Metro Columbus’ Unemployment Rate Declines to 6.2% in August
Thursday, September 22nd, 2016
The Georgia Department of Labor announced today that Metro Columbus’ unemployment rate in August was 6.2 percent, down two-tenths of a percentage point from 6.4 percent in July. The rate in August 2015 was 7 percent.
The rate fell as employers added more jobs and laid off fewer workers.
The number of jobs increased by 100, or 0.1 percent, to 122,400. Most of the job gains came in local government as the public schools reopened for the new school year.
Over the year, Columbus gained 800 jobs, a 0.7 percent growth rate, up from 121,600 in August 2015. Most of the job gains came in retail trade, leisure and hospitality, and local government.
The number of initial claims for unemployment insurance declined by 106, or 11.5 percent, to 819 in August. Most of the decrease came in manufacturing, administrative and support services, and health care and social assistance. Over the year, claims were up by 84, or 11.4 percent, from 735 in August 2015.
The labor force, which consists of employed people and those who are unemployed but actively looking for jobs, declined by 1,364 to 125,090 in August. The number of employed residents decreased by 997 to 117,375, while the number of unemployed residents fell by 367 to 7,715.
Metro Gainesville had the lowest area jobless rate at 4.4 percent, while the Heart of Georgia-Altamaha region had the highest at 6.6 percent.
Meanwhile, Georgia’s seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate for August was 4.9 percent, down from 5 percent in July. It was 5.6 percent in August 2015.