LAREDO, TEXAS — The Laredo MSA saw a decrease in the seasonally adjusted rate dropping to 4.8 percent in December. That represents a decrease of 0.2 percent from the 5.0 percent reported in November, according to figures released Friday, January 21, by the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC).
The three-county Workforce Solutions for South Texas (WSST) area of Jim Hogg, Webb, and Zapata counties reported a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 5.0 percent in December which represents a decrease of 0.3 percent in comparison to November that was at 5.3 percent.
“We anticipated that the unemployment rate would continue to decrease in December. We have always seen slight increases in number of people working from November to December as employers bring on additional labor force to help with the demand increase during the holiday season,” Rogelio Trevino, Executive Director at WSST, said.
The 5.0 percent unemployment rate in the South Texas area represented 6,173 residents seeking employment in December. The total reported Civilian Labor Force was at 123,486, meaning that 117,313 people are employed.
The State of Texas reported a 4.3 percent unemployment rate, while the national unemployment rate was reported at 3.7 percent, according to the report by TWC.
Essential Jobs reported an increase in employment by industry, such as the Leisure and Hospitality (9.6%), Other Services (4.4%), Information (3.8%), Natural Resources and Mining and Education & Health Care (2.1%), Trade, Transportation and Utilities (31.0%), Manufacturing (0.9%), and Public Administration (0.2%).
Industries reporting losses were the following: Construction, Financial Activities, and Professional and Business Services.
“It is promising to see the increases in jobs in the essential jobs and service industry jobs. These were the industries that were most affected by the pandemic and it is expected that the job openings in those industries will slowly begin to fill again,” Trevino said. “Workforce Solutions for South Texas stands ready to assist job seekers and employers connect to fill the vacancies that currently exist.”

Activities
For those looking for a job, we invite them to the “We Need Your Talent” Virtual Job Fair. This event will take place on Wednesday, January 26, from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm at https://bit.ly/virtual0126. If anyone needs assistance with their resume or register, give us a call at 956-794-6500.
For parents working in the service industry and need child care assistance, we invite you to apply to receive 12 months of paid child care scholarship. Parents need to be working in the Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, Accommodation, Food Services, and Retail Trade industries. To learn more visit www.southtexasworkforce.org. To apply today, visit bit.ly/applysir.
Employment estimates released by TWC are produced in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. All estimates are subject to revision. To access this and more employment data, visit texaslmi.com.

AUSTIN – The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) is providing extra help to the service industry, which was hit hard by the pandemic, by providing 12 months of free child care to low-income parents who are employed in the service industry. TWC has an existing child care subsidy program designed to assist low-wage workers in paying for the cost of child care. The new Service Industry Recovery (SIR) program will use federal COVID-relief funds to provide an extra focus on workers in the service industry.

“TWC’s child care assistance program provides an important subsidy many Texas families use to enter the workforce” said TWC Chairman Bryan Daniel. “This Service Industry Recovery program provides additional funding to ensure service industry employers maintain access to quality child care as they play an important role in the state’s economic success.”

The industries targeted include low-wage workers in the arts, entertainment and recreation industry, as well as accommodations, food services and retail trade. These industries were some of the greatest impacted by the pandemic. 

“For many Texans, lack of access to affordable, quality child care is sometimes the biggest roadblock to getting a job,” said Commissioner Representing Labor Julian Alvarez. “Workers should not have to choose between their families and their jobs. They need and want to do both, and this program helps them do that.”

While TWC is targeting aspects of the service sector with SIR child care, all income-eligible families continue to have access to TWC’s regular low-income child care subsidy program. This new program targeting service industries will provide for an initial 12 months of eligibility. Continued eligibility following this time period will be conditioned on families applying for and meeting the regular child care eligibility requirements.  

“Service industries are crucial to our state’s economy,” said Commissioner Representing Employers Aaron Demerson. “Assisting with getting our Texans back to work helps our Texas employers bounce back, which means a stronger recovery for all of Texas.”

