Cherokee TV

State's Unemployment Rate Hits 15-year High

CTV STAFF
Thursday, September 18, 2008

The Georgia Department of Labor reported Wednesday that the state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to 6.3 percent in August, the highest in 15 years.

The jobless rate was up 1.9 percentage points from 4.4 percent at this same time in 2007. During the same period, the number of payroll jobs decreased 37,700 or nine-tenths of one percentage point.

The last time Georgia’s unemployment rate reached 6.3 percent was in March of 1993, and there has not been an over-the-year decline in jobs this great since June of 2003, department data shows.

Labor Department officials attribute the over-the-year job losses to cutbacks in manufacturing, construction, trade, and services.

The department reported last month that Cherokee County's unemployment rate in July was 5.3 percent, an increase of 0.4 percent over the June rate of 4.9 percent.

Unemployment in Cherokee County reportedly has hit levels in recent months not seen since the early 1990s.

The state rate remains above the national rate of 6.1 percent for the seventh straight month. At present, 310,683 unemployed Georgians are looking for work.

“We’re in the midst of a very challenging job market,” said State Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond, “and finding a job is difficult, but not impossible. I encourage all job seekers to keep the faith and continue their job search efforts. I urge them to utilize the services of the Georgia Department of Labor by visiting our Web site or one of our 53 career centers throughout the state.”

The Department of Labor's Web site is www.dol.state.ga.us and lists addresses of all career centers.

Georgia's August unemployment rate was up three-tenths of one percentage point from a revised 6.0 percent in July.

In metro Atlanta, the department reported, the jobs decreased by 20,100, or 0.8 percent, from 2,469,900 to 2,449,800.

Georgia's August unemployment rate was up three-tenths of one percentage point from a revised 6.0 percent in July.

The number of jobs increased 8,100 from July to August, up as seasonal fluctuations due to school employees returning to existing jobs following the summer break.

The over-the-year job losses came across-the-board in manufacturing, construction, trade, and services.