Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said Thursday that Columbus saw an increase in its number of jobs for December.

“In December, key indicators varied in the different MSAs,” said Commissioner of Labor Mark Butler. “Although this month’s numbers fluctuated more than usual, a majority of the areas saw positive job growth that continues to be indicative of the resilience that Georgia has to offer during this economic rebound.

Columbus ended December with 117,500 jobs. That number increased by 900 from November to December but decreased by 5,300 when compared to this time last year

 In Columbus, the unemployment rate increased by 0.2 percentage points in December, reaching 5.8 percent. A year ago, the rate was 3.3 percent.

 The labor force decreased in Columbus by 334 and ended the month with 119,608. That number is down 3,173 when compared to December of 2019.

Columbus finished the month with 112,686 employed residents.  That number decreased by 511 over the month and is down by 6,004 when compared to the same time a year ago.

 The number of unemployment claims went up by 57 percent in Columbus. When compared to last December, claims were up by about 217 percent.

 Employ Georgia, the GDOL’s online job listing service at employgeorgia.com showed about 2,625 active job postings in metro Columbus for December.

 dol.georgia.gov to learn more about career opportunities, Employ Georgia and other GDOL services for job seekers and employers and to connect with us on social media.

 DATA FOR THE METRO AREAS ARE ATTACHED. TABLES AND GRAPHS REFLECTING LABOR MARKET DATA ARE AVAILABLE AT https://dol.georgia.gov/current-labor-force-data-and-graphs

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THERE WILL BE NO AUDIO OR VIDEO RECORDINGS THIS MONTH.