Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said Thursday that Macon lowered the unemployment rate for the month of July.
 
According to preliminary data, Macon also saw its annual number of jobs grow across the five-county metropolitan statistical area.
 
“July was another solid month for Georgia,” Butler said. “The state numbers were strong and many of our local communities added to their labor force, which was badly needed. Many areas of the state also increased the number of employed residents. Georgia continues to head in the right direction.”
 
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 across 12 of Georgia’s 14 MSAs.
 
In Macon, the unemployment rate decreased by 0.1 percentage points in July, reaching 4.1 percent. A year ago, the rate was 4.5 percent.
 
Macon ended July with 103,600 jobs. That’s a decrease of 800 jobs over the month but an increase of 1,100 jobs when compared to the same time a year ago.
 
The labor force decreased in July by 270. The total was 104,146. That number has gone down by 798 when compared to the same time last July.
 
Macon ended July with 99,928 employed residents.  That number went down by 66 over the month and decreased by 279 when compared to the same time a year ago.
 
The number of unemployment claims went up by about 37 percent in July. When compared to last July, claims were up by about 12 percent.