While Metro Atlanta’s unemployment rate in February dropped one-tenth of a percentage in March, the decrease in unemployment claims in Newton County was three-tenths of a percentage, from 6.2 percent unemployment claims in February to 5.9 percent for the preliminary March figures.

According to the Georgia Department of Labor, the decline is because employers created more jobs and laid off fewer workers during that period.

The lower decrease in the metro area was due to the loss of 300 jobs in the information services, the only mayor employment sector to lose jobs. Increases in job numbers for the metro area came in the fields of leisure and hospitality, education and health services, government, manufacturing, professional and business services, construction, trade and transportation and warehousing.

Throughout the year, Atlanta gained 77,000 jobs, a 3 percent growth rate, up from 2,545,500 in March 2015. Atlanta’s labor force increased by 13,480 to 2,882,551.

GDOL holds job fair in Athens

More than 60 employers will be recruiting to fill hundreds of job openings at the Veterans Sixth Annual Spring Job and Resource Fair on Wednesday, May 11, in Athens, sponsored by the Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL) and the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW). The fair will be held at VFW Post 2872, 835 Sunset Drive in Athens, from 9 a.m. to noon. 

For more information about the expo, contact the GDOL’s Athens Career Center at 706-583-2550. To learn more about career opportunities, Employ Georgia and other GDOL services for job seekers and employers, visit dol.georgia.gov.