DeKalb Unemployment Rate Increases

More DeKalb County residents inside and outside the City of Atlanta were out of work in July than June, according to figures released by the Georgia Department of Labor on Thursday.

Dekalb County’s unemployment rate inside city limits increased by one-half of one percent to 5.2 percent, according to the preliminary unemployment figures for July. Some 907 Atlanta and DeKalb residents were out of work last month. During July of 2014, the unemployment rate was 6.4 percent.

The unemployment rate in DeKalb County as a whole increased from 6.2 to 6.4 percent between June and July, the preliminary figures show. The unemployment rate during July of 2014 was 8.0 percent.

Looking for a job? Check out the Decatur-Avondale Estates Patch Job Board!

Across the state, the unemployment rate dropped from 6.1 to 6.0 percent, owing to job growth mostly in local government, 4,300; professional and business services, 3,100; retail trade, 2,800; and leisure and hospitality, 1,700. The overall increase was offset somewhat by job losses in state government, 2,400; educational services, 2,100; and finance and insurance, 1,100.

July’s statewide unemployment rate was the lowest in Georgia since May 2008.

“It’s been more than seven years since Georgia’s unemployment rate was this low, and the credit belongs to our employers who continue to create jobs and put people to work,” State Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said in a news release. “In July, we had 89,400 more jobs than in the same period a year ago.”

In July 2014, the statewide unemployment rate was 7.2 percent.