From September 2025 to December 2025, gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector establishments in Georgia were 248,272, while gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector establishments were 228,446, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Victoria G. Lee noted that the difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment gain of 19,826 jobs in the private sector during the fourth quarter of 2025. (See table 1.) During the previous quarter, gross job losses exceeded gross job gains by 2,765. (See chart 1.)

The change in the number of jobs over time is the net result of increases and decreases in employment that occur at all private businesses in the economy. Business Employment Dynamics (BED) statistics track these changes in employment at private-sector establishments from the third month of one quarter to the third month of the next. The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses is the net change in employment. (See the Business Employment Dynamics Technical Note.)

Gross job gains

In the fourth quarter of 2025, gross job gains represented 5.9 percent of private-sector employment in Georgia and nationally. (See chart 2.) Gross job gains are the sum of increases in employment due to expansions at existing establishments and the addition of new jobs at opening establishments. In Georgia, gross job gains at expanding establishments totaled 189,952 in the fourth quarter of 2025, an increase of 7,347 jobs compared to the previous quarter. Opening establishments accounted for 58,320 jobs gained in the fourth quarter of 2025, an increase of 3,371 jobs from the previous quarter.

Gross job losses

In the fourth quarter of 2025, gross job losses represented 5.5 percent of private-sector employment in Georgia and nationally. (See chart 3.) Gross job losses are the result of contractions in employment at existing establishments and the loss of jobs at closing establishments. In Georgia, contracting establishments lost 174,881 jobs in the fourth quarter of 2025, a decrease of 8,595 jobs from the prior quarter. Closing establishments lost 53,565 jobs, a decrease of 3,278 jobs from the previous quarter.

Industries

Gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in 9 of the 11 published industry sectors in Georgia in the fourth quarter of 2025. Leisure and hospitality had the largest over-the-quarter net job increase, with a gain of 7,966 jobs. This was the result of 45,419 gross job gains and 37,453 gross job losses. The transportation and warehousing industry had a net gain of 6,466 jobs, followed by education and health services with a net gain of 5,043 jobs. Retail trade showed a net loss of 6,735 jobs, the largest loss of any sector in the state. Georgia’s manufacturing industry sector had a net loss of 2,115 jobs.

For more information

The BED data series include gross job gains and gross job losses by industry subsector, for the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, as well as gross job gains and gross job losses at the firm level by employer size class. BED data for the states have been included in table 2 of this release. Additional information is available online at the Business Employment Dynamics homepage and the Business Employment Dynamics Summary.

The Business Employment Dynamics for First Quarter 2026 are scheduled to be released on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. (ET).

Technical Note

The Business Employment Dynamics (BED) data are a product of a federal-state cooperative program known as Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). The BED data are compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from existing QCEW records.

More information on formal definitions of the data used in this release, along with coverage, concepts, and methodology, can be found in the Business Employment Dynamics Technical Note.

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Table 1. Private-sector gross job gains and losses by industry, Georgia, seasonally adjusted

