TEXAS: Sectors critical to state, local economies are among hardest hit

The devastating national jobs report released Friday contains warning signs of what to expect for Texas, which releases state and regional employment statistics for April in two weeks. April will be the first monthly employment report to capture the full impact of the pandemic on the state’s economy.

Nationally, employers slashed more than 20 million jobs in April as the coronavirus-related shutdowns spurred mass layoffs and unemployment soared to a record 14.7 percent, the Labor Department reported.

Key sectors of the Texas economy were among the hardest hit in the national report. They include:

Energy: Oil and gas extraction and services com

panies shed a net 38,000 jobs in April. Those losses are likely concentrated in Texas, the center of the U.S. oil and gas industry.

Manufacturing: Manufacturers slashed 1.3 million jobs nationwide. Manufacturing, much of it tied to the energy industry in Houston and Texas, is one of the biggest employment sectors in the state and region.

Health care: Houston and Texas are home to the world’s biggest medical center. Health care employers cut 1.4 million jobs nationally in April.

Professional and business services: This sector, which includes businesses from accounting firms to law firms and from engineering companies to waste management companies, is one of the biggest in Houston and Texas. It shed 2.1 million jobs nationally.

Restaurants: Houston is renowned for its restaurants and food culture. Restaurants, bars and other food-service businesses cut 5.5 million jobs across the country last month.