Houston bottoms out among slowest-growing job markets; Austin, SA rank up top

​​TEXAS – The Houston metro ranks third- and fifth-worst in the nation for private job growth rate and overall job growth rate, respectively, according to two new reports from data aggregator Headlight Data.

Headlight ranked the city after looking at new data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics from December 2014 and December 2015.

Its findings—two new reports, Fastest Growing Large Metro Economies of 2015 and Fastest Growing Large Metro Private Economies, show that overall job growth in Houston was worse than that in every city in the U.S. except for four: New Orleans; Kansas City; Richmond, Virginia; and Chicago.

In the private sector, Houston’s 0.5 percent employment growth only out-performed New Orleans and Kansas City.

Meanwhile, Austin and San Antonio were among the fastest-growing economies.

Austin’s overall job market grew by 3.8 percent last year, earning it a No. 4 ranking. In the private sector, the city was ranked No. 2, growing by 4.4 percent.

San Antonio’s job market grew by 3.5 percent last year, coming in at No. 6 overall. It’s private sector grew by 4 percent, earning it a No. 4 ranking.

Houston’s annual job growth rate from 2010 through 2015 is in the negatives. It performed worse than every city except New Orleans and Oklahoma City over the past five years, coming in at -1.2 points.

Houston’s job market has been hit hard in recent months as the price of oil remains low and companies are drastically reducing workforces.