Category	Gross job gains and losses (3 months ended)					Gross job gains and losses as a percent of employment (3 months ended)
	Dec. 2024	Mar. 2025	June 2025	Sept. 2025	Dec. 2025	Dec. 2024	Mar. 2025	June 2025	Sept. 2025	Dec. 2025
Total private (1)
Gross job gains	252,707	231,169	231,057	237,554	248,272	6.0	5.5	5.5	5.7	5.9
At expanding establishments	192,739	182,135	179,759	182,605	189,952	4.6	4.3	4.3	4.4	4.5
At opening establishments	59,968	49,034	51,298	54,949	58,320	1.4	1.2	1.2	1.3	1.4
Gross job losses	224,795	238,711	236,595	240,319	228,446	5.4	5.7	5.6	5.8	5.5
At contracting establishments	174,837	183,837	184,869	183,476	174,881	4.2	4.4	4.4	4.4	4.2
At closing establishments	49,958	54,874	51,726	56,843	53,565	1.2	1.3	1.2	1.4	1.3
Net employment change (2)	27,912	-7,542	-5,538	-2,765	19,826	0.6	-0.2	-0.1	-0.1	0.4
Construction
Gross job gains	16,823	17,244	15,259	16,129	16,348	7.3	7.3	6.6	6.9	6.9
At expanding establishments	12,580	13,874	11,854	12,480	12,506	5.5	5.9	5.1	5.3	5.3
At opening establishments	4,243	3,370	3,405	3,649	3,842	1.8	1.4	1.5	1.6	1.6
Gross job losses	14,618	16,089	15,306	15,474	15,875	6.4	6.9	6.5	6.6	6.7
At contracting establishments	10,752	11,754	11,750	11,331	10,948	4.7	5.0	5.0	4.8	4.6
At closing establishments	3,866	4,335	3,556	4,143	4,927	1.7	1.9	1.5	1.8	2.1
Net employment change (2)	2,205	1,155	-47	655	473	0.9	0.4	0.1	0.3	0.2
Manufacturing
Gross job gains	13,460	13,261	12,417	11,292	13,037	3.2	3.1	2.9	2.6	3.1
At expanding establishments	11,533	11,851	11,042	9,962	11,092	2.7	2.8	2.6	2.3	2.6
At opening establishments	1,927	1,410	1,375	1,330	1,945	0.5	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.5
Gross job losses	14,556	13,038	12,900	14,677	15,152	3.4	3.0	3.1	3.4	3.6
At contracting establishments	12,559	11,313	10,956	12,435	12,962	2.9	2.6	2.6	2.9	3.1
At closing establishments	1,997	1,725	1,944	2,242	2,190	0.5	0.4	0.5	0.5	0.5
Net employment change (2)	-1,096	223	-483	-3,385	-2,115	-0.2	0.1	-0.2	-0.8	-0.5
Wholesale trade
Gross job gains	9,817	9,423	9,818	9,044	10,004	4.3	4.2	4.3	4.1	4.5
At expanding establishments	8,017	7,840	8,359	7,569	8,489	3.5	3.5	3.7	3.4	3.8
At opening establishments	1,800	1,583	1,459	1,475	1,515	0.8	0.7	0.6	0.7	0.7
Gross job losses	9,409	10,009	9,524	10,410	9,238	4.1	4.4	4.2	4.6	4.1
At contracting establishments	7,301	7,657	7,638	8,379	6,848	3.2	3.4	3.4	3.7	3.0
At closing establishments	2,108	2,352	1,886	2,031	2,390	0.9	1.0	0.8	0.9	1.1
Net employment change (2)	408	-586	294	-1,366	766	0.2	-0.2	0.1	-0.5	0.4
Retail trade
Gross job gains	24,713	26,944	25,463	26,310	22,721	4.9	5.3	5.0	5.2	4.5
At expanding establishments	20,158	23,511	21,450	22,443	19,034	4.0	4.6	4.2	4.4	3.8
At opening establishments	4,555	3,433	4,013	3,867	3,687	0.9	0.7	0.8	0.8	0.7
Gross job losses	26,490	23,606	29,598	26,866	29,456	5.2	4.6	5.8	5.2	5.8
At contracting establishments	22,548	19,552	24,653	22,185	25,417	4.4	3.8	4.8	4.3	5.0
At closing establishments	3,942	4,054	4,945	4,681	4,039	0.8	0.8	1.0	0.9	0.8
Net employment change (2)	-1,777	3,338	-4,135	-556	-6,735	-0.3	0.7	-0.8	0.0	-1.3
Transportation and warehousing
Gross job gains	17,410	11,821	10,818	14,133	18,586	6.4	4.4	4.1	5.3	6.9
At expanding establishments	15,243	10,007	9,203	12,747	15,837	5.6	3.7	3.5	4.8	5.9
At opening establishments	2,167	1,814	1,615	1,386	2,749	0.8	0.7	0.6	0.5	1.0
Gross job losses	12,394	19,128	13,391	10,880	12,120	4.5	7.1	5.1	4.1	4.5
At contracting establishments	10,426	16,772	11,630	9,093	10,005	3.8	6.2	4.4	3.4	3.7
At closing establishments	1,968	2,356	1,761	1,787	2,115	0.7	0.9	0.7	0.7	0.8
