The Georgia Department of Labor announced that Metro Valdosta’s unemployment rate in April was 4.4 percent, down one-tenth of a percentage point from 4.5 percent in March. In April 2016, the rate was 4.8 percent.

The rate declined as more people became employed and employers created more jobs and reduced the number of new layoffs.

The number of jobs in Valdosta increased by 400, or 0.7 percent, to 56,900. The job growth came in the service industries such as trade, transportation and warehousing, along with the goods-producing sector, which includes manufacturing and construction.

Over-the-year, a total of 700 jobs were added, a 1.3 percent growth rate, up from 56,200, in April 2016. The job growth came mostly in the service industries such as trade, transportation and warehousing, along with the goods-producing sector, which includes manufacturing and construction.

The number of initial claims for unemployment insurance, a measure of new layoffs, declined by 23, or 9.7 percent, to 215. Most of the decrease came in manufacturing and retail trade. Over the year, however, claims were up by four, or 1.9 percent, from 211 in April 2016. The over-the-year increase came in manufacturing.

There were 79 more Metro Valdosta residents employed in April than in March, pushing the total number to 61,779. There were 1,298 more people employed in April than in April 2016.

The labor force, which consists of employed residents and those who are unemployed and actively looking for jobs, declined by 27 to 64,589. That total represents an increase of 1,046 over the past 12 months.

Metro Gainesville had the lowest area jobless rate at 3.9 percent, while the Heart of Georgia and River Valley regions had the highest at 5.9 percent.

Meanwhile, Georgia’s seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate for April was 5 percent, down from 5.1 percent in March. It was 5.4 percent in April 2016.

Job seekers and employers are encouraged to use GDOL’s online job listing service employgeorgia.com to search for jobs or recruit new employees. In April, 643 new job openings in Valdosta were posted on Employ Georgia. Throughout the state, 75,183 new job openings were posted.