ATLANTA -- The state Labor Department says Georgia's rate of unemployment rose to 7 percent in October, the highest in 16 years.
The department said Thursday the rate was 2.5 percent higher than it was for the same period in 2007. The rate was 6.4 percent in September.
The department said the last time Georgia experienced a seasonally adjusted rate at this level was in April 1992 when it also was 7 percent.
The department said 343,093 unemployed Georgians are looking for work.