Cobb County's Unemployment Drops to to 7.1%

Cobb County's overall unemployment rate was 7.1 percent, a decline of three tenths of a percent compared to February's rate.

The number of employed workers rose by 1,177 in March, with the labor force increasing by 157 people to 377,648.

A year ago the county's jobelss rate was 8.3 percent.

The Georgia Department of Labor announced Thursday that metro Atlanta’s unemployment rate declined to 7.9 percent in March from 8.3 percent in February. The rate was 8.9 percent in March a year ago.

The rate declined because of an increase in the number of jobs and fewer new layoffs.

Out of the county's 115,212 workers, 7,662 went without jobs last month, which is less than were counted as unemployed in February this year and March  2012. Cherokee's rate is the second lowest in the region, just behind Forsyth's rate of 6.1 percent. 

Other surrounding counties in the metro Atlanta area include: 

County                Rate
Bartow                 8.2%
Cherokee             6.7
Cobb                    7.1
Douglas                8.4
Forsyth                 6.1
Fulton                   8.5
Paulding                7.6
Metro Atlanta         7.9

Georgia                 8.4

The number of jobs in metro Atlanta increased to 2,381,200, up by 13,100 from 2,368,100 in February. Most of the growth came in leisure and hospitality, 5,900; administrative and support services, 4,600; and professional and business services, 4,200. The number of government jobs declined by 1,400.