Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said Thursday that the Three Rivers region set a new record for employed residents in July.    
 
Preliminary results showed the 10-county area also posted an increase in labor force and a drop in its unemployment rate.  
 
“Georgia continues to perform well in terms of jobs, claims and other data I’m seeing,” said Butler. “Georgia’s strong economy was also clear in our local communities in July, a month that saw several again set records.”

Nationally, the unemployment rate was unchanged in July at 3.7 percent. Georgia’s rate dropped 0.1 percentage points to settle at 3.6 percent.  A year ago, Georgia’s unemployment rate sat at 3.8 percent.
 
Rates fell or held steady across nine of Georgia’s 12 planning regions.
 
In Three Rivers, the unemployment rate decreased in July by 0.2 percentage points, settling at 3.7 percent. A year ago, the rate was 4.3 percent.
 
The labor force went up in July by 499 to reach 249,216. That number is down by 271 from the total from July 2018.
 
The Three Rivers region ended July with 240,011 employed residents – a new record high.  The number increased by 900 in July and went up by 1,218 as compared to last July.
 
The number of unemployment claims rose in July by about 90 percent. When compared to last July, claims were up by about 2 percent.