Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said Thursday that the Central Savannah River region’s unemployment rate dropped again in the month of May.
 
Though the labor force and number of employed decreased for the month, all indicators remain positive for the year.
 
“Georgia’s economy remains very strong,” said Butler. “Across the board, the state’s numbers are very positive for the year and many areas continue to set records.”
 
In May, the unemployment rate in the Central Savannah River region fell 0.1 percent to 4 percent, down from 5.2 percent a year ago. The rates in Georgia’s 12 regions vary from a low of 2.9 percent in the Georgia Mountains to 4.5 percent in the River Valley region.
 
The number of employed residents in the region fell to 206,483, down 1,792 from a record high set in the previous month. The area remains up 9,032 for the year, or 4.4 percent, the greatest percentage increase for the year of all of all 12 regions in the state.
 
The Central Savannah River labor force ended May at 215,144. That number is down 2,092 over the last month but up 6,813 over the last year, again representing the largest percentage increase for the year of all regions in the state.
 
In the Central Savannah River region, initial claims for unemployment were up about 18 percent for the month but down about 7 percent for the year.
 
The Central Savannah area includes Burke, Columbia, Glascock, Hancock, Jefferson, Jenkins, Lincoln, McDuffie, Richmond, Taliaferro, Warren, Washington, and Wilkes counties.