Georgia unemployment rate rises to 5.5 percent in March

Georgia’s unemployment rate inched slightly higher in March to 5.5 percent, up from 5.4 percent in February, primarily because there were more people seeking work amid rising job growth and fewer layoffs.

The March figure, reported Thursday by the Georgia Department of Labor, compares to 6.2 percent in the same month a year ago.

“Even though the rate went up slightly, March was really a good month for Georgia’s labor market,” state Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said in a statement. “Our employers created 12,600 jobs, which is much stronger than the average for the same period over the last three years, and they had fewer layoffs. Our labor force grew by 21,570, bringing the total growth this year to more than 55,000.”

Those numbers were offset a bit by an increase of 4,827 people entering the labor market and searching for jobs, the department said. Those individuals, even though they were not recently laid off by a company, are still counted as unemployed.

Georgia’s overall job count in March was 4,359,100, which was 12,600 positions higher than in February. Increases came in the sectors of construction (4,300 jobs), education and health services (4,100) and government (1,900), along with 1,100 jobs apiece in trade/transportation/warehousing and information services. Key sectors losing jobs were professional and business services and leisure and hospitality.

Butler noted that Georgia continues to do better than the U.S. as a whole, with its job growth over the past year at 3.1 percent. The nation’s rate was 2 percent. The state has added 130,000 jobs since March a year ago, the department said, with professional and business services (29,300 jobs) and trade, transportation and warehousing (28,100) leading the way. There were 20,000 job gains in leisure and hospitality, 15,500 in construction, 13,500 in education and health services, 9,900 in manufacturing, 7,400 in government and 5,700 in financial activities. Information services lost 1,600 jobs.

Another closely watched metric is first-time claims for unemployment benefits following layoffs. Statewide, those filings dropped by 1,357 from February to March, with the total at just under 28,000. Year over year, claims for assistance are down by 1,914.

Metro area data released Thursday showed Columbus adding 300 jobs since March 2015, with the local job total now at 121,700. Every metro area in Georgia except Hinesville picked up jobs year over year.

On the flip side, the Columbus area had 63 more first-time claims for unemployment benefits over the past year, with 795 local individuals filing for assistance in March after being laid off. Other metro areas experiencing a higher total of claims year over year were Albany, Augusta, Hinesville, Dalton and Gainesville.

The labor department will release March jobless rates for the state’s metro areas next week. The Columbus-area figure in February was 6.8 percent, the highest rate in Georgia.

This story was originally published April 14, 2016 at 11:58 AM with the headline "Georgia unemployment rate rises to 5.5 percent in March."