The $500 million program is funded by a Child Care Development Block Grant through the federal CARES, ARPA and CRRSAA recovery legislation passed by Congress. The SIR program is being implemented through grants to the 28 Workforce Development Boards across Texas. Find your local board here. 

TWC Media Contact: James Bernsen
Phone: 512-463-8556

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The Texas Workforce Commission is a state agency dedicated to helping Texas employers, workers and communities prosper economically. For details on TWC and the services it offers in coordination with its network of local workforce development boards, call 512-463-8942 or visit www.texasworkforce.org. To receive notifications about TWC programs and services subscribe to our email updates.

LAREDO, Texas – August 2020 — Workforce Solutions for South Texas (WSST) reported a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for the Laredo MSA’s that decreased by 0.9 percent in July down to 6.7 percent. The State of Texas reported a 6.0 percent unemployment rate, while the national unemployment rate was reported at 5.7 percent, according to a report by the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC).

The three-county Workforce Solutions for South Texas (WSST) area of Jim Hogg, Webb, and Zapata counties reported a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 7.0 percent in July 2021 this represents a decrease of 1.0 percent in comparison to June 2021 that was at 8.0 percent.

“As employers continue to post job opportunities, the labor force is returning to work. An almost one full percentage point drop in unemployment indicates that jobs are being filled and this is good news for local businesses”, Rogelio Trevino, WSST Executive Director, said.

The South Texas area, serving Jim Hogg, Webb, and Zapata counties, reported a Civilian Labor Force of 122,863, with 8,542 unemployed. This means that 114,321 people are employed in the three-county area.

Essential Jobs reported an increase in employment by industry, such as the Construction (6.8%); and Professional and Business Services (5.1%); Natural Resources and Mining (3.4%); Information (0.6%); and, Financial Activities (0.1%). The manufacturing industry reported no change.

Industries reporting losses were the following: Other Services, Education and Health Services, Public Administration, Leisure and Hospitality, and the Trade, Transportation, and Utilities.

“Some of the industries that showed slight decreases are industries that typically have shown decreases in jobs as the summer months closeout and portions of the labor force return to school,” Trevino said. “There are some industries that are rebounding from the impacts of the COVID pandemic and show some slight increases in hiring.

“We will continue to monitor the fluctuations in the job openings as some businesses are still being impacted by the next surge in the pandemic,” Trevino added.
Employment estimates released by TWC are produced in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. All estimates are subject to revision.

Virtual Job Fair

The Bi-Weekly Job Fair is transitioning back to a virtual platform to serve the community, including those who can’t make it to the One-Stop center.

The “August Vibes 2 Bi-Weekly Virtual Job Fair” has been scheduled for Wednesday, August 25 from 1 p.m. – 4 p.m. The afternoon schedule is considering job seekers who can’t participate in the morning events.

Employers who are interested in participating at any of these events can register by visiting the short link bit.ly/augustvibes2021

Job Seekers interested in participating need to have an updated profile in WorkInTexas, and register at bit.ly/augustvibes2.

“Workforce Solutions for South Texas continues to collaborate with local employers and job seekers in helping them match up for hiring opportunities,” Trevino added.

The Texas Labor Market & Career Information Data for July is scheduled to be released on Friday, September 17, 2021, at 9:00 a.m.

LAREDO ⎯ Workforce Solutions for South Texas (WSST) reported a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for the Laredo MSA’s that increased by 1.0 percent in June up to 7.7 percent. The State of Texas reported a 6.6 percent unemployment rate, while the national unemployment rate was reported at 6.1 percent, according to a report by the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC).

The three-county Workforce Solutions for South Texas (WSST) area of Jim Hogg, Webb, and Zapata counties reported a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 8.0 percent in June 2021 this represents an increase of 1.0 percent in comparison to May 2021 that was at 7.0 percent.

“These slight increases in the area’s unemployment rates can most likely be attributed to increases in the civilian labor force (CLF). Over the last several weeks we’ve seen the CLF increase and we believe the increase can be attributed to returning workers who had been discouraged during the pandemic period and were not ready, willing, or able to work,” Rogelio Trevino, Workforce Solutions for South Texas Executive Director, said. “In my opinion, this increase in the CLF force will be good news for employers that are currently facing shortages in job applicants as they will have more applicants to choose from in filling their job vacancies.”

