Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said Thursday that Columbus added to its labor force for the month of May.
 
According to preliminary data, Columbus also added to the number of employed residents across the five-county metropolitan statistical area (MSA).
 
“May was a good month for Georgia,” Butler said. “Many of our local communities added more individuals to their workforce – which is what we needed to see happen. And, several added jobs and even and set records. That’s a great combination.”
 
The unemployment rate increased 0.2 percentage points in May, reaching 4 percent. A year ago, the rate was 4.4 percent.
 
Columbus ended May with 123,100 jobs. That’s a decrease of 200 jobs over the month and a decrease of 300 jobs when compared to the same time a year ago.
 
The labor force increased in May by 690. The total was 124,119. That number has gone down by 1,402 when compared to May of 2018.
 
Columbus ended May with 119,098 employed residents.  That number increased by 335 over the month and decreased by 929 when compared to the same time a year ago.
 
The number of unemployment claims went up by about 18 percent in May. When compared to last May, claims were down by about 1 percent.
 
The five-county MSA includes the Georgia counties of Chattahoochee, Harris, Marion and Muscogee and Russell in Alabama.