The number of people working in Texas rose in April, but so did the number of people looking for work.
The number of people working in Texas rose in April, but so did the number of people looking for work. Graphic by Texas Workforce Commission

The number of Texans working was up in April, but so was the number of people looking for work. As a result, the Texas Workforce Commission reports, the unemployment rate was 8.3 percent, up from 8.2 percent in March, and 7.3 percent in April 2009. That’s against a national rate of 9.9 percent.

The worst employment situation in Texas is in McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, where seasonally unadjusted unemployment hit 11.1 percent last month. It was 10.8 in Brownsville-Harlingen, and 10.6 percent in Beaumont-Port Arthur.

The bright spots? Amarillo and Midland, at 5.6 percent each, and Lubbock and College Station-Bryan, each at 5.9 percent

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Ross Ramsey co-founded The Texas Tribune in 2009 and served as its executive editor until his retirement in 2022. He wrote regular columns on politics, government and public policy. Before joining the...