For the first time in more than three years, Georgia's jobless rate has dipped below 9 percent.

On May 17, State Labor Commissioner Mark Butler announced Georgia’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for April was 8.9 percent, a one-tenth of a percentage point drop from March. The decrease marked the ninth consecutive month the jobless rate has dropped.

“We now have the lowest unemployment rate, the fewest unemployed workers, and the most jobs in Georgia in more than three years,” stated Butler in a press release. “Our job market continues to improve at a modest and steady rate.”

Georgia's jobless rate was last below 9 percent in February of 2009 when it was also 8.9 percent.

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