Georgia’s jobless rate falls to 8.5 percent in November — lowest level in nearly 4 years
Georgia’s unemployment rate fell to 8.5 percent in November from 8.7 percent in October to reach the lowest level in nearly four years, the state labor department said Thursday.
“Once again, the rate dropped because of continued job growth and fewer new layoffs,” state Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said in a statement.
The number of jobs increased by 9,600 to hit 3,984,000 in November.
The monthly growth came primarily in trade, transportation, and warehousing — up 12,400 jobs; educational services — up 1,700; information services — up 1,600; local government — up 1,300; financial services — up 1,200; and manufacturing — up 600.
That overall job growth was strong enough to offset losses in other sectors. Construction was down by 4,000 jobs; leisure and hospitality fell 2,700; professional and business services dropped 2,100; and other services were down 1,100.
Georgia gained 61,900 jobs since November 2011 when the unemployment rate was 9.5 percent.
The last time the rate was down at 8.5 percent was in January 2009. While improving, Georgia’s jobless rate still trails the nation’s, currently 7.7 percent.
The number of initial claims for unemployment benefits declined in November to 47,351 — down 8 percent from October. This was the lowest number of claims for November in seven years.
Georgia’s total labor force — those working and those looking for work — continued to grow, reaching 4,800,345 in November — the highest level since February 2009.
There also was better news for the long-term unemployed — those out of work at least 27 weeks. The number of long-term jobless dropped by 4,100 to reach the lowest level in 32 months. They still make up 49.5 percent of all the jobless in Georgia, which remains a historically high level.
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79 comments Add your comment
Midway
December 20th, 2012
10:37 am
Are Republicans just blind?
3rd quarter GDP up 3.1%, existing home sales up 5.9% last month, retail sales way up. Of course the job market has improved. You partisan hacks have nothing but your negativity.
Republicans are no longer a threat
December 20th, 2012
10:39 am
Obama had 8 million FEWER votes than he had in 2008.
Romney had fewer votes than McCain had four years ago.
The “Tea Party” and the conservative movement apparently has left for Australia or gone into hiding, because they sure as hell didn’t impact the election in 2012.
Wait til 2014 when Boehner and company are removed from office.
Eagle1
December 20th, 2012
10:49 am
Since when did 8.5% unemployment rate become a good thing? I guess Oblamer will take credit for this! Oh, that’s right, It’s Bush’s fault! Give me a break! We are steadily moving towards socialism at it’s finest!
Progress
December 20th, 2012
10:56 am
Eagle1- Learn your history. We’ve had socialism in this country for 80 years. All countries are now a mixture of socialism and capitalism. There are no countries left that are purely capitalist, or purely socialist, or purely communist. None. All are a mixture, including the UK, Japan, Brazil, Israel, Germany, France, Russia, Canada, China, and yes, the good ole’ USA. To use the term “socialism” as a name-calling tactic just dumbs down the conversation. Congratulations, dummy.
Statehood for Puerto Rico
December 20th, 2012
11:01 am
Wait til Puerto Rico becomes a state; Republicans will be a footnote in history !
Eagle1
December 20th, 2012
11:07 am
@Progress, your comments to me show your ignorance as far as politics go! Quit drinking the Obama koolaide and look in the mirror and you will find the real dummy! You going to tell me the economy has gotten better since Obama took office? If you think so, you must have been living under a rock in the desert! Stick your head back into the sand and go back to sleep you dummy!
» Morning Reads for Thursday, December 20 Marvin Arrington Jr.
December 20th, 2012
11:08 am
[...] Georgia’s jobless rate falls to 8.5 percent in November — lowest level in nearly 4 years [...]
Mary
December 20th, 2012
11:10 am
I went to a job fair several weeks ago and recruiters told me they were still getting hundreds of applications for each job. I would love to get an interview, but it’s next to impossible when companies (and the federal gov) uses software that screens resumes and apps. I tweak my resume for each job to try to get through to software to no avail. Taking classes to refresh my job skills has not helped, either. I am just about ready to give up.
SBinF
December 20th, 2012
11:12 am
Eagle1,
Progress is absolutely correct. Every economy on earth is a mixed economy. “Socialism” is a term people with minimal knowledge use as a pejorative. Do you know what socialism is? Have you read Marx, or did you hear it on talk radio and decide to start using the term? How is the U.S. any more a socialist nation today than it was 10, 20, or 30 years ago?
