Unemployment in metropolitan Chattanooga rose last month to the highest level in more than 25 years, the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development reported today.

The jobless rate in the six-county Chattanooga metro area rose during May by 0.7 percent to 9.3 percent — the highest rate for the area since August 1983.

Over the past 12 months, employment in metropolitan Chattanooga has shrunk by more than 5.2 percent, or 12,350 jobs, according to state employment figures.

Despite the increase, Chattanooga’s jobless rate was still below Tennessee’s comparable rate of 9.7 percent for May.

In Hamilton County, unemployment rose in May by 0.6 percent to 8.8 percent. Jobless rates were higher in most surrounding counties in Southeast Tennessee and North Georgia, ranging from 8.5 percent in Catoosa County up to 14.1 percent in Grundy County.

Read more in tomorrow’s Times Free Press.