Net employment change (2)	5,016	-7,307	-2,573	3,253	6,466	1.9	-2.7	-1.0	1.2	2.4
Information
Gross job gains	6,989	8,401	6,232	5,787	7,034	6.0	7.3	5.5	5.2	6.4
At expanding establishments	5,325	7,466	5,466	3,995	5,575	4.6	6.5	4.8	3.6	5.1
At opening establishments	1,664	935	766	1,792	1,459	1.4	0.8	0.7	1.6	1.3
Gross job losses	7,083	8,474	8,114	10,442	6,878	6.2	7.4	7.1	9.4	6.2
At contracting establishments	5,757	7,195	5,868	8,471	5,289	5.0	6.3	5.1	7.6	4.8
At closing establishments	1,326	1,279	2,246	1,971	1,589	1.2	1.1	2.0	1.8	1.4
Net employment change (2)	-94	-73	-1,882	-4,655	156	-0.2	-0.1	-1.6	-4.2	0.2
Financial activities
Gross job gains	14,777	13,381	12,847	13,226	13,338	5.4	4.8	4.7	4.8	4.8
At expanding establishments	10,374	10,286	10,082	9,717	9,110	3.8	3.7	3.7	3.5	3.3
At opening establishments	4,403	3,095	2,765	3,509	4,228	1.6	1.1	1.0	1.3	1.5
Gross job losses	12,449	13,728	13,497	13,137	12,758	4.6	5.0	4.9	4.8	4.6
At contracting establishments	8,926	9,376	9,868	9,377	8,798	3.3	3.4	3.6	3.4	3.2
At closing establishments	3,523	4,352	3,629	3,760	3,960	1.3	1.6	1.3	1.4	1.4
Net employment change (2)	2,328	-347	-650	89	580	0.8	-0.2	-0.2	0.0	0.2
Professional and business services
Gross job gains	54,069	44,701	48,637	50,495	52,110	7.2	6.0	6.6	6.9	7.0
At expanding establishments	40,338	35,125	37,654	38,177	39,609	5.4	4.7	5.1	5.2	5.3
At opening establishments	13,731	9,576	10,983	12,318	12,501	1.8	1.3	1.5	1.7	1.7
Gross job losses	50,241	50,145	50,669	53,257	48,324	6.7	6.7	6.9	7.2	6.5
At contracting establishments	38,868	37,413	39,876	39,111	37,047	5.2	5.0	5.4	5.3	5.0
At closing establishments	11,373	12,732	10,793	14,146	11,277	1.5	1.7	1.5	1.9	1.5
Net employment change (2)	3,828	-5,444	-2,032	-2,762	3,786	0.5	-0.7	-0.3	-0.3	0.5
Education and health services
Gross job gains	32,013	31,160	31,774	33,328	31,857	4.6	4.5	4.6	4.8	4.5
At expanding establishments	25,528	24,664	25,762	27,234	25,283	3.7	3.6	3.7	3.9	3.6
At opening establishments	6,485	6,496	6,012	6,094	6,574	0.9	0.9	0.9	0.9	0.9
Gross job losses	26,356	26,021	27,973	26,700	26,814	3.9	3.7	4.0	3.8	3.8
At contracting establishments	19,715	18,902	21,030	18,726	19,663	2.9	2.7	3.0	2.7	2.8
At closing establishments	6,641	7,119	6,943	7,974	7,151	1.0	1.0	1.0	1.1	1.0
Net employment change (2)	5,657	5,139	3,801	6,628	5,043	0.7	0.8	0.6	1.0	0.7
Leisure and hospitality
Gross job gains	45,207	37,247	39,479	39,737	45,419	8.8	7.2	7.6	7.7	8.7
At expanding establishments	33,502	27,002	28,465	28,508	33,317	6.5	5.2	5.5	5.5	6.4
At opening establishments	11,705	10,245	11,014	11,229	12,102	2.3	2.0	2.1	2.2	2.3
Gross job losses	36,410	43,442	40,368	42,646	37,453	7.0	8.3	7.8	8.3	7.2
At contracting establishments	28,524	33,934	31,394	34,058	29,218	5.5	6.5	6.1	6.6	5.6
At closing establishments	7,886	9,508	8,974	8,588	8,235	1.5	1.8	1.7	1.7	1.6
Net employment change (2)	8,797	-6,195	-889	-2,909	7,966	1.8	-1.1	-0.2	-0.6	1.5
Other services (3)
Gross job gains	9,213	8,263	9,022	8,415	8,661	7.8	7.0	7.7	7.2	7.4
At expanding establishments	6,488	5,994	7,020	6,091	6,251	5.5	5.1	6.0	5.2	5.3
At opening establishments	2,725	2,269	2,002	2,324	2,410	2.3	1.9	1.7	2.0	2.1
Gross job losses	9,027	9,254	8,653	9,825	8,041	7.7	7.8	7.4	8.4	6.8
At contracting establishments	6,590	7,110	6,424	7,155	5,439	5.6	6.0	5.5	6.1	4.6
At closing establishments	2,437	2,144	2,229	2,670	2,602	2.1	1.8	1.9	2.3	2.2
Net employment change (2)	186	-991	369	-1,410	620	0.1	-0.8	0.3	-1.2	0.6
Footnotes: (1) Includes unclassified sector not shown separately. (2) The net employment change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses. (3) Except public administration.