The South Texas area, serving Jim Hogg, Webb, and Zapata counties, reported a Civilian Labor Force of 115,842, with 8,896 unemployed. This means that 106,946 people are employed in the three-county area.

Essential Jobs reported an increase in employment by industry, such as the Trade, Transportation, and Utilities (1.0%); and Professional and Business Services (2%). The manufacturing, Information, Financial Activities, Government, and Other Services industries reported no change.

Industries reporting losses were the following: Mining, Logging, and Construction; Education and Health Services; and, Leisure and Hospitality.

“Over the last 16 months, our local economy has fluctuated from unemployment rates that reached up to 14 percent back down to 7 percent. Our local businesses are now readjusting their employment structures as they recover and implement new ways of doing business,” Trevino said.

“These adjustments have made it difficult to predict employment rates but we foresee that we will slowly return back to the pre-pandemic rates of low unemployment; however, there will be changes to business structures and job functions as employers implement things they’ve learned over the last few months.”

Employment estimates released by TWC are produced in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. All estimates are subject to revision.

Bi-Weekly Job Fair

The Bi-Weekly Job Fairs are coming back in August but will transition into in-person events.

The “August Vibes Bi-Weekly Job Fair” has been scheduled for Wednesday, August 11 from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.; and for Wednesday, August 25 from 1 p.m. – 4 p.m.

Employers who are interested in participating at any of these events can register by visiting the short link bit.ly/augustvibes2021

“Workforce Solutions for South Texas remains committed to offering quality workforce solutions systems for our local employers and our job fairs/hiring events have always been a very successful way for us to help connect employers and job seekers in order to fill job vacancies,” Trevino said. “We strongly encourage employers and job seekers to access and utilize our no-cost workforce solutions services as they look to either find an employee or find employment.”

The Texas Labor Market & Career Information Data for July is scheduled to be released on Friday, August 20, 2021, at 9:00 a.m.

LAREDO ⎯ May 2021 — Workforce Solutions for South Texas (WSST) reported a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 7.3 percent in April 2021 for the three-county South Texas Workforce Development area. This represents a decrease of 0.9 percent in comparison to March 2021.
The City of Laredo MSA’s unemployment rate decreased to 7.0 percent in April down from 7.9 percent in March. The State’s is at 6.3 percent, while the national unemployment rate was reported at 5.7 percent, according to a report by the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC).
The South Texas area, serving Jim Hogg, Webb, and Zapata counties, reported a Civilian Labor Force of 120,813, with 8,818 unemployed. This means that 111,995 people are employed in the three-county area.
“The continued decrease in unemployment shows that employers are hiring as our area recovers from the impact of the pandemic. The three-county workforce development area had a decrease in the number of unemployed individuals in March there were 10, 005 unemployed and in April there were 8,818 equaling 1,187 fewer unemployed individuals in one month also a good sign indicating a recovering economy,” said Rogelio Trevino, Executive Director at Workforce Solutions for South Texas.
Essential Jobs reported an increase in the employment by industry, such as the Natural Resources and Mining, Professional and Business Services, and Leisure and Hospitality (4.1%); Trade, Transportation, and Utilities (3.2%); Other Services (2.5%); and, Information (1.3%); Manufacturing (1.0%); Education and Health Services (0.8%).
Industries reporting losses were the following: Financial Activities, Public Administration, and Construction.
“It’s very encouraging to see most industries rebounding from the pandemic and showing increases in hiring percentages this month. The industries that did not show growth this month will most likely respond positively as workers return to work and begin to spend more as wages for new hires expand. Workforce Solutions for South Texas is most excited to be able to assist all employers with their hiring needs as the economy continues to open and expand,” said Trevino.
Employment estimates released by TWC are produced in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. All estimates are subject to revision.

