State Unemployment Down

The State’s unemployment rate sees some improvement last month.

Georgia’s unemployment rate went down to 8.4 percent in March from 8.6 percent in February. It is also down from last March, when the rate was 9.1 percent.

State Labor Commissioner Mark Butler says the decrease is due to an increase in the number of jobs.

“Georgia employers created 23,700 jobs last month, which is one of the best job growth numbers we’ve had in March for almost a decade,” said State Labor Commissioner Mark Butler.

Butler says fewer lay-offs also played a role in the rate decreasing.

“The number of new layoffs, represented by new claims for unemployment insurance benefits, decreased by 1,713 from 38,696 in February to 36,983 in March, the lowest for any month since September 2007.”

The growth was led by the leisure and hospitality industry as well as professional and business services.