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State Unemployment Rate Up, Austin Holds Steady

Austin’s unemployment rate stayed steady last month while the state rate went up slightly.

Austin’s unemployment rate was at 6.4 percent in both June and July.

"All in all it's not a bad picture but we are at a bit of a loss to explain some of the job losses that occurred during July, especially at the same time where we saw an increase in the numbers of the civilian labor force – which, again, is attributable to population growth," says Capital Area Workforce Solutions Executive Director Alan Miller. "But some of the numbers just don't quite make sense. And they're going to require us to dig a little deeper and find out what was going on in July." 

The unemployment rate across Texas went up to 7.2 percent in July – that’s up over 7 percent in June.

Despite the increase, the Texas Workforce Commission says the state added more than 17,000 jobs last month. Additions in the education and health services sector made up most of the growth.

Both the local and state unemployment rates remain well below the national rate of 8.3 percent.

Laura first joined the KUT team in April 2012. She now works for the statewide program Texas Standard as a reporter and producer. Laura came to KUT from the world of television news. She has worn many different hats as an anchor, reporter and producer at TV stations in Austin, Amarillo and Toledo, OH. Laura is a proud graduate of the University of Missouri-Columbia, a triathlete and enjoys travel, film and a good beer. She enjoys spending time with her husband and pets.
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