Texas Job Growth Slows as San Antonio Loses Workers While Austin Gains

Texas payroll growth cooled in the latest reporting period, the San Antonio Express-News reported. The statewide slowdown masked a sharp split between two of the state's largest metros. San Antonio lost jobs. Austin kept adding them.

What does the latest Texas jobs data show?

Statewide hiring decelerated, breaking from the post-pandemic hiring boom Texas built its reputation on. The Express-News report points to a softer top-line figure that understates how uneven the picture has become across metros. For job seekers, that means a state-level headline no longer tells the whole story.

The takeaway: Texas still adds workers, but the engine is running at lower RPM (revolutions per minute) than it did a year ago.

Why is San Antonio losing workers?

San Antonio shed positions in the most recent data, the only major Texas metro among those tracked to post a net decline. Local employers across healthcare, government and hospitality have pulled back on hiring as cost pressures mount and federal contract flows tighten. Workers in those sectors face a thinner market of openings.

For an individual, the calculus has shifted. Candidates who built their search around San Antonio's steady 2022-2023 growth now need to lean harder on specific employers rather than rely on the metro itself.

The takeaway: San Antonio's labor market turned from a tailwind into something closer to a headwind, at least for now.

Why is Austin still gaining?

Austin continued to add jobs, holding the line against the statewide cooling. The metro's employer base in tech, advanced services and life sciences (industries centered on research, biotech and engineering) keeps drawing in-migration from coastal hubs. Even Austin's growth, though, has slowed from its pandemic-era pace.

Workers with skills aligned to those clusters still command a buyer's market, with multiple offers and rising wage asks. The metro's resilience offers a relative advantage, not a booming one.

The takeaway: Austin remains the strongest of the big Texas metros, but it isn't immune to the broader slowdown.

What does this mean for job seekers and employers?

The split suggests the Texas labor market has entered a more selective phase, in which industry mix and metro choice matter more than state residency alone. Candidates should benchmark wages against metro-specific data, not statewide figures. Employers in shrinking metros may need to raise offers to compete with Austin's pull.

The takeaway: Geography now does more of the work in determining who gets hired and at what pay.

The San Antonio Express-News report points to a labor market that is no longer moving in one direction, and the next monthly release will test whether Austin's edge holds or whether the slowdown broadens.