Local unemployment data released for Oct.

Hill County’s unemployment rate was reported at 4% in October, according to data released by the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) last week.

That is up just slightly from September’s rate of 3.9% and the rate one year ago, when the October 2023 rate was recorded at 3.8%.

In October, there were 738 unemployed Hill County residents out of a total civilian labor force of 18,514.

Bosque County’s October rate was reported at 3.8%, with 341 unemployed individuals out of a total civilian labor force of 8,948. That is unchanged from September’s rate and up from the October 2023 rate of 3.3%.

Statewide, the Texas labor market achieved a new record high in October for number of people in the civilian labor force. After adding 47,300 people over the month, the seasonally adjusted civilian labor force reached the new record high of 15,497,100.
This marks the tenth consecutive month of growth for Texas’ civilian labor force. Over the year, Texas’ civilian labor force has added 360,800 people.

Texas’ seasonally adjusted total nonfarm employment dropped slightly to 14,276,300 following a decrease of 10,600 jobs over the month. However, Texas added 274,600 jobs from October 2023 to October 2024. Texas’ annual nonfarm growth rate currently sits at 2.0%, outpacing the U.S. growth rate by 0.6 percentage points.

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in Texas remained stable at 4.%.

“Continued growth in the Texas labor force helps to create opportunities for employers and job seekers alike,” said TWC Chairman Bryan Daniel. “TWC will continue to provide training solutions—from high school programs to advanced skills development—to help meet the workforce needs of our state.”

The financial activities industry had the largest over-the-month increase in October after adding 6,200 jobs. The industry also grew by 3.1% over the year in Texas and outperformed the national growth rate by 2.8 percentage points.

In addition, leisure and hospitality added 4,900 jobs over the month and information added 1,900. The manufacturing industry added 1,900 jobs over the month.