Oct 16, 2009 11:28 am US/Central
Texas Unemployment Rate Jumps To 8.2 Percent
AUSTIN (AP) ―
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Job seekers wait in line for a job fair June 4, 2009 in Chicago, Illinois.
Scott Olson/Getty Images
The state unemployment rate jumped to 8.2 percent in September and an additional 44,700 jobs were lost, the Texas Workforce Commission said Friday.
In August, the jobless rate hit 8 percent for the first time in 22 years. The state has lost jobs every month but one over the past year, and the number of employed people has dropped to early 2007 levels, according to commission figures.
The Texas rate is still running well under the national unemployment figure of 9.8 percent, a 26-year high.
"The Texas job market continued to tighten as most industries experienced job losses in September," commission Chairman Tom Pauken said.
The largest job losses were in leisure and hospitality (16,900 jobs) and professional and business services (16,500). Trade, transportation and utilities lost 13,000 positions.
Total nonagricultural employment has fallen by 303,700 jobs, or 2.9 percent, in the past year.
"The Texas labor force is growing as more people enter the job market, but job seekers are hampered by fewer jobs," said Ronny Congleton, the workforce commissioner representing labor.
The largest job gain for a specific industry was education and health services with 2,700 positions. Mining and logging saw its first increase of the year at 2,100 jobs.
The number of continuing claims for unemployment benefits was unavailable for September, according to the commission. The August number was 1.4 million, well more than twice the year-ago figure.
Unemployment rates are adjusted for seasonal trends in hiring and firing, which most economists believe gives a better picture of the job market.
Without the seasonal adjustment, the Texas unemployment rate increased to 8.3 percent from 8.1 percent in August.
The following are the preliminary September jobless rates for local areas in Texas, with revised August numbers in parentheses. The local figures are not seasonally adjusted.
Abilene 6.3 (6.1)
Amarillo 5.8 (5.6)
Austin-Round Rock 7.2 (7.2)
Beaumont-Port Arthur 10.8 (10.7)
Brownsville-Harlingen 10.8 (10.5)
College Station-Bryan 6.5 (6.4)
Corpus Christi 8.0 (7.8)
Dallas-Plano-Irving 8.3 (8.2)
El Paso 9.8 (9.6)
Fort Worth-Arlington 8.3 (8.3)
Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown 8.5 (8.4)
Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood 7.3 (7.0)
Laredo 9.1 (9.1)
Longview 8.3 (8.3)
Lubbock 5.7 (5.7)
McAllen-Edinburg-Mission 11.6 (11.4)
Midland 6.2 (6.1)
Odessa 9.2 (9.3)
San Angelo 7.0 (6.7)
San Antonio 7.1 (7.0)
Sherman-Denison 8.7 (8.5)
Texarkana 6.8 (6.6)
Tyler 8.3 (7.8)
Victoria 8.1 (7.9)
Waco 7.1 (7.3)
Wichita Falls 7.9 (7.9)
(© 2010 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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