Fayette County's unemployment rate remained virtually unchanged from April to May, declining by one-tenth of a percent to 8.2 percent.
Nearly 4,200 Fayette residents were looking for work during May, the most recent month for which unemployment figures have been estimated. Unemployment in Fayette County stood at 7.7 percent this time last year.
Statewide, unemployment also dropped by a tenth of a percent, to 10.2 percent in May, according to Georgia Department of Labor figures released last week. This is the 32nd consecutive month Georgia has exceeded the national unemployment rate which stood at 9.7 percent.
"We will not see a significant improvement in Georgia's job market until small businesses begin hiring, which will lay a solid foundation for a sustainable economic recovery," said State Labor Commissioner and U.S. Senate candidate Michael Thurmond.
The state showed a modest increase in new jobs in May for the fourth consecutive month. The number of jobs increased 24,700, or sevent-tenths of a percentage point, from 3,818,700 in April to 3,843,400. However, the number of jobs remains less than in May 2009, when there wer 3,911,400 payroll jobs, 1.7 percent, or 68,000 more than this year.
The state keeps statistics on some of the larger cities, including Peachtree City. Peachtree City's unemployment rate was 7.4 percent in May, up from 7.2 in April and 7.2 in May of last year.
Fayette is faring better than neighboring areas. Newnan's unemployment rate was 11.2 percent in May, down from 11.5 percent in April and 11.3 in May of last year.
Coweta County's unemployment rate was 9.8 percent in May, down from April's 10.1 percent.
In Clayton County, unemployment stood at 11.9 percent in May, while Spalding County's rate was 12.8 percent.
Hancock County's 20.2 unemployment rate was the state's highest, while Oconee County's 6.4 was the lowest.
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