Texas employers added 49,800 jobs in February, the biggest one-month gain since last fall.
Job gains were driven by the state’s service industry sector, led by business services and private education and health services, which accounted for just over 20,000 of the job gains, according to data released Friday by the Texas Workforce Commission.
The construction industry also recorded healthy growth, adding 7,800 jobs in February, growing 4 percent on an annual basis and 1.3 percentage points above the national growth rate.
“Texas’ workforce continues to show overall growth, with nearly every major industry adding jobs over the past month,” TWC Chairman Brian Daniel said.
The state jobs report comes two weeks after the release of the latest national data showing that American employers achieved healthy hiring in February, adding an astonishing 275,000 jobs.
According to the TWC, Texas saw its total nonfarm payrolls grow by 291,400 from February 2023 to February 2024. The state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.9%, in line with the national average.
The adjusted civilian labor force increased by 25,800 from the previous month, reaching 15,169,200 in February.
This marks the 44th time in the past 46 months that employment has increased in February.
Governor Greg Abbott said Texas has again broken all previous records for total employment, number of people in the workforce and size of the workforce.
“Texas continues to lead the nation in job creation because we’ve built the framework where free enterprise can thrive and hardworking Texans can succeed,” Gov. Abbott said in a statement. “That’s why businesses grow, jobs are created and the future is built here. And the greatest measure of our success is that we have more Texans working than ever before.”
