Georgia sets record gains in employment last month

Georgia sets record numbers in March.

State Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said late last week that Georgia continued to set records in March even as the number of jobs dipped slightly.

Butler noted that most of the March news was good: unemployment held steady, the labor force and number of Georgians with jobs set records and unemployment claims were down.

The number of jobs in the state fell by 7,400 after averaging increasing by around 6,700 jobs a month through 2017.

Butler added that despite the slight decline in jobs, there was still good news, with over 14,000 Georgians gaining employment.

Nationally, the unemployment rate stayed at 4.1 percent in March. Georgia’s rate remained at 4.4 percent.

Meanwhile, Georgia’s number of residents with jobs reached an all-time high, just under 5 million.

That number increased by nearly 15,000 last-month and more than 125,000 over the past 12 months.

The state also set a record for labor force, the number of people employed and those seeking jobs, at 5.1 million.

The number climbed by about 13,000 for the month and was up by nearly 100,000 over the past 12 months.

Butler added that gains in employment shows strength in Georgia’s job market.

Statewide, there were just 21,288 unemployment claims filed in March, the lowest filed since May 1998.

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