Despite the fact that experts predicted a large increase in jobs in Atlanta this year, many are now struggling to find work. Unemployment in the city rose to 6.5 percent in September, 0.3 percent since August.
Total nonfarm employment fell 1.4 percent for the month, according to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. This means that there were 2,433,300 jobs in Atlanta for a civilian workforce of 2,768,400 people.
The most recent data from the Bureau shows that construction jobs took the greatest hit. Employment in this sector has fallen across the nation, mostly because of the housing market slump.
With so many homes being lost to foreclosures, there is little need for new buildings to be built. Construction jobs in Atlanta dropped 8 percent in September. Employment has been falling in this industry in the city for at least the last six months.
Only three areas of employment followed by the Bureau showed an increase in the number of jobs in Atlanta. Education and health services reported the largest increase in employment, with a 2.9 rise in positions. Across the nation, this industry has proven to be relatively recession proof due to the necessity of its services. For the last six months employers in the area have been consistently providing new employment opportunities for jobseekers.
The sector referred to as “other services” by the Bureau saw a 0.8 percent increase in jobs in Atlanta in September. During the same time, the information industry had a 0.3 percent rise in employment.
The only area of employment that reported no change in the area was leisure and hospitality. The fact that there were no new jobs in Atlanta in this area may seem like bad news, but it means that the industry may be doing better than that of many other cities.
Since tourism and consumer spending are both down, employers across the nation are decreasing the number of people they have on their staff. Since Atlanta did not follow this trend, it can be assumed that it has yet to be severely effected by these problems.
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