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“Job growth in Texas remained strong, outpacing the national trend,” Tom Pauken, Texas Workforce Commission chairman said in a statement. “Despite the fact that the number of those seeking work went up this month, the Texas unemployment rate remained at historically low levels, staying below the 5.0 percent mark for nearly two years.”
The Texas Work Force Commission released new numbers Friday showing an increase in unemployment across the state from last month.
April marked a record low for Texas unemployment, at a rate of 4.1 percent.
Unemployment rates a year ago were lower than today. The commission shows unemployment in Texas was happening at a rate of 4.4 percent in May 2007.
Economists have been forecasting the state would eventually begin to mirror national trends since the beginning of the year.
Earlier this week the Department of Labor showed national unemployment rate jumped a half percent, up to 5.5 percent, the highest increase of unemployment in one month since the mid-1980s.
But state officials remain optimistic despite the increase in unemployment.
The commission announced that Texas employers added 8,700 jobs for a total of 238,700 jobs in the past 12 months.
“Across nearly every industry, Texas employers added jobs at a stronger pace than the nation as a whole,” said Ron Lehman, TWC Commissioner Representing Employers.
