Unemployment fell last month to the lowest monthly level in nearly seven years in both Tennessee and Georgia.
But the jobless rate in both states remained above the national rate of 5.5 percent despite faster job growth in the Southern states.
The Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development said Thursday that the seasonally adjusted jobless rate during March fell by three-tenths of a percentage point to 6.3 percent. In Georgia, unemployment was unchanged and matched Tennessee's 6.3 percent rate.
Although both states continued to have above-average unemployment rates, they also showed strong year-over-year job gains. Tennessee employment grew 2.1 percent from March 2014 to March 2015, adding 58,100 jobs. Georgia showed an even stronger 3.1 percent employment growth over the past 12 months, adding 127,100 jobs -- the strongest March-to-March growth in the state since 2000
"While the rate held steady in March, we have seen considerable improvement since it began a steady decline from November 2010, when it was 10.5 percent," Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said. "In fact, the jobless rate has either declined or remained steady every month since then."
Although winter weather may have slowed hiring and economic growth in the first quarter, the economy continues to add jobs at a healthy pace, according to Dr. Bill Fox, the chief economic forecaster in Tennessee who heads the Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Tennessee.
"The combination of the strong year-over-year job growth and the lowest unemployment rate since 2008 shows that the labor market is very robust," Fox said. "There are always reasons for worry, but there is a lot of reason for optimism in Tennessee."
The drop in oil prices may hurt energy-producing states, but Tennessee should benefit by cheaper oil, Fox said. The strong U.S. dollar will curb some exports from the United States, but it also will keep inflation in check by lowering the costs of imported goods.
In Tennessee, the fastest growth in jobs over the past year came in construction, up 4.4 percent; real estate, up 6.5 percent; educational services, up 4.5 percent, and professional and technical services, up 3.9 percent.
Despite the gains in private sector jobs, employment in government in Tennessee was unchanged in the past year.
Even as the number of jobs increased, average pay also improved in March. The average manufacturing worker in Tennessee was paid $741.20 per week in March, up $17.44 from February.
Contact Dave Flessner at dflessner@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6340.