Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said Thursday that Athens saw its initial claims for unemployment drop over-the-month and over-the-year.

"This is a step in the right direction, but we need to continue to get Georgians back to work,” said Commissioner of Labor Mark Butler. “Increasing the amount of people in our labor force is critical for us to continue to improve.”

In Athens, the unemployment rate increased in May by 0.2 percentage points, reaching at 3.4 percent. A year ago, the rate was 8.5 percent.

The labor force decreased in Athens by 1,310 and ended the month with 97,444. That number is up 1,548 when compared to May of 2020.

Athens finished the month with 94,106 employed residents.  That number decreased by 1,481 over the month and is up by 6,393 when compared to the same time a year ago.

Athens ended May with 91,800 jobs. That number decreased by 700 from April to May and increased by 4,500 when compared to this time last year.

The number of unemployment claims went down by 14 percent in May. When compared to last May, claims were down by about 91 percent.

Employ Georgia, the GDOL’s online job listing service at employgeorgia.com showed about 3,235 active job postings in metro Athens for May.

Visit dol.georgia.gov to learn more about career opportunities, Employ Georgia and other GDOL services for job seekers and employers and to connect with us on social media.