HOUSTON, TX (Covering Katy News) - Houston-area employers added 5,400 jobs in June, well below the historical average for the month, according to data released Friday by Workforce Solutions. Not-seasonally adjusted unemployment rose 0.1 percent to 4.5 percent last month.
Hiring in the Leisure and Hospitality sector took a nosedive, recording a month-over-month loss of 6,000, which is unusual for this time of year.
“If there are no revisions next month and, more importantly, next spring, it will be the largest-ever decline on record for June, but I’m doubtful there’ve been mass layoffs going into peak summer vacation season,” Harvey said.
Government, mainly composed of public schools, shed jobs last month, down 7,500. This is part of the annual cycle of job losses at the beginning of summer, with schools sheding support personnel and teachers for the summer holiday.
Professional and Business Services added 5,800 jobs in June, mostly in high-skill, high-paying technical, professional, and management positions.
“This sector has seen 27 consecutive months of growth”, said Workforce Solutions economist Parker Harvey. “Year over year, it’s added more than 28,000 jobs, and we’ve now recovered all the jobs lost during the pandemic plus an additional 50,500.”
Construction saw the most significant increase in hiring, rising a record 6,500 – far outside the norm for the summer month according to Harvey.
“Typically this sector adds only about 600 jobs during June, so this is quite a bit out of character; particularly given continued high-interest rates and the extreme heat we’ve been experiencing,” he said. “It bears watching to see if, and by how much, this gets revised along with other months this year, which have also been out of character for the industry
Additional labor market information, including the detailed March report can be found online at www.wrksolutions.com/localstats. The Texas Workforce Commission will release May employment data on August 17, 2023.