Metro Atlanta unemployment tumbles to 9.8 percent
Metro Atlanta’s unemployment rate fell dramatically in April — to 9.8 percent from 10.4 percent in March, the state labor department reported today.
Metro Atlanta’s rate is now lower than the state’s — 10.4 percent — and the nation’s — 9.9 percent, the labor department said. Until now, Atlanta’s jobless rate during this recession has generally been higher than the nation’s.
But unemployment in the metro area remains very high and well above April 2009, when it stood at 8.6 percent.
Still, the job market now appears to making progress.
The number of unemployed workers in April in the metro area decreased to 261,748 — down nearly 15,000 from March.
Also in April, 29,361 laid-off workers in metro Atlanta filed initial claims for unemployment insurance benefits. That was a decrease of 14.4 percent from April 2009.
What’s more, the number of payroll jobs in metro Atlanta increased by 18,100 or 0.8 percent in April vs. March. A total of 2,264,800 are now working.
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60 comments Add your comment
Is it that Obvious?
May 27th, 2010
11:55 am
deficit
Frank
May 27th, 2010
11:56 am
Info not accurate… The Census hired on thousands in April and is the result of the decreased unemployment roles…for now. Look for an increase in unemployment June and July when the Census work is scheduled for completion.
01HAWK
May 27th, 2010
12:09 pm
These numbers are incorrect and the state and government know it. What a shame to see people who want to work and get turned away because they are over qualified and all they want to do is bring in some income for there families. I am thankful that my household has not been hit but I see it everyday the looks on someone’s face that need a job.
NOAH
May 27th, 2010
12:35 pm
Agree with Susan, things are getting MUCH better. Huge improvement from a year ago. My spouse also landed a new job with a large increase. Company called out of the blue, hiring freeze was over and they wanted to hire.
I see many believe these numbers are made up or only due to census workers. That would mean 18,000 census workers in Atlanta alone. Really? Numerous reports are showing people are spending a little more, luxury good sales are up etc. In general more people just feel better about things.
Lets hope it keeps getting better. Never does overnight, didnt in the 80’s, early 90’s, after 2001 etc but it will over time.
Jill
May 27th, 2010
12:42 pm
The Census jobs are currently making the unemployment rates look a little bit better, but once those offices scale back and close down the rate will go back up.
unemployed
May 27th, 2010
12:52 pm
Unemployment rate will drop again in June when the tier 2 people run out of benefits. As it does now and will then that doesn’t mean that fewer people are out of work just that they aren’t being reported. Also if you contact your currently elected Senators and Representatives they aren’t willing to do anything about the situation and will not be receiving my vote in the future.
MYTOOCENTS
May 27th, 2010
1:56 pm
Did you know…..(according to an Investopedia.com article – http://finance.yahoo.com/news/The-Unemployment-Rate-Get-investopedia-238004860.html?x=0), that……
Counting each and every unemployed person on a monthly basis would be a very expensive, time-consuming and impractical exercise. Therefore, the U.S. government conducts a monthly sample survey – known as the Current Population Survey (CPS) – to measure the extent of unemployment in the nation. The CPS has been conducted monthly in the U.S. since 1940. There are about 60,000 households, or approximately 110,000 individuals, in the CPS sample survey, selected so as to be representative of the entire U.S. population. A typical household that is included in the sample survey is interviewed monthly for four consecutive months and then again for the same four calendar months a year later.
The survey itself is carried out by 2,200 trained and experienced Census Bureau employees who interview persons in the 60,000 sample households for information on the labor force activities or non-labor force status of their household members during the survey reference week (generally the week that includes the 12th of the month).
When a sample survey is used, rather than a survey of the entire population, there is a chance that the sample estimates may differ from the actual population values. The BLS notes that at an unemployment rate of 5.5%, the 90% confidence interval is about +/- 280,000 for the monthly change in unemployment, and is about +/- 0.19% for the unemployment rate. In other words, there is a 90% chance that the monthly estimate of unemployment from the sample is within about 280,000 of the figure obtainable from a total census of the entire population.
Also……
The strict definition of unemployment under the official U-3 measure may result in understating the magnitude of the actual unemployment situation. It is therefore advisable to look beyond the headline (U-3) unemployment number, as it may not convey the whole story. The U-6 measure, by virtue of being the least restrictive and therefore the highest unemployment rate, may provide a truer picture of the degree of labor underutilization.
don'tcareenough
May 27th, 2010
3:26 pm
If your working depends on everyone else having or not having a job. Consider yourself a person with no independence. But dependent on others. A half a man is no man at all.
Census Workers!
May 31st, 2010
4:19 pm
Maybe the government can do a “permanent census” every year to keep the employment numbers looking better!!!! YES—that’s the ticket!!!
All the "Most Important Cities" Rankings Combined - City vs. City - Page 15 - City-Data Forum
June 23rd, 2010
5:16 pm
[...] at 9.2 percent – Daily Business Update – The Boston Globe Current Atlanta Unemployment rate: 9.8% Atlanta unemployment tumbles to 9.8 percent | The Biz Beat A difference of .6 percentage points is not exactly a big difference. Both cities have [...]