The Georgia Department of Labor reported Friday that the unemployment rate in the Georgia Mountains area declined to 3.5 percent in November, down 0.4 percent from 3.9 percent in October. In the metro Gainesville area, which is all of Hall County, the rate declined to 3.3 percent in November, down 0.4 percent from 3.7 percent in October.

Meanwhile, the state's unemployment rate declined to 4.2 percent in November, down 0.5 percent from 4.7 percent in October and down 0.2 percent from 4.4 percent in November of 2006. The current state rate is 0.3 percent lower than the U.S. unadjusted rate of 4.5 percent.

The state's rate decreased in November because the number of people unemployed declined by 21,675, due, in part, to temporary holiday hiring in the retail trade industry.

From October to November, preliminary data show Georgia added 12,600 payroll jobs.