Editorial: Despite numbers, state is still in need of workers
Published 3:29 pm Friday, September 23, 2022
Good news continues to roll in for Georgia when it comes to unemployment and jobs. The state’s unemployment rate for August remained the same as it did in July at 2.8% — which was a record low for Georgia.
With the unemployment continuing to stay at record levels, job numbers continue to soar. Georgia added another 15,800 jobs in August to bring the state’s total to more than 4.82 million jobs, according to a report from Capitol Beat News Service.
Even as the number of jobs soar, there are still plenty of opportunities for people looking for work. There are more than 220,000 postings on EmployGeogia.com covering more than 290,000 available jobs.
The industries with the most available jobs are also the ones who have been hit hard by worker shortages over the last couple of years. There are 37,000 jobs listed in the health care industry, and 21,000 jobs listed in the retail trade industry.
Some of the industries hardest hit by the pandemic are starting to rebound as the accommodation and food services sector has seen its over-the-year gains improve by 32,700 jobs. Hopefully we will see the same for the health care and retail trade industries as the year progresses.
What do these numbers mean for the average person? For starters, it is a great time to be a worker right now. There are plenty of jobs to be had in the state, but not necessarily a lot of workers to fill them.
That means competition is fierce for workers. Employers looking for workers are likely offering significant compensation and benefits to hang on to its current workforce and also bring in new workers.
We’ve seen this play out even for government entities. The city and county commissions approved budgets with raises for its employees this year while the board of education on Tuesday approved additional stipends for full-time and part-time staff.
It is a simple fact — if you are willing or able to work, there is a job available for you right now. If you are without a job but do want to work, we encourage you to reach out to the businesses in need of workers. Given the current situation in the state, we suspect you will find them receptive to your resumé.
