(HOUSTON) Houston’s booming Health Services Sector added nearly 5,000 jobs in August, its biggest one-month gain on record, according to data released today by Gulf Coast Workforce Solutions.
Over the last year, the sector has added more than 14,000 jobs making it the second-fastest growing sector in the Houston area, said Parker Harvey, senior economist with Workforce Solutions, “Despite a small loss in August, Houston’s Professional & Business Services sector continues to outperform the rest of our major industry sectors having added 15,500 jobs since this time last year.”
“These are generally considered well-paying jobs made up of oil & gas consultants, management consultants, and general administrative staff,” he said.
The Houston area posted an overall decline of 3,900 jobs in August while the unemployment rate inched upward to 5.2%.
Harvey says the effects on the area’s employment picture from Hurricane Harvey were too late in the month to affect the report, “We expect to see a Harvey-induced slump in September’s report, particularly in the Leisure & Hospital sector and retail subsector.”
The Texas Workforce Commission will release employment numbers for September 2017 on October 20.