Unemployment rose in Tennessee and Georgia last month to the highest levels in more than 15 years, according to new state job figures.

The Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development said May’s jobless rate rose by the biggest amount ever in a single month, jumping to 6.4 percent. The Georgia Department of Labor said unemployment rose a half percent to 5.8 percent in May and the number of unemployed Georgians, 284,816, was the highest level on record.

“The May unemployment report confirms that we are facing an increasingly difficult economic environment,” Georgia Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond said.

In the six-county Chattanooga metropolitan area, unemployment rose in May to 5.2 percent, matching the comparable U.S. rate. But Chattanooga remained below the statewide rate for unemployment and was well below its neighboring metro areas.

In metropolitan Dalton, Ga., the jobless rate rose last month to 6.5 percent, the highest level since March 1993. In metropolitan Cleveland, Tenn., unemployment last month topped 6 percent for the first time since the early 1990s.

For complete coverage, see tomorrow’s Chattanooga Times Free Press.

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