Growing! Growing! Growing!

dallasIt is getting to be old news. Dallas and Houston rank among the fastest growing metro areas in the United States with regard to job numbers.  The Dallas-Fort Worth area added 107,800 jobs in May from a year earlier, the second highest nationwide, according to data released today by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The Houston area was third with 91,600 jobs. The New York area was No. 1, with 133,800 new jobs. Overall, three quarters of U.S. metro areas saw employment increase for the 12 months ended May 31, 86 saw declines and nine saw no change. The seasonally adjusted U.S. unemployment rate was 7.6 percent in May. The metro data is not seasonally adjusted.

Today’s workforce is not content with merely “getting by”. They want to make a difference and make a run for the “American Dream”. Houston’s dynamic business environment provides that and more. With high wages relative to cost of living and a fairly low unemployment rate of 6.3 percent, these factors make it one of the best cities to get ahead. Another city offering similar opportunities is, of course, Dallas. It is not surprising that two Lone Star state cities come out on top. Houston boasts 20 of the best large companies in the country and 19 of the best small companies, according to Forbes’ lists, including Sysco, and Noble Energy. Exxon Mobil, Southwest Airlines, and Texas Instruments — along with 15 other top companies — call Dallas home. In addition, Dallas was able to weather the November 2011 bankruptcy of American Airline’s parent AMR Corp. to rack up 2.1% job growth last year and is projected to continue adding jobs at a 2.8% rate through the year 2019. It has been attributed to a remarkable diversified economy. Urban legend-Texas is NOT growing on the backs of the underpaid, non-union workers. While Texas is a right-to-work state, many of the highest paying jobs in the Dallas area are with unionized defense manufacturers like Bell Helicopter and Lockheed Martin, which produces the F-35 Lightning II fighter at a mile-long plant in Fort Worth.  Not only is the Dallas-area per-capita income of $39,548 comfortably above the national average of $37,000, but it’s growing fastest in the top half of wages above $16 an hour. Houston, on the other hand, has a booming energy industry.

There is a given, any time job numbers and unemployment numbers are posted, Dallas and Houston land at the top.  There are multitudes of statistics – Texas keeps growing. Texas defies the odds. Texas is strong and there is no end in sight to the strength.  And that is a good thing.

Source: Jean, Sheryl. “Dallas and Houston Rank among Fastest Growing U.S. Metro Areas for Jobs.” Dallas News Business. Web. 30 July 2013

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