For the first time since February 2009, Georgia’s unemployment rate is below nine percent.

The Georgia Department of Labor released new numbers overnight showing the state’s jobless rate at 8.9 percent for April. The unemployment rate fell one-tenth of a percentage point from March. This is the ninth straight month the jobless rate has dropped. The jobless rate was 9.8 percent in last April.

“We now have the lowest unemployment rate, the fewest unemployed workers, and the most jobs in Georgia in more than three years,” State Labor Commissioner Mark Butler told News/Talk WSB in a statement. “Our job market continues to improve at a modest and steady rate.”

There were 423,495 unemployed workers in Georgia in April. That’s the fewest since January 2009 when there were 409,841.

Georgia also has the highest number of jobs since January 2009; 31,900 positions were added last month to bring the overall total to 3,926,000.

The industries showing growth were trade and transportation, leisure and hospitality, professional and business services, construction, and education and health care.

The number of initial employment claims did rise by 11.3 percent in April. But initial claims dropped by 12.6 percent from April 2011.

The bad news, 56.8 percent of all of Georgia’s unemployed workers have been out of work for more than six months. That's 240,500 people.

"This has been a problem that's gotten worse in the recession and its aftermath," AJC Sunday Business Editor Henry Unger told News/Talk WSB's Mark Alewine.  "It really hasn't gotten any better, while the unemployment rate has fallen."

However, the number of long-term unemployed has dropped 5.6 percent in the last year.

State and local governments also shed 3,300 jobs.