ATLANTA — Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler recently revealed Georgia had a new record number of employed Georgians of 5,068,389, up from 21,102 in February, according to a statement from the Georgia Department of Labor.
The labor force also registered a record high of 5,234,620, up 18,994 during the month, while employment numbers continued to rise by 24,700 from January to February, reaching 4,724,400, another record high for the state.
“This state has continued to be successful in creating jobs and hiring Georgians into those positions,” Butler said in a statement. “All of this has resulted in our number of unemployed being the lowest since June 2001.”
Butler said Georgia’s unemployment rate remained the same in February at 3.2%, matching an all-time low in January.
In January, Georgia had the lowest unemployment rate among the 10 most populous states (Florida was second lowest at 3.5%). Peach State ranked sixth in the nation in seasonally adjusted job gain and seventh in the nation in employment increase from December to January.
Georgia’s unemployment rate in February was six tenths of a percent lower than the February 2022 national unemployment rate of 3.8 percent, according to the Georgia Department of Labor.
“Looking back over the past year, Georgia was eighth in the nation in terms of job creation, adding 216,000 jobs from January 2021 to January 2022 and still leading the top 10 most populous states with the highest unemployment rate. low,” Butler said in a statement.
“As we continue to see record employment, workforce and employment growth figures, it is still essential that we continue to develop and train our workforce to pull take full advantage of the employment opportunities that are available.”
Employment in Georgia hit a record high of 4,724,400, up 232,000 on the year.
Sectors with the most job gains during the month included administrative and support services, 7,400, retail trade, 4,800, accommodation and food services, 3,700, management of companies /businesses, 2,400, and durable goods manufacturing, 2,100.
The number of jobs reached a record high in trade and transport, 997,200, including the retail sector, 514,900, the transport and warehousing sector, 266,200, in financial activities, 266,500, in professional and business services, 771,400, including professional, scientific and technical sector, 311,800, and administrative and support services sector, 367,600, and in education and health services, 623,000, including the health and social assistance sector, 528,700.
Comparing the February 2022 numbers to pre-pandemic numbers, the labor force increased by 50,000, the number of employed increased by 75,000 and the number of unemployed decreased by 25,000, GDOL said.
There are over 230,000 jobs listed online at EmployGeorgia.com, giving a minimum of over 320,000 vacancies.
Market salaries for jobs listed on Employ Georgia range from $23,000 to $102,000, with a median salary of $42,000.
Initial inquiries fell from 6,180 (22%) in January to 22,077 in February. During the year, initial inquiries decreased by 89,231 (80%).