Initial Jobless Claims in Georgia Top 100,000 in December ATLANTA, GA (WABE) - December's numbers represent an increase of nearly 40% compared to November's initial claims.

Georgia Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond says that's especially disheartening, because seasonal hiring usually boosts December employment.

"This is unprecedented in anything we've had in recent history, and it suggests that at least in the near term we'll continue to see additional job losses."

Thurmond says last month was only the sixth time in the past 30 years that 100,000 Georgians filed initial unemployment claims.

Most of the job losses came in manufacturing and construction.

But, despite the bad news, initial claims were down by nearly 28-thousand compared to December of 2008.

Jim Burress, WABE News.


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