Hiring Events
The One-Stop center in Laredo, located at 1406 Jacaman Road, opened its doors at 40% of capacity, and employers are coming back to conduct In-Person Hiring Events.
A successful recent example was the hiring event conducted by the Laredo Independent School District (LISD) Food Department on Thursday, May 20, 2021.
During that day a total of 80 job seekers visited the center, and at the end of the day, the representatives from LISD reported a total of 55 hires on the spot.
“The recent successes we are having with our in-person hiring events shows that both employers and job seekers are eager to return to work. Our Workforce Center staff are excited and ready to serve our customers as we help the South Texas economy grow and get people back to work.
We strongly encourage employers and job seekers to contact or visit our workforce centers so we can help our businesses and labor force connect,” added Trevino.
The Texas Labor Market & Career Information Data for May is scheduled to be released on Friday, June 18, 2021, at 9:00 a.m.

LAREDO ⎯  April 2021 — Workforce Solutions for South Texas (WSST) reported a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 8.2 percent in March 2021 for the three-county South Texas Workforce Development area. This represents a decrease of 0.6 percent in comparison to February 2021.
The City of Laredo MSA’s unemployment rate decreased to 7.9 percent in March down from 8.5 percent in February. The State’s rate remained at 6.9 percent, slightly over the national unemployment rate of 6.2 percent, according to a report by the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC).
“The decline in unemployment for both Laredo and the three-county workforce development area is great news and it indicates that our area employers are committed to continued growth and bringing in new hires as our economy steadily grows,” said Rogelio Treviño, Executive Director at Workforce Solutions for South Texas.
The South Texas area, serving Jim Hogg, Webb, and Zapata counties, reported a Civilian Labor Force of 122,284, with almost 10,023 receiving the unemployment insurance benefits. This means that 112,261 people are still employed in our three-county area.
Essential Jobs reported an increase in the employment by industry, such as the Professional and Business Services (8.7%), Leisure and Hospitality (7.2%), Other Services (4.9%), Information (4.1%), Trade, Transportation and Utilities (3.8%), and Public Administration (2.0%).
Industries reporting losses were the following: Natural Resources and Mining, Construction, Manufacturing, Financial Activities, and Education and Health Services.
“It’s very promising to see the growth and increases in employment by Industry primarily in the Leisure and Hospitality industry that was one of the hardest hits by the COVID-19 pandemic,” Treviño said. “The Laredo MSA continues to show an overall positive growth and our workforce board is committed to working with our local’s education and training agencies to prepare our labor force to meet the needs of our employers as they open up again.”
Employment estimates released by TWC are produced in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. All estimates are subject to revision.

Service Representatives
If employers need assistance creating a job posting, they can reach out to the Business Service Representatives by dialing 956-794-6500 for the center in Laredo, 956-765-1804 for the satellite office in Zapata; or, 361-231-7071 for the satellite office in Hebbronville; if Job Seekers need assistance creating their profile and applying for a job, they can reach out a Customer Service Representative through our chat by visiting https://bit.ly/chatsouthtexas.
The Texas Labor Market & Career Information Data for March is scheduled to be released on Friday, May 21, 2021.

LAREDO, Texas – March 2021 ⎯ Workforce Solutions for South Texas (WSST) reported a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 8.7 percent in January 2021 for the three-county South Texas Workforce Development area. This represents an increase of 0.8 percent in comparison to December 2020. The City of Laredo MSA’s unemployment rate also rose to 8.3 percent in January up from 7.6 percent in December. The State’s rate rose to 7.3 percent, over the national average of 6.8 percent, according to a report by the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC).

“As the calendar year begins unemployment rates usually increase slightly because people who were hired as temporary seasonal workers are laid off due to the slow down after the Christmas rush,” Rogelio Treviño, WSST’s Executive Director said.

The South Texas area, serving Jim Hogg, Webb, and Zapata counties, reported a Civilian Labor force of 122,158, with almost 10,568 receiving the unemployment insurance benefits. This means that 111,590 people are still employed in our area.

