You read that headline correctly, it isn’t a typo. Polk County’s unemployment rate was at 11.9% for the month of April – unadjusted figures, of course – an huge increase from the March adjusted rate of 4.8%.

The 7.1% increase month-over-month can be attributed primarily to the COVID-19 shutdowns and layoffs that have occurred since the pandemic forced closures of businesses and industries alike.

2,154 people were out of a job in April, based on the yet-to-be adjusted figures from the Georgia Department of Labor. Compared to last year’s 3.2% unemployment rate for the same period (579 people sought benefits,) it is a jump of 8.7%.

As of mid-June, the statewide unemployment rate stood at 9.7%, down from the unadjusted April figure of 12.6% across Georgia. Some 836,060 claims have been filed. Labor Commissioner Mark Butler reported in a press release that more decreases are expected as the state gets back to business overall.

“I think we are going to continue to see big drops in the unemployment rate as Georgia continues to open back up,” said Commissioner Mark Butler. “We have to remember that the recent unemployment was not caused by an economic catalyst, but instead by a medical emergency. Those jobs are still out there for the most part.”

Nationally, unemployment was a 13.3% as of this writing based on the GDOL figures.

Check back for more when updated local figures become available.