Texas job growth continues, Austin and San Antonio add 12,400 jobs

Despite concerns about government cutbacks and tariffs slowing down the economy, Texas has kept on growing.

For the sixth month in a row, it has posted a record number of number of jobs, the Texas Workforce Commission said. The state also set a record in terms of its labor force, which has grown in 59 of the last 61 months.

"Texas continues to be a top state for growth and economic success with thousands of jobs added by employers in May," Workforce Commission Chairman Bryan Daniel said in a statement.

Leading the way for statewide growth was the sector tied to trade and transportation, followed closely by hospitality.

Texas added 28,100 jobs over the month of May, reaching 14.3 million positions, according to the latest data from Texas Workforce Commission and U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Since May 2024, it’s added 213,300 jobs, for a growth rate of 1.5%, as compared with 1.1% for the nation.

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The state’s labor force, the count of people working or actively looking or work, grew by 24,900 people to reach a record of nearly 15.84 million people.

The statewide seasonally adjusted unemployment rate held steady at 4.1% in May, a notch better than the U.S. rate of 4.2%, which also was unchanged.

The unadjusted unemployment rate for both the San Antonio-New Braunfels region and the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos region edged up in May compared with April although both added jobs. All of the state’s metro areas saw their unadjusted rates creep higher.

Statewide, the trade, transportation, and utilities sector had the largest over-the-month increase in May, adding 8,400 jobs. Leisure and hospitality was close behind with 8,200 new jobs. Coming in third was the private education and health services sector, which added 4,300 positions.

Job growth in the leisure and hospitality sector led both the San Antonio-New Braunfels and Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos regions in May. The greater San Antonio area added 2,400 jobs in the sector while the greater Austin area had even more new jobs, 3,700.

The Austin region also added more total jobs during the month — 6,700 new positions in the capital city compared with 5,700 in the San Antonio-New Braunfels metro area.

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"The strength of Texas’ economy lies in its hardworking people, attracting businesses and fueling growth across numerous industries," Workforce Commissioner Alberto Treviño III said in a statement.

The San Antonio region’s construction sector added 1,000 jobs, its second-highest category. Construction has grown across the state at a rate of 3.4% over the year, outperforming the national growth rate by 1.9 percentage points.

In the Austin region, the government sector added 1,300 jobs, making it the area’s second-leading category in new hires. The region’s unemployment, however, rose slightly: its unadjusted rate went up to 3.3% compared with 3.1% the month prior.

The San Antonio region’s unadjusted unemployment rate also grew, reaching 3.7% in May, up from 3.4% in April.

The Midland metro area had the state’s lowest unadjusted unemployment rate — 3% in May — followed by the Amarillo and San Angelo regions, both at 3.1%.

The state’s highest unemployment rates came from the border area, led by the Eagle Pass metro area with 9.9%, followed by the Brownsville-Harlingen region at 7% and McAllen-Edinburg-Mission at 6%.