Georgia's jobs picture remains positive
Georgia added 19.800 jobs in August, reversing its decline
in July according to newly released seasonally adjusted information from the
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Just as important as the August gain, BLS revised the
state’s job loss in July. Originally reported as a loss of 14,100 jobs over the
month, the revision brings the job loss to only 3,500 jobs.
For the 12 months
ending in August, Georgia has added 116,500 jobs. The state’s 12-month job
creation rate has continually exceeded 100,000 jobs since early 2014.
With the August figures, the state now is home to more than
4.5 million nonfarm jobs, a new state record.
Georgia’s unemployment rate in August remained at 4.7%, the
same as in July.
Revisions to July
data were anticipated
Revisions to July’s employment numbers were anticipated, as
the preliminary figures saw the state losing jobs even as the national
employment numbers were improving.
This month, the revisions mean that Georgia showed
remarkable growth while employment slowed nationwide.
Nationally, the U.S. economy added 156,000 jobs in August
down from a revised 189,000 jobs increase in July. BLS revised downward its
employment counts for June and July even as it revised Georgia’s jobs report
upward.
Growth by sector
For August, employment in the private sector grew by 15,500,
while government increased 4,300 jobs.
The most significant change was in professional and business
services, which added 10,200 jobs in August. Manufacturing added 4,100 jobs
after showing declines over the previous three months. Retail trade added 1,500
jobs, financial activities employment increased by 1,000.
All the growth in the government sector can be attributed to
local governments, whose employment rose by 4,600, offsetting a small decline
in state government employment.
Data for selected
states
Like Georgia, Florida reported good job creation in August,
up by 20,100 jobs after seasonal adjustment. South Carolina’s employment rose
by 6,200 while Alabama’s job totals declined by 2,900. Mississippi showed no
change over the month.
Pre-hurricane
employment data
August represents the last employment data prior to the
landfall of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. BLS reports that Hurricane Harvey had
no discernible effect on the employment and unemployment data for August.
Data for September and onward will be impacted by the two
storms, which both disrupted normal operations in several states including
Texas and Florida, and also disrupted data collection making it more difficult
to obtain accurate reporting of employment information.
Even in Georgia, Tropical Storm Irma caused disruption
including the partial evacuation of Savannah and a halt to port activities in
that area.
The disruptions will cause data for the next few months
to be suspect and prone to possible large revisions making the true employment
trend more difficult to discern.
