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ATLANTA, GA --
The Georgia Department of Labor announced Thursday via press release that Georgia’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased to 9.3 percent in July, up three-tenths of a percentage point from 9.0 percent in June. The jobless rate was 10 percent in July a year ago.

State Labor Commissioner Mark Butler says that “one of the main reasons for the increase in the unemployment rate was a large number of temporary layoffs in manufacturing but many of those people have already gone back to work.”

There were 56,540 first-time claims for unemployment insurance benefits in July, up 7,661, or 15.7 percent, from June, with temporary manufacturing layoffs accounting for most of the increase. However, initial claims declined over the year, dropping by 5,030, or 8.2 percent, from 61,570 in July 2011.

The state’s labor force increased by 7,731 new jobseekers to 4,765,132 in July, up from 4,757,401 in June. Georgia’s labor force has increased 14 of the past 15 months.