Zephaniah
December 20th, 2012
11:23 am
“The number of long-term jobless dropped by 4,100 to reach the lowest level in 32 months.”
Which coincided with the ending of long-term unemployment benefits for thousands of Georgians. No doubt just a coincidence.
Who Cares?
December 20th, 2012
11:23 am
Couple of things.
First, Middle Class American, December 20th, 2012, 8:56 am, to quote you “If my taxes go up on January 1st I will never vote Republican again !” Really? It’s the Republicans who are pushing for higher taxes, and not the Democrats or Obama? You’ve been living on another planet.
Second, Lower unemployment? Per FoxBusiness.com, “New claims for unemployment benefits rose to 361,000 last week from an upwardly revised 344,000 the week prior. Claims were expected to rise to 357,000 from an initially reported 343,000.”
http://www.foxbusiness.com/economy/2012/12/20/jobless-claims-november/
I love liberal newspapers. They always get the weaker followers to get in line behind them and feel good about themselves.
Progress
December 20th, 2012
11:25 am
Eagle1-
Okay, then show how what I said was incorrect. Tell us how the US hasn’t had socialism for the last 80 years. Or list a country that is currently purely capitalist, socialist, or communist.
And if you don’t think the economy hasn’t improved since 5 years ago, then your ignorance reveals your level of education.
Prior to Obama taking office our financial system was on the verge of complete collapse. GW was scared it was going to happen in the Fall of 2008 (”This sucker could go down.”) The US auto industry was about to disappear. Unemployment was skyrocketing while the housing market was plummeting.
During Obama’s first full month in office (2/2009), unemployment stood at 8.3%. No president’s policies can have an effect on the economy for at least 6 months, minimum, (and more like 12), and when Obama had been in office for 6 months unemployment stood at 9.6%. At 8 months when his policies had still not taken effect it was 10.0%. It is now at 7.8% and dropping. That’s a huge drop. The housing market has stabilized and both sales and prices are increasing nationwide. US auto makers are thriving. The economy is growing.
So not only are you ignorant of the facts, you seem to be delusional as well. I have a feeling you were one of the people who were suckered by Faux News into believing that Romney would win in a landslide. Time to get yourself an education, stop the childish whining, and join the real world.
EJ Moosa
December 20th, 2012
11:29 am
So we add 2/100ths to the number of working Georgians, and unemployment fell by .2 per cent? That would imply that ,198% of that drop is to people leaving the work force.
Awesome.
Eagle1
December 20th, 2012
11:32 am
“Rules for Radicals” sound familiar? Obama’s playbook. Pure and simple.
SBinF
December 20th, 2012
11:38 am
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/20/republican-poll_n_2337757.html
Yes, it’s Obama that’s too radical.
“Republican Party Too Extreme, Majority Of Americans Say: Poll”
Liberal Maximus
December 20th, 2012
11:46 am
“Republican Party Too Extreme, Majority Of Americans Say: Poll”
Quite, true; as evidenced by the recent election.
The fiscal cliff and current anti-gun fervor will get Boehner and the other neanderthals out of control of congress in 2014 so President Obama can continue to work his magic and hand the keys of the White House to president-elect Hillary Clinton in 2016.
SBinF
December 20th, 2012
11:54 am
Luckily for Republicans, they don’t believe in polls.
A person SMART enough to know.....
December 20th, 2012
11:55 am
That is the Seasonal Help that will be gone in January. New jobs have not been created and after the new taxes in the new year the unemployment rate will rise again.
SBinF
December 20th, 2012
12:04 pm
Right, it’s not like the labor department doesn’t adjust for seasonal employment or anything….
I’ll take your word for it, anonymous internet poster, over the expertise of statisticians who have all sorts of complicated algorithms to reach their conclusions.
BI-Partisan
December 20th, 2012
12:12 pm
BI-Partisan
As a BI-Partisan male, I have to admit that I go both ways.
I see both sides of the issues facing our nation.
I have to admit…that President Obama has truly emerged as a strong President.
1. Gave the order to kill Osama Bin Laden
2. Seems to genuinely care for the poor, elderly and common folk
3. Wants to work with the Republicans – but they don’t seem to want to work with him.
4. Asking the tough questions about our society’s infatuation with guns.
Speaking of guns, I heard the other day someone say that the answer to the gun violence is more guns…
Wow…that’s freaking crazy.
