Winter Garden Today

The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) recently reported the state's unemployment rate is steadily declining, with recent numbers at their lowest point since the nation's COVID-19 pandemic shutdown in March.

According to an Aug. 21 press release from the TWC, the Texas "seasonally adjusted unemployment rate" was at 8% in July, which put the state at below the national rate of 10.2%.  

The unemployment rate in McMullen County increased to 2.9% in July, which is 2.5% higher than it was in the prior month, the Workforce Solutions Alamo found. 

"McMullen County’s unemployment rate registered lower than the overall jobless rate of 7.8% for the 13-county Workforce Solutions Alamo area, which includes Atascosa, Bandera, Bexar, Comal, Frio, Gillespie, Guadalupe, Karnes, Kendall, Kerr, Medina, McMullen and Wilson counties," Workforce Solutions Alamo said in a press release from the organization. 

McCullen has the lowest unemployment rate out of all the counties, with Atacosa having the highest of 9.4%.

The Workforce Solution Alamo Board is a regional workforce system, which is made up of 13 counties and focuses on business, economic development, education, labor, community organizations and local government. More information on the workforce can be found online.

The Amarillo Metropolitan Statistical Area had the state's lowest unemployment rate at 5.1%, with College Station-Bryan coming in at 5.8% and the Abilene and Sherman-Denison coming in third at 5.9%. 

TWC Chairman Bryan Daniel said in a statement that the state's recent unemployment numbers show a strengthening economy. 

“July’s unemployment numbers continue to show the underlying strength of Texans and our economy," Daniel said. "TWC remains committed to our goal of creating skills enhancement and career opportunities for Texans to continue to keep Texas as the top state to live and work.”

The TWC partners with the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics to compile its unemployment data.