by Dave Williams | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – Georgia’s unemployment rate held steady at 3.1% last month even as the state added 16,200 jobs, the Georgia Department of Labor reported Thursday.
The number of jobs reached more than 4.9 million in March, an all-time high.
Job sectors hitting record highs included private education and health services, with 674,900 jobs; leisure and hospitality, with 527,000 jobs; and financial activities, with 283,600 jobs. Construction employment reached 225,200 jobs, the highest in 17 years.
Jobs were down in the film industry, which lost 16,800 jobs between March of last year and last month. Other job sectors suffering losses included administrative and support services, down 12,100 jobs during the past year; and transportation and warehousing, which lost 8,700 jobs during the same period.
Georgia’s labor force hit an all-time high in March at more than 5.3 million, as did the number of employed Georgians, which reached nearly 5.2 million.
The number of unemployed declined slightly to 163,483 Georgians, the lowest since July 2022.
Initial unemployment claims also fell by 22% last month compared to March of last year, to 17,847.
