Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said Thursday that the Central Savannah River region saw its unemployment rate and initial claims for unemployment decline in March.

The 13-county area also posted monthly losses in labor force and employed residents, preliminary numbers show.

“We are moving into the Spring with a strong jobs report,” Butler said. “The national economy is booming. Georgia is also producing strong numbers consistently across the state.”

The unemployment rate fell in March. The rate dropped 0.3 percentage points in March, settling at 4.2 percent. A year ago, the rate was 4.7 percent.

The labor force decreased in March by 1,080. The March total was 211,680. That number is down by 1,651 from the total from March 2018.

Central Savannah River ended March with 202,800 employed residents.  The number decreased by 459 in March and 569 as compared to last March.

The number of unemployment claims decreased in March by 17 percent. When compared to last March, claims were down by 18 percent.