But it’s not quite as good as the pre-recession lows of about 207,000.
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