Gordon, state unemployment rates continue to fall
As the State of Georgia saw a record low unemployment rate for August, locally the latest numbers were even lower.
Georgia surpassed its all-time record low unemployment rate in August, coming in a 3.2%, beating the previous low mark of 3.3% from January of 2020.
Locally, Gordon county came in well below the state’s latest rate at 2.5%, nearly half of the August 2020 rate of 5.1%. That number also beats the July rate of 2.7%.
The latest rate represents 719 unemployed individuals out of a 28,656 total workforce, while last year’s number was 1,391.
Regionally, Northwest Georgia as a whole posted a 2.7% (11,231) unemployment rate for August, maintaining the same rate from July.
In August of 2020, the region saw a 5.5% (21,843) unemployment rate.
The record setting August report shows 181,656 unemployed Georgians out of a total 5,174,352 workforce. Those numbers are compared to 345,147 unemployed out of 4,951,494.
“This is excellent progress for Georgia, and it shows that the state’s economy is rapidly recovering and GDOL’s programs, along with other state policies, are working to get people back to work,” Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said.
Across Georgia, jobs were up 14,300 (1.3%) over the month, according to state reports, and up 194,400 (4.4%) over the year to 4,578,200. Numbers show that since April of 2020, 521,000 jobs (86%) of the 609,500 jobs lost in March 2020 and April 2020 have been gained back.
According to state officials, sectors with the most over-themonth job gains included retail
Northwest Georgia’s unemployment rate remained steady at 2.7% for August. trade (5,900); wholesale trade
(2,100); as well as transportation and warehousing (1,800); professional, scientific and technical services (1,600); accommodation and food services,
(1,100); and specialty trade contractors (1,100).
An all-time high 254,500 jobs were reported in the transportation and warehousing sector, with another 749,800 jobs in professional and business services, as well as 296,800 in the professional, scientific and technical sector.