Texas celebrates record highs for jobs, labor force
SAN ANTONIO (KTSA News) — The new year is starting off for Texas in much the same way last year ended – and the year before.
Governor Greg Abbott is announcing January employment data that shows the state set a new high for total jobs in January. The numbers show there has never been a time in which more Texans were working or the labor force was bigger. January’s data shows that Texas has now experienced job growth in 43 of the last 45 months.
“Texas works when Texans work, and more Texans are working today than ever before in the history of our great state,” said Governor Abbott. “Thanks to the Best Business Climate in the nation and the best workforce in America, we are seeing record-setting business expansion and job growth in Texas. With an unrelenting focus on expanding economic opportunity for all Texans through significant and historic investments in education, infrastructure, and workforce development, we continue to build a bigger, better Texas for generations to come.”
January job totals released by the Texas Workforce Commission reflect annual benchmarking revisions made by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) to previously released monthly employment data. New jobs records for Texas now include:
- Texas reaches a new high with the largest labor force ever in the state’s history at a 15,143,400.
- Texas reaches a new high for Texans working, including self-employed, at 14,558,800.
- Texas reaches a new high for total jobs at 14,053,400 after adding 18,900 non-farm jobs in January.
- Texas added 263,900 jobs from January 2023 to January 2024.
Last week, Governor Abbott celebrated Texas winning Site Selection magazine’s Governor’s Cup for an unprecedented 12th year in a row. With records unmatched by any other state, the latest win recognizes Texas as the No. 1 state for attracting the most new and expanded business facility projects in 2023, with 1,254 total projects—more than twice the total for the second-ranked state.