All we need to do is look to Great Britain – they have some of the toughest gun laws and as a result they have the lowest levels of gun violence of any industrial nation.
When are we going to wake up and see that WMD (Weapons of Mass Destruction) a/k/a assault weapons should be banned…who in the hell (other than the police and the military) needs these types of weapons….
How many kids could have been saved if that *&&^)% was not able to obtain a WMD.
George
December 20th, 2012
12:44 pm
I love Georgia you people never seems to amaze the hell out of me.With your poor crying Asses.
crankee-yankee
December 20th, 2012
1:20 pm
gdfo
December 20th, 2012
6:53 am
“The figures do not include people who are no longer on unemployment.”
Historical numbers do not either…
“They do not include people who are now on disablity.”
Historical numbers do not either…and so what?
“They do not include people who have retired early.”
Historical numbers do not either…and so what? They chose to retire.
“They do not include people who have left Georgia.”
Historical numbers do not either…and do they include people who have come to GA?
“They do not include the undocumented and therefor uncounted workers.”
Historical numbers do not either…
“They do include seasonal and temporary empoyment (sic), and people who used to work full time but are now working part-time.”
Historical numbers do as well…
If you want to compare these numbers to previous years, then you must also research what your number adjustments do to those percentages. Otherwise, you are not comparing apples to apples and is merely cherry picking.
trailerparkted
December 20th, 2012
1:22 pm
Democrats had better be thankful for Rush, Hannity, Fox News etc………….as long as these idiots are in control of the Republican Party…..DEMS – WIN
Liberal Maximus
December 20th, 2012
1:45 pm
“Democrats had better be thankful for Rush, Hannity, Fox News etc………….as long as these idiots are in control of the Republican Party…..DEMS – WIN” – trailerparkted
Since Rush Limbore has been nationally syndicated, the Republicans have only gotten the popular vote once – in 2004, when Dubya barely beat John Kerry. They did not get the popular vote in 1992, 1996, 2000, 2008 & 2012. Al Gore won the popular vote in 2000, but was cheated out of the electoral college.
Limbore, Hannity and the other hate mongers can spew their idiocy and intolerance all they want. It obviously has little impact on national politics.
fedup
December 20th, 2012
2:27 pm
There is some hatred being spewed. It is almost akin to that of Adam Lanza. Have a hatefull 4 years.
crlton
December 20th, 2012
3:04 pm
only in America can the jobless RATE go down, while the number of non-working persons goes up.
commonsense123
December 20th, 2012
3:51 pm
Kudos to Governor Deal!
Truth be Told
December 20th, 2012
4:19 pm
The highest numbers since Feb 2009? Well, gee there’s a banner year for job growth, now isn’t it? You mean right after everyone slashed jobs and cut govt. employees and the whole country was a mess? And THIS is your big news BENCHMARK? Gee, is Mark Butler getting a big BONUS from Gov. Deal to spread this false cheer just as he leaves for Christmas???? How stupid are YOU for putting out this lying and misleading press release?
abbysenia
December 21st, 2012
9:42 am
Here’s the scoop. The economy was already in the process of healing. If Romney had won, he was going to take credit for Obama’s work. As Obama won, we are going claim credit. However, the president has little effect on the economy. The economy is like the weather…too dynamic and complex to be controlled by one person. It can be influence…to either be better or worse however. The economy is coming back because demand is coming back. People have lost or walked away from their homes. The people who kept their jobs, have more disposable income they aren’t using to pay on mortgages…so they are consuming. Other people are now finding jobs, some at lower pay, however, some of these people either lost or house or were able to get a loan modification. The president wants the average man to keep money in his hand to continue stimulating the economy. The opposition wants money in everyone’s hand, including the wealthy…hoping the wealthy in turn will spend their dollars on job creating investments. The country, however has already tried to give everyone a cut while keeping services the same. The wealthy using their money to stimulate the economy did not materialize…except in China where they shipped American jobs. The stimulation of the everyday man is occurring with people buying cars, and new homes. Georgia which had much of it’s economy based on construction is about built out…so we’ll see what happens as the economy here ATTEMPTS to mature to a moderate rate(as see in other large city up north)…over the explosive rate we saw in the 90’s.