Total nonfarm employment for the Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX, metropolitan area increased by 112,600 over the year in April, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Michael Hirniak noted that the local rate of job gain, 3.5 percent, compared to the 2.6-percent national increase. (See chart 1 and table 1.) (All data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year analysis is used throughout.)

Industry employment

In Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX, professional and business services had the largest employment gain (+26,900) among local private-industry supersectors over the year. (See chart 2.) Within the supersector, employment increased by 17,800 in the professional, scientific, and technical services. The 5.1-percent rate of job increase in Houston’s professional and business services supersector compared to the 2.1-percent gain nationwide.

Employment in education and health services gained 22,500 jobs from April 2022 to April 2023 in the metropolitan area. Within this supersector, the health care and social assistance sector added 19,000 jobs. The metropolitan area had a 5.3-percent gain for the education and health services supersector compared to a 4.2-percent increase for the nation.

The metropolitan area’s largest supersector, trade, transportation, and utilities, gained 22,300 jobs over the year. The trade, transportation, and utilities supersector’s 3.4-percent local rate of job growth compared to the 1.0-percent gain nationwide.

Twelve largest metropolitan areas

Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX, was 1 of the nation’s 12 largest metropolitan statistical areas in April 2023. All 12 areas gained jobs over the year. New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA, had the largest increase (+246,500). Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ, had the smallest increase (+46,500), followed by San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA (+52,200), and Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV (+55,400), among the largest areas. (See table 2 and chart 3.)

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX, had a 4.4-percent rate of job gain, followed by Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX (+3.5 percent). The rates of job gain in the remaining 10 areas ranged from 2.8 percent in Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL, to 1.7 percent in both Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI and Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV.

The Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment release for May 2023 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, June 28, 2023, at 9:00 a.m. (CT).

Technical Note

This release presents nonfarm payroll employment estimates from the CES program. The CES survey is a Federal-State cooperative endeavor between State employment security agencies and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Definitions. Employment data refer to persons on establishment payrolls who receive pay for any part of the pay period which includes the 12th of the month. Persons are counted at their place of work rather than at their place of residence; those appearing on more than one payroll are counted on each payroll. Industries are classified on the basis of their principal activity in accordance with the 2022 version of the North American Industry Classification System.

Method of estimation. CES State and Area employment data are produced using several estimation procedures. Where possible these data are produced using a "weighted link relative" estimation technique in which a ratio of current-month weighted employment to that of the previous-month weighted employment is computed from a sample of establishments reporting for both months. The estimates of employment for the current month are then obtained by multiplying these ratios by the previous month's employment estimates. The weighted link relative technique is utilized for data series where the sample size meets certain statistical criteria. For some employment series, the estimates are produced with a model that uses direct sample estimates (described above) combined with other regressors to compensate for smaller sample sizes.

Annual revisions. Employment estimates are adjusted annually to a complete count of jobs, called benchmarks, derived principally from tax reports which are submitted by employers who are covered under state unemployment insurance (UI) laws. The benchmark information is used to adjust the monthly estimates between the new benchmark and the preceding one and also to establish the level of employment for the new benchmark month. Thus, the benchmarking process establishes the level of employment, and the sample is used to measure the month-to-month changes in the level for the subsequent months. Information on recent benchmark revisions is available in the CES State and Area benchmark article.

Reliability of the estimates. The estimates presented in this release are based on sample surveys, administrative data, and modeling and, thus, are subject to sampling and other types of errors. Sampling error is a measure of sampling variability—that is, variation that occurs by chance because a sample rather than the entire population is surveyed. Survey data also are subject to nonsampling errors, such as those which can be introduced into the data collection and processing operations. Estimates not directly derived from sample surveys are subject to additional errors resulting from the specific estimation processes used. The sums of individual items may not always equal totals shown in the same tables due to rounding.

Employment estimates. Changes in metropolitan area nonfarm payroll employment are cited in the analysis of this release only if they have been determined to be statistically significant at the 90-percent confidence level. Reliability of state and area estimates for the total nonfarm employment series are available for metropolitan areas and metropolitan divisions.

Area definitions. The substate area data published in this news release reflect the delineations issued by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget on April 10, 2018. The 12 metropolitan areas discussed in this release are the metropolitan areas with the largest population according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, and Waller Counties.

