ICYMI: Forsyth Unemployment Rate Down in August

A record low number of Forsyth County residents were out of work in August, mirroring a statewide unemployment rate that hasn’t been this low in seven years, data released from the Georgia Department of Labor on Thursday shows.

Nearby Gainesville’s unemployment rate between July and August dropped from 6 to 5.3 percent, according to preliminary unemployment figures for August. There were 16,112 people in Gainesville’s workforce in August, compared to 16,201 in July. Furthermore, only 857 Gainesville residents were unemployed in July, compared to 968in July. In August of 2014, Gainesville’s unemployment rate was 7.5 percent.

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In Forsyth County, the unemployment rate dropped from 4.9 to 4.5 percent between July and August, the figures show. Some 4,416 Forsyth residents were out of work in August, compared to 4,862 in July. Additionally, the workforce shrank by approximately 1,000, further decreasing the jobless rate. In August of 2014, the unemployment rate in Forsyth County was 5.7 percent.

The statewide unemployment rate of 5.9 percent in August was one-tenth of a percentage point down from July and 1.2 lower than a year ago.

“This is the first time Georgia’s unemployment rate has dropped below six percent since May 2008,” State Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said in a news release. “The rate declined as our employers laid off the fewest workers for any month in more than 15 years and continued to create jobs.”

The labor department said the number of initial claims for unemployment insurance in Georgia fell 25.8 percent in August, and 15.4 percent in the past year. Meanwhile, the number of jobs in Georgia has grown by 2 percent.

Butler encourages job seekers to utilize the GDOL’s new job listing service, EmployGeorgia, where employers posted 75,207 jobs throughout the state in August. Visit www.employgeorgia.com to learn more.