WEST POINT — The jobless rate in Troup County rose in January, from 4 percent in December to 4.5 percent, but was lower than it was a year ago when it sat at 5.1 percent.

According to numbers released by the Georgia Department of Labor, Troup’s unemployment went from 1,510 people in December to 1,735 in January. Interestingly, the number of employed also rose slightly, from 36,433 in December to 36, 575. The labor force also grew from 37,943 people to 38,310.

A year ago the labor force sat at 37,320 people, with 35,428 employed and 1,892 unemployed.

Neighboring counties also saw an increase in unemployment. Harris County went from 3.7 percent to 4.2 percent, Heard went from 4.2 to 4.5 percent, Coweta went from 3.7 to 3.8 percent, and Meriwether went from 5 percent to 5.8 percent.

Mayor Steve Tramell said the fact the unemployment rate rose, while a surprise, was really just a blip on the radar.

“We will continue to see good growth ,” he said. “This blip isn’t really a concern.”

Statewide, Georgia’s unemployment rate stayed at 4.5 percent from December to January, with unemployment actually lowering from 228,219 to 227,612. The civilian labor force went up to 5,099,628 from 5,091,491 with 4,872,016 people employed.

Georgia’s unemployment rate is higher than the national average, which currently rests at 4.1 percent.