Alabama’s unemployment rate declined to 4.9 percent in August.

State Industrial Relations Director Tom Surtees said the rate was down from 5.1 percent recorded in July.

The national jobless rate also rose to 6.1 percent in August, compared to 5.7 percent in July.

Surtee said the Alabama figure represented 3,800 fewer unemployed people.

Alabama counties with the lowest unemployment rates were Shelby at 3.6 percent, Madison at 3.8 percent. Blount and Baldwin counties had jobless rates of 4.1 and 4.2 percent respectively.

The highest jobless rates were in Chambers at 14.3 percent, Wilcox at 13.4 percent and Bullock with 12.2 percent.