The Georgia Department of Labor announced today that Metro Atlanta’s unemployment rate in August was 5 percent, down one-tenth of a percentage point from 5.1 percent in July. The rate in August 2015 was 5.6 percent.

The rate fell as employers added more jobs and laid off fewer workers.  

The number of jobs increased by 14,500, or 0.6 percent, to 2,667,800. Most of the job gains came in local government, 9,700, as the public schools reopened for the new school year. Also, jobs were added in education and health services, 3,900; professional and business services and leisure and hospitality, 1,600 each; and trade, transportation and warehousing, 1,200.  

Over the year, Atlanta gained 71,000 jobs, a 2.7 percent growth rate, up from 2,596,800 in August 2015. Most of the job gains came in trade, transportation and warehousing, 17,600; leisure and hospitality, 16,000; professional and business services, 15,800; education and health services, 8,300; construction, 7,700; government, 3,600; and manufacturing and financial activities, 3,000 each. Information services lost 2,000 jobs and other services lost 1,900.

The number of initial claims for unemployment insurance declined by 1,741, or 11.3 percent, to 13,728 in August. Most of the decrease came in manufacturing and administrative and support services, which includes temporary staffing agencies. Over the year, claims were up by 365, or 2.7 percent, from 13,363 in August 2015.

The labor force, which consists of employed people and those who are unemployed but actively looking for jobs, declined by 24,657 to 2,923,064 in August. The number of employed residents decreased by 19,730 to 2,777,683, while the number of unemployed residents fell by 4,927 to 145,381.

Metro Gainesville had the lowest area jobless rate at 4.4 percent, while the Heart of Georgia-Altamaha region had the highest at 6.6 percent.

Meanwhile, Georgia’s seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate for August was 4.9 percent, down from 5 percent in July. It was 5.6 percent in August 2015.