‘A good year’ for Macon area, which saw slight job growth in October

Job growth rose slightly in October for the Macon area, according to preliminary figures posted by the Georgia Department of Labor this week.

A 0.2-percent growth rate was seen mostly in service industries, including education and health fields.

The October unemployment rate was at 5 percent, up slightly from 4.7 percent the month before.

The October rate, however, compares favorably to last October when the rate was at 6.4 percent.

That said, the region’s economy was said to be looking up.

“Metro Macon is a growing job market and is producing some strong economic numbers,” State Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said in a statement sent to news outlets across Georgia on Thursday. “Numbers fluctuate from month to month. But this is a continuation of a good year for metro Macon.”

On the whole, there are now 1,189 more employed residents than there were last year at this time.

Unemployment claims rose 70 percent to 932, mainly for manufacturing work, but compared to last October’s jobless claims, this year’s figure shows a 2.7 percent decline from 958.

“The trend is headed in the right direction,” Butler said. “That’s going to be more important than any single month.”

This story was originally published November 23, 2017 at 2:22 PM with the headline "‘A good year’ for Macon area, which saw slight job growth in October."