Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said Thursday that Augusta posted positive annual numbers in major indicators for the month of May.
 
According to preliminary data, Augusta did see its unemployment rate rise, along with its initial claims across the seven-county metropolitan statistical area (MSA).
 
“May was a good month for Georgia,” Butler said. “Many of our local communities added more individuals to their workforce – which is what we needed to see happen. And, several added jobs and even and set records. That’s a great combination.”
 
The unemployment rate increased by 0.5 percentage points in May, reaching 3.8 percent. A year ago, the rate was 3.7 percent.
 
Augusta ended May with 244,100 jobs. The jobs number fell by 5,200 in May. The number is up by 2,800 when compared to the same time a year ago.
 
The labor force decreased in May by 3,439. The total was 269,177. That number has gone up by 1,324 when compared to May of 2018.
 
Augusta ended May with 258,960 employed residents.  That number decreased by 4,532 over the month but increased by 1,013 when compared to the same time a year ago.
 
The number of unemployment claims went up by 24 percent in May. When compared to last May, claims were down by about 12 percent.
 
The seven-county MSA includes the counties of Burke, Columbia, Lincoln, McDuffie, Richmond and Aiken and Edgefield in South Carolina.