Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said Thursday that Savannah reached another all-time high for number of jobs in May.

According to preliminary data, Savannah also added to its labor force, employed residents and jobs across the three-county metropolitan statistical area (MSA).

“May was a good month for Georgia,” Butler said, “Many of our local communities added to their workforce – a change we needed. And, several added jobs and even and set records. That’s a great combination.”

The unemployment rate increased 0.3 percentage points in May, reaching 3.2 percent. A year ago, the rate was 3.3 percent.

The national rate stayed constant at 3.6 percent.

Savannah ended May with 185,800 jobs – a new record. That’s an increase of 900 jobs over the month and an increase of 1,200 jobs when compared to the same time a year ago.

The labor force increased in May by 1,878. The total is 187,895. That number is down by 1,748 when compared to the same time last year.

Savannah ended May with 181,807 employed residents.  That number climbed by 1,241 over the month and is down by 1,514 when compared to the same time a year ago.

The number of unemployment claims increased in May by 13 percent. When compared to last May, claims were down by about 25 percent.

The MSA includes Bryan, Chatham, and Effingham counties.