Table 2. Private-sector gross job gains and losses as a percent of total employment by state, seasonally adjusted

Category	Gross job gains as a percent of employment (3 months ended)					Gross job losses as a percent of employment (3 months ended)
	Dec. 2024	Mar. 2025	June 2025	Sept. 2025	Dec. 2025	Dec. 2024	Mar. 2025	June 2025	Sept. 2025	Dec. 2025
United States(1)	5.9	5.6	5.7	5.6	5.9	5.7	5.4	6.0	5.7	5.5
Alabama	5.8	5.3	5.5	5.4	6.1	5.3	5.6	5.6	5.5	5.4
Alaska	10.3	10.0	9.9	7.5	11.8	9.5	8.1	10.3	10.0	9.3
Arizona	6.1	5.8	5.3	5.8	5.7	5.9	5.3	6.3	5.5	5.4
Arkansas	5.8	5.1	5.1	5.3	6.0	4.8	5.1	5.5	5.3	5.0
California	6.7	6.0	6.6	6.2	6.8	6.4	6.2	6.7	6.0	6.1
Colorado	6.2	6.2	6.4	6.5	6.2	6.5	6.8	7.1	6.5	6.4
Connecticut	5.5	5.6	5.8	5.3	5.5	5.5	5.3	5.8	5.9	5.5
Delaware	6.1	5.9	5.9	5.3	5.5	6.3	5.3	6.1	6.1	5.5
District of Columbia	5.0	4.8	5.7	4.6	5.2	5.5	5.8	5.9	5.9	5.0
Florida	6.0	5.8	5.7	5.9	5.9	6.2	5.5	5.8	6.0	5.7
Georgia	6.0	5.5	5.5	5.7	5.9	5.4	5.7	5.6	5.8	5.5
Hawaii	5.3	4.9	4.8	5.1	5.0	5.0	5.0	5.2	4.8	4.7
Idaho	8.2	7.3	7.7	6.7	8.1	6.8	7.3	7.2	7.6	6.3
Illinois	5.1	5.0	5.2	4.7	5.3	5.1	5.0	5.2	5.0	5.3
Indiana	5.5	5.4	5.0	5.1	5.5	5.1	5.2	5.6	5.1	5.1
Iowa	5.6	5.8	5.6	4.8	6.3	5.6	5.5	5.8	5.9	5.4
Kansas	5.9	5.5	5.4	5.8	5.7	5.2	5.4	6.3	5.8	5.3
Kentucky	5.3	5.2	5.0	5.3	5.2	5.5	4.8	5.4	5.6	5.0
Louisiana	6.2	5.6	5.5	5.9	6.0	5.5	5.6	6.3	6.0	5.9
Maine	7.0	7.4	7.2	6.2	6.8	7.1	6.3	7.4	7.0	7.0
Maryland	6.0	5.9	5.7	5.7	6.0	5.9	5.7	6.2	6.5	5.6
Massachusetts	5.3	5.0	5.5	5.3	5.4	5.5	5.1	5.8	5.9	5.6
Michigan	5.4	5.2	5.8	4.9	5.6	5.9	5.3	5.5	5.9	5.3
Minnesota	5.5	5.1	5.8	5.3	5.6	5.1	5.5	5.5	5.6	5.5
Mississippi	6.3	5.7	6.3	6.4	6.4	6.2	6.1	6.5	6.1	5.8
