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The Greater Houston Partnership has issued the following press release:
Metro Houston added 33,100 jobs in October, according to data released today by the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC). October is always a strong month for job growth in the region as retailers ramp up for the holiday season, schools are finally fully staffed after the summer break, and employers complete their hiring plans for the year. October ’21 was exceptionally strong, however. Only once in the last 20 years had October recorded greater gains, and that was in October ’20 (35,900 jobs) when hiring surged as the reopening picked up steam.
As of October, the region has recouped 269,000 of the 361,400 jobs lost in March and April of ’20. All but a handful of sectors have recouped all or nearly all their pandemic losses.
Job gains in October were spread across the economy with only a handful of sectors recording no gains or marginal losses. The sector’s logging the greater gains were health care and social assistance (7,900 jobs), retail trade (5,800), public education (4,700), private educational services (3,900), and construction (3,100).
Construction, which has been a laggard through much of the recovery, has added 4,100 jobs since August. Recent reports from Dodge Data & Analytics shows through October of this year, construction activity is up $2.6 billion (11.9 percent) compared to the same period last year. The sector still has a long way before it fully recovers. Employment remains 30,600 jobs below its February ’20 level.
The energy sector (exploration and production and oil field services) added 700 jobs in October. While a nominal gain, the sector has added jobs in ten out of the past 12 months, or 6,300 jobs. That puts it at exactly the half-way point, with another 6,300 jobs to recover to return to February ’20 employment levels. The steady recovery in energy should begin to support job growth in manufacturing and wholesale trade, both of which are heavily tied to the energy industry and both of which have made little progress toward recovering jobs lost in the pandemic.
Arts, entertainment, and recreation shed 1,900, no surprise since employment always drops in the fall. The opening of the performing arts season doesn’t offset the jobs lost with the closing of the spring and summer recreation seasons.
Real estate and rental and leasing shed 1,400 jobs. Its unclear what’s happening there, given the strength of all commercial real estate markets except for office.
’21 will be one of the best years on record for local job growth. Through October, the region has created 104,100 jobs. The three best years on record for Houston were 1981 (126,900 jobs), 2012 (117,500 jobs), and 2014 (116,700 jobs). If the region follows historic patterns, it should create another 20,000 to 30,000 jobs through the end of the year.