October 22, 2021 – Texas Unemployment Rate Falls to 5.9 Percent in August
Date: October 22, 2021
Media Contact: James Bernsen Phone: 512-463-8556
State adds 95,800 jobs over the month
AUSTIN – In September, the seasonally adjusted Texas unemployment rate was 5.6 percent, a decrease of 0.3 percentage points from August 2021. Texas added 95,800 total nonagricultural jobs over the month, making gains in 16 of the last 17 months. Texas added a total of 711,500 jobs since September 2020.
“The improvement we see in the unemployment rate this month continues the trend we’ve experienced the last six months,” said TWC Chairman Bryan Daniel. “Businesses in Texas continue to create jobs, which creates career opportunities for Texans.”
In September, the Leisure and Hospitality industry gained 31,900 jobs over the month. Trade, Transportation and Utilities added 16,700 positions. Also of note, Professional and Business Services added 16,400 jobs.
“From rural Texas towns to our big cities, job opportunities continue to grow for Texans,” said TWC Commissioner Representing Labor Julian Alvarez. “TWC has programs to help Texans in all areas of the state and all career levels, from scholarships for childcare to job training, with the goal of providing a path to upward mobility for all.”
The Amarillo Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) recorded September’s lowest unemployment rate among Texas MSAs with a not seasonally adjusted rate of 3.4 percent, followed by the Austin-Round Rock MSA at 3.5 percent and Abilene, College Station-Bryan and Lubbock MSAs each at 3.9 percent.
“Each month, we see more employers relocating their operations to the great state of Texas, creating new jobs, careers and opportunities for all,” said TWC Commissioner Representing Employers Aaron Demerson. “To assist these new Texas employers, TWC is committed to offering a number of programs that will help grow, thrive, and sustain their businesses here in Texas.”
Employment estimates released by TWC are produced in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics. All estimates are subject to revision. To access this and more employment data, visit TexasLMI.com.
The Texas Labor Market & Career Information Data for October is scheduled to be released on Friday, November 19, 2021 at 9:00 a.m. (CST).
| September 2021 | August 2021 | September 2020 | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C.L.F. | Emp. | Unemp. | Rate | C.L.F. | Emp. | Unemp. | Rate | C.L.F. | Emp. | Unemp. | Rate | |
| United States | 161,392.0 | 154,026.0 | 7,366.0 | 4.6 | 161,788.0 | 153,232.0 | 8,556.0 | 5.3 | 160,073.0 | 147,796.0 | 12,277.0 | 7.7 |
| Texas | 14,254.4 | 13,549.2 | 705.2 | 4.9 | 14,191.3 | 13,432.9 | 758.3 | 5.3 | 13,993.8 | 12,877.4 | 1,116.4 | 8.0 |
| Abilene | 81.3 | 78.1 | 3.2 | 3.9 | 80.2 | 76.8 | 3.3 | 4.1 | 78.3 | 73.8 | 4.4 | 5.7 |
| Amarillo | 135.6 | 131.0 | 4.6 | 3.4 | 135.1 | 130.3 | 4.9 | 3.6 | 131.9 | 125.7 | 6.2 | 4.7 |
| Austin-Round Rock | 1,306.2 | 1,260.3 | 46.0 | 3.5 | 1,294.2 | 1,245.6 | 48.6 | 3.8 | 1,245.7 | 1,168.7 | 77.0 | 6.2 |
| Beaumont-Port Arthur | 173.5 | 159.7 | 13.9 | 8.0 | 173.5 | 158.3 | 15.2 | 8.8 | 171.0 | 150.6 | 20.4 | 11.9 |
| Brownsville-Harlingen | 170.1 | 157.7 | 12.4 | 7.3 | 170.2 | 156.9 | 13.3 | 7.8 | 168.9 | 151.5 | 17.4 | 10.3 |
| College Station-Bryan | 132.9 | 127.8 | 5.2 | 3.9 | 128.9 | 123.5 | 5.5 | 4.2 | 132.0 | 124.8 | 7.3 | 5.5 |
| Corpus Christi | 204.3 | 191.3 | 13.0 | 6.4 | 203.4 | 189.6 | 13.8 | 6.8 | 202.0 | 182.7 | 19.3 | 9.6 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington | 4,107.9 | 3,927.5 | 180.3 | 4.4 | 4,091.3 | 3,898.4 | 192.9 | 4.7 | 3,995.4 | 3,708.5 | 286.9 | 7.2 |
| Dallas-Plano-Irving MD | 2,775.1 | 2,654.5 | 120.6 | 4.3 | 2,773.8 | 2,645.0 | 128.7 | 4.6 | 2,698.8 | 2,506.3 | 192.5 | 7.1 |