Additional information

Employment data from the CES program are available on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/sae/.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 1. Employees on nonfarm payrolls by industry supersector, United States and Houston metropolitan area, not seasonally adjusted (numbers in thousands)

Area and Industry	Apr. 2022	Feb. 2023	Mar. 2023	Apr. 2023(p)	Apr. 2022 to Apr. 2023(p)
					Net change	Percent change
United States
Total nonfarm	151,449	153,983	154,445	155,337	3,888	2.6
Mining and logging	590	624	628	635	45	7.6
Construction	7,623	7,602	7,657	7,829	206	2.7
Manufacturing	12,723	12,933	12,934	12,941	218	1.7
Trade, transportation, and utilities	28,304	28,633	28,588	28,585	281	1.0
Information	3,031	3,061	3,074	3,068	37	1.2
Financial activities	8,994	9,046	9,042	9,071	77	0.9
Professional and business services	22,393	22,636	22,672	22,866	473	2.1
Education and health services	24,247	25,110	25,177	25,261	1,014	4.2
Leisure and hospitality	15,492	15,827	16,054	16,364	872	5.6
Other services	5,659	5,764	5,796	5,832	173	3.1
Government	22,393	22,747	22,823	22,885	492	2.2
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX Metropolitan Statistical Area
Total nonfarm	3,219.8	3,312.4	3,332.1	3,332.4	112.6	3.5
Mining and logging	64.9	67.9	68.1	68.9	4.0	6.2
Construction	221.3	221.5	224.3	216.2	-5.1	-2.3
Manufacturing	221.8	227.2	228.6	229.5	7.7	3.5
Trade, transportation, and utilities	660.7	677.5	683.2	683.0	22.3	3.4
Information	32.4	33.3	33.1	33.2	0.8	2.5
Financial activities	176.7	184.2	183.1	182.5	5.8	3.3
Professional and business services	531.4	550.9	556.1	558.3	26.9	5.1
Education and health services	421.3	440.8	443.0	443.8	22.5	5.3
Leisure and hospitality	337.8	343.2	343.4	348.7	10.9	3.2
Other services	118.7	116.8	118.7	117.4	-1.3	-1.1
Government	432.8	449.1	450.5	450.9	18.1	4.2
(p) Preliminary

Table 2. Employees on nonfarm payrolls by industry supersector for the 12 largest metropolitan areas, not seasonally adjusted (numbers in thousands)

