Even though unemployment inched up in June, Texas is the best place to find a job in the U.S. today. Why’s that? And should you move there?
According to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas and the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Texas made up half of the 524,000 payroll jobs added in the U.S. from June 2009 to June 2011. Half. It’s rather remarkable considering how few jobs the U.S. has gained in the so-called economic recovery and how many of those are concentrated in one state.
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Texas’s payrolls have risen 2.9% since the end of the recession, which is third in the nation behind North Dakota and Alaska. While the unemployment rate is still fairly high at 8.2% and actually increased from 8.0% in May, it’s still below the U.S. average of 9.2%.
So how is all this possible? There’s been a lot of discussion about whether the policies of Republican Gov. Rick Perry are responsible for the Texas boom. A number of factors are given in a front-page story in USA Today, including recent population growth, high energy prices that have set off an oil-drilling boom, rising exports and the lack of a housing crash largely due to the state’s relatively conservative banking industry.
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While many are praising Gov. Perry’s pro-business, anti-regulation policies for helping boost job growth in his state, others attribute the growth more to the energy sector (oil prices have tripled since early 2009) and Texas’s exports, which rose 21% last year and include computers, electronics and petrochemicals. Either way, it’s boosted Gov. Perry’s standing in his party, with some calling for the social and fiscal conservative to run for president in 2012.
If you’re looking for a job, should you move to Texas? Well, if you’re willing to relocate, it certainly wouldn’t hurt to search the state’s classifieds or go hunting online. A number of electronics, energy, car and medical companies have recently relocated their operations here or expanded, including Toyota, eBay, Samsung and AT&T, according to USA Today. And the cost of living is still reasonable.
But the state also has its drawbacks: The Texas education system is among the lowest-performing in the country; the state has relatively low wages for low-skilled jobs; and Texas leads the country in the percentage of population without health insurance. So keep that in mind before you pack up and buy a pair of cowboy boots.