Despite last week’s announcement that unemployment rate in Gordon County had risen, initial unemployment claims are down in Gordon County, the Georgia Department of Labor reported Thursday.

According to the report, 652 unemployed residents living in Gordon County filed for first time unemployment benefits last month, down 43.6 percent from the 1,156 unemployed residents who filed in January.

Those numbers are also down 51.8 percent from the 1,354 who filed in February 2009.

Bartow County first time claims were down 49 percent from January to February, Catoosa County claims were down 47 percent, Chattooga’s initial claims were down 19 percent, Floyd County claims were down 32.6 percent from January. Polk was down 11 percent and Walker County’s first time claims were down 51 percent from January to February.



Georgia unemployment stats



The number of payroll jobs statewide decreased 137,500, or 3.5 percent, from February 2009. In Georgia, the over-the-year losses came in manufacturing, construction, trade, transportation and utilities, along with professional and business services and financial activities. On a positive note, educational and health services added 5,700 jobs over the year.



Also in February, 66,069 laid-off workers filed initial claims for unemployment insurance benefits in Georgia, a decrease of 29,195, or 30.6 percent, from 95,264 in January. And, there was a decline of 20,450, or 23.6 percent, from 86,519 claims filed in February 2009. Most of the first-time claims were filed in manufacturing, wholesale and retail trade, construction, and administrative and support services.



“Record unemployment, half-a-million jobless workers, tens of thousands of lost jobs, tempered only by tepid job growth and lengthening periods of unemployment are stark reminders of the economic challenges that still lie ahead,” said State Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond. “However, the significant decline in February initial unemployment insurance claims suggests that Georgia’s job market may be stabilizing.”