Georgia's fiscal 2026 economic-development results, which the state released Sept. 3, show how much of its job pipeline now depends on international companies.
The Intuit QuickBooks Small Business Index estimates businesses with one to nine employees shed 7,000 jobs in September while average real revenue rose 1.68%. Employment fell in all eight regions, while revenue rose in all eight.
The Black unemployment rate rose from 6.0% to 7.0% in September, but employment and labor-force participation also rose. The number of unemployed grew by about 231,000, roughly twice the 110,000 gain in employment.
BLS revised July payroll employment from a gain of 21,000 to a loss of 10,000, and July and August combined are now 60,000 lower than first reported. Here is what revisions mean and why the first estimate is not the final word.
Homebase says small-business hiring turned positive year over year, Paychex calls small-business employment steady, and QuickBooks estimates microbusinesses shed jobs. The reports cover different employers, months and measures, and should not be averaged.
An IZA discussion paper using CPS data finds no statistically significant rise in summer 2026 unemployment among recent college graduates, though it reports some evidence linked to remote-capable occupations.
On Wednesday, BEA releases August personal income and spending and the third estimate of second-quarter GDP, and launches its 2026 annual update of the national, industry and regional accounts on the same day for the first time.
BLS releases August metro-area employment and unemployment estimates Wednesday, September 30. Until then, July is the latest official Atlanta benchmark, and Georgia's August statewide figures should not stand in for it.
