AUSTIN — New data from the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) revealed that upstream oil and natural gas employment grew by 1,400 in October, compared to September.
The data marks six out of 10 months so far this year in which the job count has increased. It also reflects the fifth monthly increase in a row.
“Oil and natural gas employment data for the year confirm Governor Abbott’s statement at TXOGA’s annual Lone Star Energy Forum: ‘Texas would not be Texas without the oil and gas sector. The oil and gas industry powers the Texas economy, and it’s one of the reasons why we are the eighth largest economy in the entire world,'” TXOGA President Todd Staples is quoted saying in a news release.
Since September 2020, a “COVID-low point,” the industry has added 39,100 Texas upstream jobs, averaging growth of 798 jobs per month. Months with upstream oil and gas employment increases have outnumbered those with a decrease of 38 to 11.
“These jobs pay among the highest wages in Texas, with employers in oil and natural gas paying an average salary of approximately $124,000 in 2023,” the release said.
The upstream sector involves oil and natural gas extraction and excludes other industry sectors such as refining, petrochemicals, fuels wholesaling, oilfield equipment manufacturing, pipelines, and gas utilities, which support hundreds of thousands of additional jobs across Texas.
Source: TXOGA
