Unemployment is back up slightly in the metro Gainesville area, to an unadjusted rate of 8.8 percent in October from a revised 8.6 percent in September, The Georgia Department of Labor reported Wednesday.

The number of unemployed workers in Hall County increased to 7,660, up 122 from 7,538. The jobless rate in the area in October 2009 was 9.4 percent.

Also in October, 1,098 laid-off workers in metro Gainesville filed initial claims for unemployment insurance benefits, an increase of 336, or 44.1 percent, from 762 in September.

Statewide, 57,494 laid-off workers filed initial claims for benefits in October, an increase of 348, or six-tenths of a percentage point, from 57,146 in September.

However, there was an over-the-year decrease of 13,103 initial claims, or 18.6 percent, from 70,597 filed in October 2009. Most of the first-time claims were filed in manufacturing, wholesale and retail trade, administrative and support services, and construction.

The state's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was unchanged at 9.9 percent from September to October.

The preliminary September rate of 10 percent reported last month has been revised downward by one-tenth of a percentage point. The rate was 10.2 percent in October 2009.

It marks the 37th consecutive month Georgia has exceeded the national unemployment rate, which is currently 9.6 percent.

Although the state's jobless rate was unchanged, the number of payroll jobs increased 22,300, or six-tenths of a percentage point, from 3,815,400 in September to 3,837,700 in October. Most of the increases came in retail trade, temporary employment agencies, public and private schools, and health care.

However, the number of jobs remains 7,200, or two-tenths of a percentage point, less than in October 2009, when there were 3,844,900 payroll jobs. In metro Gainesville, the number of payroll jobs increased 500, from 70,900 in September to 71,400.

The jobless rate in the Northeast Georgia area decreased to 9.3 percent in October, down two-tenths of a percentage point from September. The rate in the Georgia Mountains area remained unchanged at 8.8 percent.

Local area unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted. Georgia labor market data are available at www.dol.state.ga.us.