Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said Thursday that the Southern Georgia region’s unemployment rate and claims both fell in August. 

At the same time, the 18-county area saw its labor force and number of employed residents dip down.  All major indicators are remain positive for the year.

"Our communities across the state continue to thrive,” Butler said. “Local economies continue to add jobs and see other indicators like employment and labor force grow over time.  It has become almost routine for some of our local areas to set records.”

The August unemployment rate fell to 4 percent, down by .3 from July. That ranked seventh among 12 regional commissions. It was 5.1 percent one year ago.

The labor force fell in August by 2,374 to reach 179,763 total members. The number has climbed by 2,072 over the past 12 months, or an average gain of more than 172 per month.  

The Southern Georgia region lost 1,787 employed residents in August, pushing its total to 172,540. That number has grown by more than 3,900 over the past year, or an average monthly gain of about 325.   

Initial claims for unemployment fell by about 36 percent for the month. They are down by about 13 percent when compared to last August. 

Employ Georgia, the GDOL’s online job listing service at employgeorgia.com showed 828 active job postings in the Southern Georgia region for August.

The Southern Georgia Regional Commission includes Atkinson, Bacon, Ben Hill, Berrien, Brantley, Brooks, Charlton, Clinch, Coffee, Cook, Echols, Irwin, Lanier, Lowndes, Pierce, Tift, Turner, and Ware counties.