The Georgia Department of Labor announced today that Metro Columbus’ unemployment rate for May was 7.1 percent, up five-tenths of a percentage point from 6.6 percent in April. The rate in May 2014 was 7.9 percent.

The rate rose as the labor force grew by 1,640 to 128,280 in May, and while the new entrants are searching for work, they are counted as unemployed. Last year in May, the labor force grew by 19.  

The number of jobs in Columbus increased by 1,100, or 0.9 percent, in May to 125,400.  Most of the job gains came in leisure and hospitality, retail trade, insurance, and manufacturing. 

And, there was an over-the-year gain of 2,200 jobs, or 1.8 percent, from May 2014. Most of the job growth came in professional and business services, leisure and hospitality, retail trade, and education and health services.   

The number of initial claims for unemployment insurance declined by 12, or 1.8 percent, to 669 in May, down from 681 in April. Most of the decrease came in construction. Over the year, claims were down by 230, or 25.6 percent, from 899 filed in May 2014.     

Metro Gainesville had the lowest area jobless rate at 5.1 percent, while the Heart of Georgia-Altamaha region had the highest at 7.7 percent. 

Meanwhile, Georgia’s seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate for May was 6.3 percent, up from a revised 6.3 percent in April.  It was 7.3 percent in May 2014.