The Texas Workforce Commission reports that the job market in the Austin area showed growth during the month of May, making it the second month in a row that jobs have been added to the area.
According to the Workforce Commission report, 4,000 jobs were added by Central Texas employers between May 2009 and May 2010, representing a 0.5% gain. This represents an even greater increase than the one that was experienced in April, at which time 800 more jobs were added when compared to the previous year. The gains that took place in April certainly represented something worth celebrating, as it was the first time year-over-year gains had occurred since late 2008 in the Central Texas area.
When looking specifically at Austin, the commission found that the biggest gains took place in the hospitality and leisure sector last month. At this time, 7,500 jobs were added, representing an 8.5% increase. Unfortunately, the commission further reports that job cuts took place in the manufacturing, construction and information sectors.
In terms of the overall unemployment rate, the rate is still higher than the 6.6% that the area enjoyed in May of 2009. But, at 6.9%, it is down from the 7% unemployment rate the area posted in April. Furthermore, local economist Angelos Angelou reports that the figures for the Central Texas area "indicate a slow but steady recovery for the Austin labor market." This is not to say that the city is entirely out of the woods, however, as Angelou goes on to say, "But while those numbers are things we should rejoice about, we still have a long way to go, just like the rest of the nation."
Angelou went on to caution that, while the number of jobs have increased in certain sectors, most of the jobs are lower-paying. According to Angelou, this indicates that "the high-tech economy is still struggling." He went on to say that "It appears to be a very slow recovery. The recession has been tougher to beat than anyone anticipated. But overall, Austin is weathering the storm fairly well."
Overall, the state of Texas is doing well compared to other states around the country. In fact, the state recovered an overall year-over-year gain of 35,100 jobs while its unemployment rate held steady at 8.3%.
"During the month of May, employers in most industries added jobs," said commission Chairman Tom Pauken. "In addition, it is encouraging to see that Texas' annual job growth rate is back in positive territory."
According to the commission report, the Dallas-Plano-Irving metro area also added 5,600 jobs in May, which represents a 0.3% increase as well as the first time the area has experienced positive job growth since September of 2008. The Houston and San Antonio metro area, on the other hand, experienced a job loss of 22,000 jobs, representing a 0.9% loss. At the same time, the area saw its unemployment rate drop from 8.4% to 8.3%. San Antonio, on the other hand, experienced a loss of 7,200 jobs for a year-over-year 0.9% loss rate, but the unemployment rate still managed to drop from 7.3% to 7.1%. Compared to the national unemployment rate of 9.7%, these Texas metro areas are still doing quite well.
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