GA Mountains Region Unemployment Rate Increases for June

The unemployment rate in the Georgia Mountains region in June was 4.4 percent, up four tenths of a percentage point from May.

State Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said that this increase is common in the month of June.

“During the month of June, typically we see unemployment rates go up,” said Butler. “Most of that is due to schools letting out and a lot of times there are fewer jobs out there because there’s a lot of jobs that are tied to the school system. What we’re seeing is fewer people employed for the month of June as opposed to May and a lot of that’s going to be temporary in nature.”

The number of initial claims for unemployment insurance also increased in the month of June by 12 percent.

Butler added that there were over 1,000 individuals join the work force due to high school and college graduates.

In Stephens County, the unemployment rate in June was 5.4 percent- up from 4.8 percent in May.

Stephens County’s total labor force last month was 11,282 and of that, 605 were receiving unemployment benefits.

To learn more about career opportunities, visit employgeorgia.com.