Area	Apr 2022	Feb 2023	Mar 2023	Apr 2023(p)	Apr 2022 to Apr 2023(p)
					Net change	Percent change
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA
Total nonfarm	2,967.5	3,031.0	3,036.0	3,044.3	76.8	2.6
Mining and logging	1.8	1.8	1.8	1.8	0.0	0.0
Construction	136.1	141.5	140.7	139.8	3.7	2.7
Manufacturing	176.4	178.2	177.2	176.5	0.1	0.1
Trade, transportation, and utilities	651.3	651.8	651.8	652.2	0.9	0.1
Information	112.2	117.1	116.8	114.9	2.7	2.4
Financial activities	196.0	203.2	203.5	203.1	7.1	3.6
Professional and business services	588.8	582.7	581.0	586.1	-2.7	-0.5
Education and health services	384.6	403.6	407.9	410.5	25.9	6.7
Leisure and hospitality	284.3	301.4	305.0	308.6	24.3	8.5
Other services	101.8	107.1	106.8	107.3	5.5	5.4
Government	334.2	342.6	343.5	343.5	9.3	2.8
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH (NECTA)
Total nonfarm	2,763.0	2,787.6	2,807.5	2,834.2	71.2	2.6
Mining, logging, and construction	126.6	121.9	124.9	130.3	3.7	2.9
Manufacturing	183.1	181.8	182.5	180.9	-2.2	-1.2
Trade, transportation, and utilities	402.0	407.1	406.2	405.9	3.9	1.0
Information	82.6	84.3	84.2	85.5	2.9	3.5
Financial activities	183.2	189.4	189.2	188.4	5.2	2.8
Professional and business services	533.6	539.6	541.5	552.7	19.1	3.6
Education and health services	596.2	610.7	617.6	618.9	22.7	3.8
Leisure and hospitality	246.2	239.8	247.4	255.0	8.8	3.6
Other services	98.6	99.6	99.5	100.5	1.9	1.9
Government	310.9	313.4	314.5	316.1	5.2	1.7
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI
Total nonfarm	4,660.4	4,674.2	4,693.5	4,737.5	77.1	1.7
Mining and logging	1.5	1.4	1.5	1.5	0.0	0.0
Construction	176.5	162.1	167.8	178.0	1.5	0.8
Manufacturing	405.4	408.7	407.8	410.3	4.9	1.2
Trade, transportation, and utilities	951.8	957.3	955.3	954.8	3.0	0.3
Information	80.2	78.9	78.4	78.5	-1.7	-2.1
Financial activities	314.9	312.5	314.7	315.3	0.4	0.1
Professional and business services	856.1	836.1	837.7	852.3	-3.8	-0.4
Education and health services	726.7	752.6	751.9	756.7	30.0	4.1
Leisure and hospitality	433.7	447.3	456.7	468.2	34.5	8.0
Other services	190.1	194.2	195.3	194.6	4.5	2.4
Government	523.5	523.1	526.4	527.3	3.8	0.7
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
Total nonfarm	4,044.3	4,195.6	4,201.4	4,223.3	179.0	4.4
Mining, logging, and construction	229.5	244.7	242.8	243.5	14.0	6.1
Manufacturing	297.0	303.9	304.4	304.4	7.4	2.5
Trade, transportation, and utilities	870.4	899.8	897.2	897.3	26.9	3.1
Information	89.1	93.0	93.0	93.8	4.7	5.3
Financial activities	354.1	367.7	369.5	371.3	17.2	4.9
Professional and business services	754.0	786.3	787.6	788.6	34.6	4.6
Education and health services	471.5	494.0	494.8	498.5	27.0	5.7
Leisure and hospitality	392.8	401.1	405.8	413.7	20.9	5.3
Other services	126.2	134.6	134.5	137.5	11.3	9.0
Government	459.7	470.5	471.8	474.7	15.0	3.3
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX
Total nonfarm	3,219.8	3,312.4	3,332.1	3,332.4	112.6	3.5
Mining and logging	64.9	67.9	68.1	68.9	4.0	6.2
Construction	221.3	221.5	224.3	216.2	-5.1	-2.3
Manufacturing	221.8	227.2	228.6	229.5	7.7	3.5
Trade, transportation, and utilities	660.7	677.5	683.2	683.0	22.3	3.4
Information	32.4	33.3	33.1	33.2	0.8	2.5
Financial activities	176.7	184.2	183.1	182.5	5.8	3.3
Professional and business services	531.4	550.9	556.1	558.3	26.9	5.1
Education and health services	421.3	440.8	443.0	443.8	22.5	5.3
Leisure and hospitality	337.8	343.2	343.4	348.7	10.9	3.2
Other services	118.7	116.8	118.7	117.4	-1.3	-1.1
Government	432.8	449.1	450.5	450.9	18.1	4.2
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA
Total nonfarm	6,195.7	6,282.9	6,298.7	6,343.7	148.0	2.4
Mining and logging	2.0	1.9	1.9	1.9	-0.1	-5.0
Construction	256.3	250.0	249.2	252.8	-3.5	-1.4
Manufacturing	475.7	473.9	476.2	476.6	0.9	0.2
Trade, transportation, and utilities	1,086.9	1,097.2	1,096.4	1,099.8	12.9	1.2
Information	255.8	249.5	252.8	255.0	-0.8	-0.3
Financial activities	331.4	329.4	326.8	329.1	-2.3	-0.7
Professional and business services	999.8	1,013.0	1,009.3	1,015.3	15.5	1.6
Education and health services	1,121.8	1,164.5	1,169.9	1,183.2	61.4	5.5
Leisure and hospitality	722.2	752.5	760.7	770.8	48.6	6.7
