Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said Thursday that in July Hinesville set records for labor force and employed residents.

At the same time, the two-county metropolitan statistical area (MSA) saw its unemployment rate fall. All indicators still remain positive for the year.

“Georgia’s continues to be in a period of sustained growth,” Butler said. “There are no indicators in July that Georgia’s growth is going to slow down anytime soon.”

 The July unemployment rate fell to 4.3 percent  – eighth among all 14 MSAs in Georgia. That number is down 0.2 percent from the previous month and down from 5.3 percent one year ago.

 The labor force increased in July by 15 to reach 34,107 total members – a record high for Hinesville. The number has climbed by nearly 500 over the past 12 months. 

Hinesville added 82 new employed residents in July, pushing its total to an all-time high 32,644. That number has grown by about 800 over the past year.  

 Hinesville saw jobs remain at June’s number, 20,500. This puts Hinesville up 500 jobs for the year.

 Initial claims for unemployment are down by about 7 percent for the month and are down by about 31 percent for the year. 

Employ Georgia, the GDOL’s online job listing service at employgeorgia.com showed 155 active job postings in metro Hinesville for July. 

 The Hinesville MSA covers Liberty and Long counties. 

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