Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said Thursday that Athens recorded an unemployment rate of 2.9 percent in October, up six-tenths of a percent over the month. A year ago, the rate was 2.8 percent.

"Job seekers have continued to experience a favorable hiring environment across multiple job sectors, despite a slight uptick in unemployment rates," said Commissioner Butler. “As we prepare for peak holiday hiring, we encourage job seekers to take advantage of the many employment opportunities, both full-time and part-time, available across Georgia.”

The labor force increased in Athens by 792 and ended the month with 104,518. That number went up by 2,560 when compared to October of 2021.

Athens finished the month with 101,521 employed residents. That number increased by 199 over the month and rose by 2,441 when compared to the same time a year ago.

Athens ended October with 104,600 jobs, an all-time high. That number increased by 1,200 from September to October and increased by 5,300 when compared to this time last year.

The number of unemployment claims went down 27 percent in Athens in October. When compared to last October, claims were down by about 28 percent.

Employ Georgia, the GDOL’s online job listing service at employgeorgia.com showed about 2,955 active job postings in Athens for October.