A day after thousands lined up to find work at a job fair in Gainesville, the state reported what many already suspected: The local jobless rate is still falling.

The preliminary unadjusted unemployment rate in the metro Gainesville area decreased to 7.9 percent, down one-tenth of a percentage point from a revised 8.0 percent in April, the state Labor Department reported Thursday.

The jobless rate in metro Gainesville, which includes all of Hall County, was 8.7 percent in May 2010.

It is the first time the county's unemployment rate has dipped below 8 percent since December 2008, when effects of the worldwide recession first began to show.

Metro Gainesville was the only area of the state where the rate declined from April to May.

The rate declined because 500 jobs were added, the state reported, mostly in service-related industries.

In addition, there were fewer layoffs in construction, manufacturing, and administrative and support services.

Unemployment in the Georgia Mountains area increased to 8.5 percent in May, up one-tenth of a percentage point from a revised 8.4 percent in April.

On Wednesday, lines wrapped around the Georgia Mountains Center for the Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce's job fair, linking 40 potential employers with employees from around the area.

"We had at least 1,000 people in line before we opened the doors," said Tim Evans, the chamber's vice president for economic development. "This is about putting people together. The companies need good employees and want to be able to see people as part of the interview process."

The improving job market in Hall has many companies actively recruiting to fill positions. Industries looking to fill some 1,000 positions included those in food processing, manufacturing, health care, financial services and retail.

Among those was ZF Wind Power, which has 80 employees and plans to be up to 240 when it begins production next year.

"There's a number of positions we're looking for between now and end of the year. So it's exciting for an applicant that can say, ‘I'm not just handing a resume, but I'm handing a resume for a prospective job,' " said Janet Lowery, the company's senior human resources generalist.

The newly formed wind turbine gear box development company is affiliated with ZF Industries, a transmission-manufacturing company that has called Hall County home for 24 years.

Among those seeking a position at the job fair was Bradley Maxwell, who recently finished classes at Interactive College of Technology.

"You just got to be at the right place at the right time," he said.

Georgia's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remained unchanged at 9.8 percent from April to May. The April rate was first reported at a preliminary 9.9 percent, but was revised. The state's jobless rate was 10 percent in May a year ago.

May marked the 46th consecutive month Georgia has exceeded the national unemployment rate, which is currently 9.1 percent, up from 9.0 percent in April.

The state's lowest metro rate, at 7.2 percent, was recorded in metro Athens, while the highest, at 12 percent, was in the Dublin area of Southeast Georgia.

Staff writer Jacob Demmitt contributed to this story.