Georgia Department of Labor - Press Release Georgia Department of Labor Suite 642 148 International Boulevard N.E. Atlanta, Georgia 30303-1751 (404)656-3032 July 22, 1999 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE METRO ALBANY RECORDS 7.6 PERCENT JOBLESS RATE FOR JUNE ATLANTA -- State Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond said today that metro Albany recorded a 7.6 percent unemployment rate in June. While the rate was down from 9.5 percent in June of 1998, it was up from 7.0 percent in May. The rate rose because about 170 people, including some students and secondary wage earners, entered the work force looking for jobs, and since it usually takes more than one month to find a job, many of them were still searching at the end of June. "Historically, unemployment rates go up in all areas of the state from May to June," said Thurmond. "That's because every summer, students from high schools and colleges enter the work force looking for jobs, and often they don't find them right away, so they are recorded as unemployed. "Albany's economy, however, remains solid and the area continues to create new jobs. The job growth opens new opportunities not only for people already counted in the work force, but also for those discouraged workers who aren't included in the statistics. Discouraged workers, with proper training and job search assistance, can become productive workers and help fill many jobs that are unfilled because of labor shortages. These workers include former welfare recipients, older workers, youth, ex-offenders, dislocated workers, homeless veterans and people with disabilities." Even though the Albany rate rose in June, the area created 500 new jobs in the past year, as nonfarm jobs rose to 59,900, up from 59,400 in June of 1998. Most of the job increases came in trade and service-related industries. file:///E|/pressrel%20from%201-98%20to%20present/a00041.htm (1 of 2)9/21/2004 1:40:46 PM Georgia Department of Labor - Press Release Georgia continues to record historically low unemployment rates. The 4.1 percent rate for June is the lowest ever recorded for that month. While the rate was down from 4.8 percent in June of 1998, it was up from 3.5 percent in May. Labor market data are now available on the Georgia Department of Labor's web site at www.dol. state.ga.us NEWS MEDIA NEEDING MORE INFORMATION MAY CALL (404) 656-3032. E-mail: communications@dol.state.ga.us. FY-00-41 Click here for labor force data and graphs in Adobe .PDF format. Requires Adobe Acrobat to read file. Download from http://www.adobe.com. An Equal Opportunity Employer file:///E|/pressrel%20from%201-98%20to%20present/a00041.htm (2 of 2)9/21/2004 1:40:46 PM Georgia Department of Labor - Press Release Georgia Department of Labor Suite 642 148 International Boulevard N.E. Atlanta, Georgia 30303-1751 (404)656-3032 LABOR FORCE DATA and GRAPHS July, 1999 Statewide: Labor Force Data by State, Regional Development Center (RDC), Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), Cities over 10,000 population and County. Bar Graphs by Regional Development Centers (RDC): Atlanta Regional Commission: Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry and Rockdale counties. Central Savannah River: Burke, Columbia, Emanuel, Glascock, Hancock, Jefferson, Jenkins, Johnson, Lincoln, McDuffie, Richmond, Screven, Taliaferro, Warren, Washington and Wilkes counties. Chattahoochee - Flint: Carroll, Coweta, Heard, Meriwether and Troup counties. Coastal Georgia: Bryan, Bulloch, Camden, Chatham, Effingham, Glynn, Liberty, Long and McIntosh counties. Coosa Valley: Bartow, Catoosa, Chattooga, Dade, Floyd, Gordon, Haralson, Paulding, Polk and Walker counties. Georgia Mountains: Banks, Dawson, Forsyth, Franklin, Habersham, Hall, Hart, Lumpkin, Rabun, Stephens, Towns, Union and White counties. Heart of Georgia - Altamaha: Appling, Bleckley, Candler, Dodge, Evans, Jeff Davis, Laurens, Montgomery, Pulaski, Tattnall, Telfair, Toombs, Treutlen, Wayne, Wheeler and Wilcox counties. Lower Chattahoochee: Chattahoochee, Clay, Harris, Muscogee, Quitman, Randolph, Stewart and file:///E|/pressrel%20from%201-98%20to%20present/files/A0004x.htm (1 of 3)9/21/2004 1:40:48 PM Georgia Department of Labor - Press Release Talbot counties. McIntosh Trail: Butts, Lamar, Pike, Spalding and Upson counties. Middle Flint: Crisp, Dooly, Macon, Marion, Schley, Sumter, Taylor and Webster counties. Middle Georgia: Baldwin, Bibb, Crawford, Houston, Jasper, Jones, Monroe, Peach, Putnam, Twiggs and Wilkinson counties. North Georgia: Fannin, Gilmer, Murray, Pickens and Whitfield counties. Northeast Georgia: Barrow, Clarke, Elbert, Greene, Jackson, Madison, Morgan, Newton, Oconee, Oglethorpe and Walton counties. South Georgia: Ben Hill, Berrien, Brooks, Cook, Echols, Irwin, Lanier, Lowndes, Tift and Turner counties. Southeast Georgia: Atkinson, Bacon, Brantley, Charlton, Clinch, Coffee, Pierce and Ware counties. Southwest Georgia: Baker, Calhoun, Colquitt, Decatur, Dougherty, Early, Grady, Lee, Miller, Mitchell, Seminole, Terrell, Thomas and Worth counties. Bar Graphs by Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSA): Albany MSA: Dougherty and Lee counties. Athens MSA: Clarke, Madison and Oconee counties. Atlanta MSA: Barrow, Bartow, Carroll, Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, Coweta, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry, Newton, Paulding, Pickens, Rockdale, Spalding and Walton counties. Augusta - Aiken, GA - SC MSA: Columbia, McDuffie and Richmond counties in Georgia and Aiken and Edgefield counties in South Carolina. Columbus, GA - AL MSA: Chattahoochee, Harris and Muscogee counties in Georgia and Russell county in Alabama. Macon MSA: Bibb, Houston, Jones, Peach and Twiggs counties. file:///E|/pressrel%20from%201-98%20to%20present/files/A0004x.htm (2 of 3)9/21/2004 1:40:48 PM Georgia Department of Labor - Press Release Savannah MSA: Bryan, Chatham and Effingham counties. FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL (404) 656-3032 E-mail: communications@dol.state.ga.us. An Equal Opportunity Employer file:///E|/pressrel%20from%201-98%20to%20present/files/A0004x.htm (3 of 3)9/21/2004 1:40:48 PM