Essential Jobs reported an increase in the employment by industry, such as the Professional and Business Services (8.7%), Leisure and Hospitality (7.2%), Other Services (4.9%), Information (4.1%), Trade, Transportation and Utilities (3.8%), and Public Administration (2.0%). Industry reporting losses were the following: Natural Resources and Mining, Construction, Manufacturing, Financial Activities, and Education and Health Services.

“Although the unemployment is higher than it was a year ago for our area it has decreased from the early pandemic period. We are closely watching the changes in our civilian labor force as we’ve seen those numbers decrease during the pandemic affected economy,” Treviño said. “I anticipate that as we continue to recover from the pandemic and businesses continue to fully open back up new jobs and hires will increase which will lead to new entry from discouraged workers back into the labor force.”

Employment estimates released by TWC are produced in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. All estimates are subject to revision.

CONNECTING EMPLOYERS WITH JOB SEEKERS

Our Workforce Solutions system continues to work with all businesses as we continue the recovery process because of the COVID-19 pandemic. We also offer services to job seekers so they’re able to get back to work. The Virtual Hiring Events are taking place every month, and the upcoming one is scheduled for Wednesday, March 31, starting at 9 a.m. Job Seekers can register by visiting https://bit.ly/working2021.

As of March 12, WSST has 320 jobs representing at least 643 positions available in the WorkInTexas (WIT) system.

If employers need assistance creating a job posting, they can reach out to the Business Service Representatives by dialing 956-794-6500 for the center in Laredo, 956-765-1804 for the satellite office in Zapata; or, 361-231-7071 for the satellite office in Hebbronville; if Job Seekers need assistance creating their profile and applying for a job, they can reach out a Customer Service Representative through our chat by visiting https://bit.ly/chatsouthtexas.

The Texas Labor Market & Career Information Data for February is scheduled to be released on Friday, March 26, 2021.

The center is located at 1406 Jacaman Road, Suite A

LAREDO, Texas – July 2020 — Effective July 1, 2020, The Workforce Solutions for South Texas one stop Workforce Center has moved to a new state-of-the-art location on Jacaman Road in Laredo Texas.

Although we are now housed at Jacaman Road we are still not accepting walk-in visits from the public and will continue to offer all workforce-related services to South Texas employers and job seekers virtually or telephonically. Approximately 50% of our team continues to telework and the other 50% of the Workforce team is back on site preparing and enhancing the new center with up to date equipment, technology, and signage that will prepare us to protect all of our customers and ensure their health and safety when they are welcomed to visit and receive services on site.

“Workforce Solutions for South Texas (WSST) has established itself as one of the premier Workforce Solutions providers in the State of Texas offering innovative workforce training programs and excellent customer service for over 20 years at our previous location at Las Plazas of Saunders. During our tenure there we helped thousands of employers and job seekers by matching them up and helping them to meet their workforce needs,” said Rogelio Trevino, Executive Director at WSST.

“Over the years workforce development systems have evolved and have been improved by new uses of technology and we at Workforce Solutions for South Texas are extremely excited with this move to a modern state of the art facility that will incorporate many new technological opportunities for all of our customers,” Trevino added.

The employment and training services provided by WSST have not been interrupted and continue to be provided virtually. Clients and customers can communicate with the staff through our chat option found when you log in to www.southtexasworkforce.org or by direct message by visiting the Facebook official page @workforcestx.

As with all moves of this magnitude, there will be some temporary changes as we adapt and incorporate the new technology we want to ensure that our customers are aware of the temporary changes to our contact numbers in July. These numbers are 956-516-5886, 956-516-5900, 95-516-5817, and 956-516-5800. These numbers are for both the employment services and the child care services.

When our center is deemed ready to offer safe and sanitary in-person services we will initiate providing services by appointment only. A curbside system will also be implemented to protect the clients and staff. An official announcement of the opening date will be provided through our Media partners and our WSST Social Media pages.

If you are interested in receiving up-to-date information you can sign-up to receive text messages by sending the word JOBS to 484848 or sending an e-mail to wsst@southtexasworkforce.org.