Missouri	5.7	5.4	5.5	5.6	6.1	5.3	5.2	6.1	5.9	5.5
Montana	8.4	8.0	7.7	7.0	8.4	7.8	7.5	8.3	7.9	7.4
Nebraska	5.6	5.2	5.4	5.5	5.7	5.5	5.3	5.5	5.8	5.2
Nevada	6.1	5.4	6.2	6.9	6.2	5.6	5.9	6.3	5.2	5.4
New Hampshire	6.3	6.5	6.3	5.6	6.2	5.9	6.1	6.7	6.8	5.7
New Jersey	6.0	5.6	5.8	5.3	5.7	5.5	5.4	5.5	5.8	5.3
New Mexico	6.1	5.9	5.9	5.8	6.1	5.9	5.8	6.0	6.2	6.0
New York	5.7	6.6	5.9	5.9	5.6	5.5	5.0	7.0	5.8	5.6
North Carolina	6.1	5.4	5.6	5.4	6.0	5.5	5.5	5.4	5.7	5.1
North Dakota	6.5	6.7	6.4	6.2	6.9	6.6	6.5	6.7	6.6	6.4
Ohio	5.4	5.2	5.3	5.1	5.3	5.1	4.9	5.4	5.3	5.0
Oklahoma	6.0	5.5	5.5	6.0	6.2	5.5	5.3	6.2	6.4	5.1
Oregon	6.2	5.8	6.4	5.7	6.0	6.6	6.2	6.5	6.7	6.0
Pennsylvania	5.2	5.0	4.9	5.0	5.1	4.8	4.7	5.2	5.2	4.7
Rhode Island	7.3	6.6	6.3	6.0	6.6	6.3	5.9	6.7	6.7	6.2
South Carolina	6.4	6.1	5.8	6.3	6.7	5.9	5.5	6.6	6.5	5.5
South Dakota	6.7	6.2	6.0	5.9	6.0	5.9	6.5	6.1	6.0	5.6
Tennessee	5.5	5.4	5.1	5.7	6.2	6.2	5.1	5.9	5.2	5.2
Texas	5.8	5.1	5.2	5.3	5.6	5.2	5.1	5.4	5.3	4.9
Utah	6.8	6.6	6.6	6.7	6.5	6.3	6.0	6.6	6.4	6.1
Vermont	6.7	6.9	6.9	6.6	6.9	6.7	6.8	7.5	7.8	7.0
Virginia	5.8	5.6	5.8	5.9	5.8	5.5	5.1	5.8	6.1	5.1
Washington	5.8	5.7	6.0	5.2	5.6	5.7	5.5	5.4	5.6	5.3
West Virginia	6.5	6.4	5.5	5.8	5.9	6.1	5.7	6.3	6.0	6.0
Wisconsin	5.3	5.0	5.3	4.9	5.6	5.2	4.9	5.5	5.6	5.1
Wyoming	8.9	8.1	8.3	7.7	9.0	8.3	8.7	8.9	8.4	8.0
Puerto Rico	4.3	6.3	7.0	5.4	4.4	5.4	5.4	6.1	5.7	5.2
Virgin Islands	5.2	5.4	15.0	7.1	9.1	10.8	7.6	9.5	8.4	7.2
Footnotes (1) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. The sum of the states will not necessarily add to the U.S. total because of the independent seasonal adjustment of each state.