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# Georgia Labor Force Sets Record as Payrolls Lag 2025
- URL: https://www.theamericanquorum.com/state-news-georgia-2026-09-18-b/
- Published: 2026-09-18T19:46:54.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-18T19:46:54.000Z
- Description: Georgia’s unemployment rate fell to 3.2% as its labor force and employed population reached records. Employer payrolls rebounded by 8,000 in August but remained 7,300 below their year-earlier level.
- Author: News Desk
- Tags: State News, Georgia

Georgia’s unemployment rate fell to 3.2% in August as the state’s labor force and number of employed residents reached records, but payroll employment remained slightly below its level a year earlier. The [Georgia Department of Labor reported](https://dol.georgia.gov/press-releases/2026-09-17/georgia-sets-new-records-labor-force-and-employment-unemployment-falls-32?ref=theamericanquorum.com) 5,490,319 people in the labor force and 5,314,822 employed, separating the strong household picture from a mixed employer-payroll trend.

The labor force grew by 9,498 people from July and by 68,659 over 12 months. Employment among Georgia residents rose by 13,013 during the month and by 76,272 over the year. The number counted as unemployed declined by 3,515 in August to 175,497, which was 7,613 fewer than a year earlier. The 3.2% rate was down from 3.3% in July and 3.4% in August 2025, and matched its lowest level since February 2024.

Friday’s [federal state-employment release](https://www.bls.gov/news.release/laus.nr0.htm?ref=theamericanquorum.com) put Georgia’s rate below the 4.1% national figure. The Bureau of Labor Statistics said 19 states had jobless rates statistically lower than the national rate. Its detailed [labor-force table](https://www.bls.gov/news.release/laus.t01.htm?ref=theamericanquorum.com) showed Georgia’s August estimates as preliminary, an important qualification because monthly state figures can be revised.

The unemployment rate and payroll count measure different things. Labor-force estimates are based largely on a household survey and count people according to where they live. Payroll estimates come from an establishment survey and count jobs according to where workplaces are located. A resident holding two jobs can appear once in the household measure and twice in payroll employment, while self-employed workers are included in the household measure but not in nonfarm payrolls.

Georgia employers added 8,000 jobs in August, bringing seasonally adjusted nonfarm payrolls to 4,985,700\. Even after that increase, payrolls were 7,300 lower than in August 2025\. The federal [industry payroll table](https://www.bls.gov/news.release/laus.t03.htm?ref=theamericanquorum.com) confirmed the statewide total and showed why the record number of employed residents should not be read as uniform growth across every sector.

Administrative and support services and state government each added 3,200 jobs during August, while retail trade added 2,200\. Durable-goods manufacturing and health care and social assistance each gained 1,300\. The largest monthly declines were in nondurable-goods manufacturing, down 1,800; private educational services, down 1,400; transportation, warehousing and utilities, down 1,200; and information, down 1,000.

Over the year, health care and social assistance led gains with 19,100 additional jobs. Durable-goods manufacturing, local government, administrative and support services, and state government also grew. Those gains were offset by losses including 11,600 jobs in professional and technical services, 9,400 in the federal government, 5,100 in nondurable-goods manufacturing, 5,000 in transportation, warehousing and utilities, and 3,200 in construction.

Initial unemployment claims also fell to 16,827 in August, down 3,323 from July and 1,794 from a year earlier. Taken together, the figures indicate more Georgians were working and fewer were unemployed, while the mix of employer payrolls continued to shift. The practical next measure will be whether August’s payroll rebound persists long enough to reverse the year-over-year decline.