| Fort Worth-Arlington MD | 1,332.8 | 1,273.0 | 59.8 | 4.5 | 1,317.6 | 1,253.4 | 64.1 | 4.9 | 1,296.7 | 1,202.3 | 94.4 | 7.3 |
| El Paso | 369.3 | 349.4 | 19.8 | 5.4 | 366.9 | 345.7 | 21.1 | 5.8 | 367.0 | 336.9 | 30.1 | 8.2 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land | 3,443.7 | 3,252.7 | 191.0 | 5.5 | 3,431.6 | 3,222.3 | 209.4 | 6.1 | 3,396.4 | 3,077.4 | 319.0 | 9.4 |
| Killeen-Temple | 181.0 | 171.8 | 9.2 | 5.1 | 180.8 | 171.1 | 9.7 | 5.4 | 178.3 | 165.8 | 12.5 | 7.0 |
| Laredo | 116.4 | 110.1 | 6.3 | 5.4 | 116.5 | 109.8 | 6.7 | 5.8 | 115.8 | 105.3 | 10.5 | 9.0 |
| Longview | 97.2 | 91.9 | 5.3 | 5.5 | 97.1 | 91.4 | 5.7 | 5.8 | 95.9 | 87.7 | 8.2 | 8.6 |
| Lubbock | 166.0 | 159.5 | 6.5 | 3.9 | 165.4 | 158.3 | 7.1 | 4.3 | 162.6 | 153.2 | 9.4 | 5.8 |
| McAllen-Edinburg-Mission | 367.1 | 337.6 | 29.5 | 8.0 | 366.3 | 333.9 | 32.4 | 8.8 | 360.7 | 317.1 | 43.6 | 12.1 |
| Midland | 100.0 | 95.1 | 4.9 | 4.9 | 99.2 | 94.0 | 5.2 | 5.3 | 97.5 | 88.0 | 9.6 | 9.8 |
| Odessa | 78.8 | 73.2 | 5.6 | 7.1 | 78.6 | 72.6 | 6.0 | 7.6 | 81.2 | 70.2 | 11.0 | 13.5 |
| San Angelo | 54.6 | 52.2 | 2.4 | 4.4 | 54.5 | 52.0 | 2.5 | 4.5 | 54.4 | 50.8 | 3.6 | 6.6 |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels | 1,233.5 | 1,178.1 | 55.4 | 4.5 | 1,221.6 | 1,162.5 | 59.1 | 4.8 | 1,203.7 | 1,114.0 | 89.7 | 7.4 |
| Sherman-Denison | 66.3 | 63.6 | 2.7 | 4.1 | 66.5 | 63.7 | 2.8 | 4.2 | 64.7 | 60.9 | 3.8 | 5.8 |
| Texarkana | 63.3 | 60.3 | 2.9 | 4.6 | 63.1 | 59.8 | 3.2 | 5.1 | 63.2 | 58.9 | 4.3 | 6.8 |
| Tyler | 114.2 | 109.2 | 5.0 | 4.4 | 113.4 | 108.1 | 5.3 | 4.7 | 108.9 | 101.5 | 7.4 | 6.8 |
| Victoria | 44.4 | 41.9 | 2.5 | 5.7 | 44.0 | 41.3 | 2.6 | 6.0 | 44.4 | 40.6 | 3.8 | 8.6 |
| Waco | 131.0 | 125.4 | 5.6 | 4.3 | 131.9 | 125.9 | 6.0 | 4.6 | 128.2 | 120.3 | 7.9 | 6.1 |
| Wichita Falls | 65.2 | 62.3 | 2.9 | 4.4 | 65.2 | 62.1 | 3.1 | 4.7 | 63.9 | 59.5 | 4.4 | 6.9 |
| INDUSTRY TITLE | Sep 2021* | Aug 2020 | Sep 2020 | Aug'21 to Sep '21 | Sep'20 to Sep '21 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Absolute Change | Percent Change | Absolute Change | Percent Change | ||||
| Total Nonagricultural | 12,857,300 | 12,761,500 | 112,145,800 | 95,800 | 0.8 | 711,500 | 5.9 |
| Total Private | 10,862,800 | 10,777,500 | 10,168,300 | 85,300 | 0.8 | 694,500 | 6.8 |
| Goods Producing | 1,816,100 | 1,799,500 | 1,737,900 | 16,600 | 0.9 | 78,200 | 4.5 |
| Mining and Logging | 197,000 | 194,000 | 169,500 | 3,000 | 1.5 | 27,500 | 16.2 |
| Construction | 732,700 | 716,300 | 716,300 | 8,900 | 1.2 | 16,400 | 2.3 |
| Manufacturing | 886,400 | 881,700 | 852,100 | 4,700 | 0.5 | 34,300 | 4.0 |
| Service Providing | 11,041,200 | 10,962,000 | 10,407,900 | 79,200 | 0.7 | 633,300 | 6.1 |
| Trade, Transportation, and Utilities | 2,601,500 | 2,584,800 | 2,477,500 | 16,700 | 0.6 | 124,000 | 5.0 |
| Information | 206,500 | 206,700 | 196,800 | -200 | -0.1 | 9,700 | 4.9 |
| Financial Activities | 832,900 | 831,200 | 800,400 | 1,700 | 0.2 | 32,500 | 4.1 |
| Professional and Business Services | 1,921,300 | 1,904,900 | 1,739,200 | 16,400 | 0.9 | 182,100 | 10.5 |
| Education and Health Services | 1,744,200 | 1,743,000 | 1,677,200 | 1,200 | 0.1 | 67,000 | 4.0 |
| Leisure and Hospitality | 1,321,500 | 1,289,600 | 1,150,700 | 31,900 | 2.5 | 170,800 | 14.8 |
| Other Services | 418,800 | 417,800 | 388,600 | 1,000 | 0.2 | 30,200 | 7.8 |
| Government | 1,994,500 | 1,984,000 | 1,977,500 | 10,500 | 0.5 | 17,000 | 0.9 |
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The Texas Workforce Commission is a state agency dedicated to helping Texas employers, workers and communities prosper economically. For details on TWC and the services it offers in coordination with its network of local workforce development boards, call 512-463-8942 or visit www.texasworkforce.org. To receive notifications about TWC programs and services subscribe to our email updates.
