AUSTIN – Newly-released data from the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) indicates that upstream oil and natural gas employment rose by 1,200 jobs in August. These new numbers extend the strength of 2023’s job growth to date, with 12,100 jobs added so far this year.
“The oil and natural gas industry serves as a major driver of the Lone Star State’s robust economy,” said Todd Staples, president of the Texas Oil & Gas Association. “The 1,200 jobs reported in August add to already strong job growth numbers for this year, continued evidence of the strong demand for these irreplaceable resources both at home and abroad.”
Since the COVID-low point of September of 2020, industry has added 51,500 Texas upstream jobs, averaging growth of 1,479 jobs a month. At 208,500 upstream jobs, compared to the same month in the prior year, August 2023 jobs were up by 18,200, or 9.6%, over August of 2022. Months with an increase in upstream oil and natural gas employment have outnumbered months with a decrease by 30 to 5. Oil and natural gas jobs pay among the highest wages in Texas with employers paying an average salary of approximately $115,000 in 2022.
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 in Texas. The employment shown also includes “Support Activities for Mining,” which is mostly oil and gas-related but also includes some small amount of other types of mining.
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Founded in 1919, TXOGA is the oldest and largest oil and gas trade association in Texas representing every facet of the industry.