Coastal Georgia lowers rate in October

Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said Thursday that the Coastal Georgia region tied in October its lowest ever unemployment rate.

The Coastal region also posted gains in employment and labor force, preliminary numbers showed. Unemployment claims fell too.

“October was a great month for Georgia and our local communities,” Butler said. “We continued to create jobs and people gained employment – often at record numbers.”

Nationally, the unemployment rate climbed in October to 3.6 percent, an increase of 0.1 percentage points. The nation also grew to its labor force by 325,000, increased employment by 241,000 and added more 125,000 jobs.

Georgia’s unemployment rate, meanwhile, fell in October by 0.1 percentage points to 3.4 percent. That tied Georgia’s all-time low set in December of 2000.  

Rates fell or held steady across nine of Georgia’s 12 planning regions. Seven set or tied a record for lowest rate ever.

In Coastal Georgia, the unemployment rate dropped 0.1 percentage points in October, settling at 3.1 percent. That ties the all-time low, set in April. A year ago, the rate was 3.7 percent.

The labor force in Coastal Georgia increased by 415 in October, bringing the total to 330,359. The number has decreased by 2,196 when compared to the same month a year ago.

Coastal Georgia gained 939 employed residents in October, bringing the total to 320,264. The number is down 29 for the year.

Claims for unemployment insurance were down by 30 percent in October. They were up by about 4 percent when compared to the same month a year ago.

The Coastal region includes Bryan, Bulloch, Camden, Chatham, Effingham, Glynn, Liberty, Long, McIntosh, and Screven counties.

Employ Georgia, the GDOL’s online job listing service at employgeorgia.com showed 6,315 active job postings in Coastal Georgia for October.