ATLANTA (AP) - Georgia’s unemployment rate hit 3.3% in November, marking the state’s lowest unemployment since the federal government started keeping records in 1976, the Georgia Department of Labor announced Thursday.
The state added 6,500 jobs last month, for a total of 4.64 million jobs, the department says. That’s up 69,000 jobs from the same time last year. Georgia saw strong annual job growth in education and health services; the leisure and hospitality industry; trade, transportation and utilities; and construction.
“It’s nice to see this at the end of the year,” said Labor Commissioner Mark Butler. “I think we are going to continue to see Georgia move in the right direction.”
The trend in unemployment came even with a growth in the state’s labor force. The department says Georgia’s workforce grew by 5,980 last month, for a total of more than 5.1 million people. That number is up by over 34,000 for the year, brought by several months of consecutive workforce growth after a down period.
“Unemployment rates are at historic lows, workforce participation is at an all-time high, and job creators have Georgia on their minds,” said Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp.
The labor department says that new unemployment claims in November were down by 33% compared to November 2018.
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