Other services	206.4	208.8	208.4	210.8	4.4	2.1
Government	737.4	742.2	747.1	748.4	11.0	1.5
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL
Total nonfarm	2,797.0	2,868.6	2,873.9	2,875.2	78.2	2.8
Construction	142.2	141.5	138.3	135.5	-6.7	-4.7
Manufacturing	94.1	96.5	96.8	97.7	3.6	3.8
Trade, transportation, and utilities	628.6	651.1	651.4	647.2	18.6	3.0
Information	55.1	54.6	54.4	54.3	-0.8	-1.5
Financial activities	208.9	211.5	213.1	213.9	5.0	2.4
Professional and business services	504.6	516.1	514.8	521.5	16.9	3.3
Education and health services	422.2	438.2	440.8	444.5	22.3	5.3
Leisure and hospitality	325.6	334.1	337.3	335.1	9.5	2.9
Other services	111.7	114.9	115.0	113.7	2.0	1.8
Government	303.2	309.3	311.2	311.0	7.8	2.6
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA
Total nonfarm	9,762.1	9,894.0	9,955.4	10,008.6	246.5	2.5
Mining, logging, and construction	396.5	392.0	398.4	409.4	12.9	3.3
Manufacturing	346.1	346.8	349.2	348.5	2.4	0.7
Trade, transportation, and utilities	1,654.4	1,655.6	1,655.0	1,645.9	-8.5	-0.5
Information	319.2	321.5	322.6	318.8	-0.4	-0.1
Financial activities	787.8	804.5	804.1	802.1	14.3	1.8
Professional and business services	1,616.6	1,611.7	1,621.4	1,644.4	27.8	1.7
Education and health services	2,125.8	2,207.2	2,228.7	2,225.9	100.1	4.7
Leisure and hospitality	832.5	855.3	875.7	911.2	78.7	9.5
Other services	392.6	401.1	399.9	402.7	10.1	2.6
Government	1,290.6	1,298.3	1,300.4	1,299.7	9.1	0.7
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
Total nonfarm	3,006.4	3,041.7	3,060.8	3,088.3	81.9	2.7
Mining, logging, and construction	124.6	120.9	121.0	125.2	0.6	0.5
Manufacturing	178.5	181.7	181.0	181.8	3.3	1.8
Trade, transportation, and utilities	543.7	548.9	547.8	547.7	4.0	0.7
Information	53.9	54.4	54.6	54.6	0.7	1.3
Financial activities	226.0	228.2	228.7	228.7	2.7	1.2
Professional and business services	498.7	494.9	498.7	506.8	8.1	1.6
Education and health services	675.8	698.9	704.7	708.4	32.6	4.8
Leisure and hospitality	252.9	253.9	262.4	273.4	20.5	8.1
Other services	118.5	121.2	122.4	122.5	4.0	3.4
Government	333.8	338.7	339.5	339.2	5.4	1.6
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ
Total nonfarm	2,322.1	2,364.7	2,360.6	2,368.6	46.5	2.0
Mining and logging	3.0	3.2	3.2	3.2	0.2	6.7
Construction	150.0	155.5	157.5	158.2	8.2	5.5
Manufacturing	145.6	148.9	150.2	149.4	3.8	2.6
Trade, transportation, and utilities	454.8	453.5	451.9	451.4	-3.4	-0.7
Information	43.0	42.9	42.6	42.4	-0.6	-1.4
Financial activities	218.2	221.7	218.8	217.5	-0.7	-0.3
Professional and business services	392.2	394.8	392.9	397.0	4.8	1.2
Education and health services	359.1	381.2	380.0	382.4	23.3	6.5
Leisure and hospitality	239.4	244.2	244.3	247.1	7.7	3.2
Other services	73.3	70.5	70.6	69.6	-3.7	-5.0
Government	243.5	248.3	248.6	250.4	6.9	2.8
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA
Total nonfarm	2,457.0	2,493.9	2,494.6	2,509.2	52.2	2.1
Mining and logging	0.4	0.3	0.3	0.3	-0.1	-25.0
Construction	123.4	125.2	123.7	125.2	1.8	1.5
Manufacturing	154.0	158.0	157.6	157.3	3.3	2.1
Trade, transportation, and utilities	351.9	357.1	355.3	354.2	2.3	0.7
Information	149.8	150.4	152.0	150.8	1.0	0.7
Financial activities	144.1	145.9	144.8	146.2	2.1	1.5
Professional and business services	523.6	522.6	520.0	521.5	-2.1	-0.4
Education and health services	378.4	394.5	395.6	399.3	20.9	5.5
Leisure and hospitality	232.8	243.1	245.8	251.6	18.8	8.1
Other services	81.9	81.7	81.6	84.3	2.4	2.9
Government	316.7	315.1	317.9	318.5	1.8	0.6
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV
Total nonfarm	3,292.2	3,322.9	3,339.8	3,347.6	55.4	1.7
Mining, logging, and construction	160.5	161.9	163.8	164.4	3.9	2.4
Manufacturing	55.6	55.7	55.9	56.0	0.4	0.7
Trade, transportation, and utilities	395.1	395.9	394.7	394.1	-1.0	-0.3
Information	81.0	78.4	78.8	79.1	-1.9	-2.3
Financial activities	154.3	152.7	153.2	153.0	-1.3	-0.8
Professional and business services	802.3	803.0	804.8	804.8	2.5	0.3
Education and health services	439.5	452.8	456.2	455.4	15.9	3.6
Leisure and hospitality	291.3	299.7	308.6	315.4	24.1	8.3
Other services	191.3	194.0	195.4	197.8	6.5	3.4
Government	721.3	728.8	728.4	727.6	6.3	0.9
(p) Preliminary