Employment is down in Athens and across Georgia, according to a report released by the Georgia Department of Labor. The labor force was down in most Georgia regions, except in coastal and northern regional counties.
"As we look toward the fall, we are committed to supporting the workforce as employers search for seasonal, full-time, and part-time employees to fill vacancies in preparation for the holiday employment season," Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said in a statement.
Athens recorded an unemployment rate of 2.9 percent in August, up three-tenths of a percent over the month. That comes in below the 3.4 percent unemployment rate of last August.
Additionally, unemployment claims went up 3 percent over the course of the month but have dropped significantly compared to this time last year- by about 49 percent.
The overall number of jobs in Athens went up by 191 and is at an all-time high, totaling 102,900 jobs. That number is 3,476 higher than it was in August of 2021.