Laredo Added 600 Jobs in April

Workforce Solutions for South Texas May 29, 2019

LAREDO, Texas — (MAY 2019) — Laredo added 600 jobs during April, according to the Texas Labor Market Information revealed Friday morning.

Workforce Solutions for South Texas announced that the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was at 3.2 percent in Laredo, and at 3.3 percent in the South Texas area during the month of April.

This represents a decrease of 0.6 percent for the Laredo MSA and of 0.5 percent for the South Texas area.

The Mining, Logging and Construction industry, as well as the Professional and Business Services, and the Leisure and Hospitality, each added 200 jobs.

In a year-to-year comparison, Laredo’s unemployment rate had a decrease of 0.3 percent. The Texas and U.S. unemployment rates were reported at 3.0 and 3.3 percent, respectively, with changes of 0.5 and 0.6 percent in comparison with March 2019.

The Texas Workforce Commission reported that “growth in the Texas economy continued in April, with 28,900 seasonally adjusted nonfarm positions added over the month. Texas’ seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell once more to 3.7 percent, returning to an all-time record low last held in December of 2018.”

“Laredo and South Texas continue to show job growth and increases in employment opportunities. We remain optimistic and will continue to monitor hiring rates by employers as we do anticipate an increase in the labor force as younger job seekers enter the job market,” said Rogelio Trevino, Executive Director for Workforce Solutions for South Texas.

The top three industries are the Trade, Transportation, and Utilities industries with 31,600 employees, followed by Government with 23,600, and the Education and Health Services at 16,900.

When comparing March 2019 to April 2019, besides the Trade, Transportation and Utilities industry, several others showed no change such as the Manufacturing (600 jobs), Information (800), Financial Activities (3,800), and Other Services (2,400 jobs).

The Education and Health Services, as well as the Government industry, reported 300 fewer jobs in total. In the Laredo area, there are 106,600 people employed in the labor force.

“The summer months have usually had increases in the labor force, and we anticipate the same this year,” said Trevino. “We remind Laredo and South Texas that our Workforce Centers provide referrals to jobs and job matching services for employers and job seekers. In particular, we do emphasize that we have Work Experience opportunities for youth who are out of school.”

The Civilian Labor Force in the South Texas service delivery area stands at 124,908 of which 120,809 are employed and 4,099 reported as unemployed.

Job seekers are encouraged to visit the Workforce Solutions Center to find out more about the latest employment opportunities available. In Laredo, the address is 2389 E. Saunders St. with phone number 956- 794-6500.

For the Zapata area, visit the center located at 605 US Hwy 83 Suite B with phone number 956-765-1804; and for the Hebbronville area, the center is located at 210 N. Smith (inside the Him Hogg Library), with phone number 361-231-7071.

The Texas Labor Market & Career Information Data for the month of May is scheduled to be released on Friday, June 21, 2019, at 9:00 a.m.