The Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL) announced today that the unemployment rate in the Middle Georgia region in January was 6.2 percent, up five-tenths of a percentage point from 5.7 percent in December. In January 2016, the rate was 5.9 percent.

The rate rose as the labor force grew and the number of new layoffs increased.

The labor force, which consists of employed residents and those who are unemployed, but actively looking for jobs, grew by 327 to 218,256. The number of unemployed residents rose by 1,128 to 13,543, while the number of employed residents decreased by 801 to 204,713. Over the year, the number of people in the labor force increased by 4,313, as the number of employed grew by 3,462 and the number of unemployed increased by 851.

The number of initial claims for unemployment insurance, a measure of new layoffs, rose by 518, or 31.2 percent, to 2,177. Most of the increase came in manufacturing, trade, transportation and warehousing, along with construction, health care and social assistance. However, over the year, claims were down by 426, or 16.4 percent, from 2,603 in January 2016.

Metro Gainesville and the Georgia Mountains region had the lowest area jobless rate at 4.8 percent, while the Three Rivers region had the highest at 7.4 percent.

Meanwhile, Georgia’s seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate for January was 5.5 percent, unchanged from a revised 5.5 percent in December. It was 5.6 percent in January 2016.

Job seekers and employers are encouraged to use the GDOL’s online job listing service employgeorgia.com to search for jobs or recruit new employers. In January, 2,169 new job openings in the Middle Georgia region were posted on Employ Georgia. Throughout the state, 64,018 new job openings were posted.