Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said Thursday that Dalton’s labor force increased in December.
According to preliminary numbers, Dalton also increased the monthly and annual numbers for employed residents and jobs for the two-county metropolitan statistical area (MSA).
“This was a very positive year for the state,” Butler said. “We saw over-the-year growth in almost every MSA, and our key jobs sectors continue to grow as the economy expands.”
In Dalton, the unemployment rate increased in December by 1.1 percentage points to settle at 4.7 percent. A year ago, the rate was 4.9 percent.
Dalton ended December with 69,200 jobs. That’s an increase of about 200 jobs over the month and an increase of about 300 jobs when compared to December of last year.
The labor force increased in December by 871 to reach 61,440. That number is down by 81 from the total of December 2018.
Dalton ended December with 58,538 employed residents. The number increased by 163 in December and was up by 38 when compared to this same time last year.
The number of unemployment claims went up in December by about 212 percent and were down by about 130 percent from the same period last year.
The two-county MSA includes Whitfield and Murray counties.
Employ Georgia, the GDOL’s online job listing service at employgeorgia.com showed 654 active job postings in metro Dalton for December.
