(The Center Square) – Georgia’s labor force grew to 5.5 million people in April, a record high, the Georgia Department of Labor said Thursday.
More than 5.2 million people were employed, according to the statistics released by the department.
“More Georgians are working today than at any point in our state’s history, with record highs in both our labor force and employment,” said Georgia Labor Commissioner Bárbara Rivera Holmes in a statement.
Georgia’s unemployment rate was 3.5% in April, unchanged from March, according to the Georgia Department of Labor.
The number of jobs rose by 7,100 from month to month but by just 2,700 over the year, according to the department. The state’s job numbers have grown in four of the last six months.
The state gained 2,600 jobs in the wholesale trade sector, followed by real estate and rental leasing (2,000) and health care and social assistance (1,900) in April.
The industries losing the most jobs in April were transportation, warehousing and utilities (1,400), administrative and support services (1,200) and construction (1,000), according to the Labor Department.
Georgia shed a large number of jobs over the past year in the federal government sector (11,400) and warehousing and utilities (5,000). The Peach State added 26,500 jobs in health care and social assistance and 3,700 jobs in local government since last April, according to the department.
