Global oil capital Houston has taken a hit in the US city jobs ranking published by Forbes Magazine.
The annual The Best Cities For Jobs 2016 report, saw Houston drop from 6th to 24th as it felt the impact of the global oil price crash which began in 2014. The drop was the biggest of any metropolitan area in the US.
Forbes said in the report: “The recent weakness in energy prices has been felt heavily in Houston, a star performer for much of this decade. The energy capital has descended to 24th on this year’s list from sixth last year, the largest drop of any metro area in the country.
“Economist Bill Gilmer, head of the Institute of Regional Forecasting at the University of Houston, expects somewhere close to 50,000 local energy jobs will disappear before things get better.”
Fortunately, unlike during the early ’80s oil bust, Houston’s economy appears to be diverse enough to weather the storm. Rapid growth in health services (the area is home to the world’s largest medical center), as well as education has kept employment expanding slightly, with 0.7% job growth over the past year, but well off the pace from its five-year increase of 16.4%. Until energy prices rise again, it’s unlikely this dynamic city will get its mojo back entirely.
With an estimated loss of 250,000 jobs, other oil and gas boom towns have also been hit hard.
Fort Worth-Arlington, home to energy giant Halliburton, dropped 15 places to 28th while Oklahoma City slipped four positions to 37th and New Orleans fell five to 48th.
Although not as energy-dominated as Houston, oil and gas has been an important producer of high-wage jobs in these metro areas.
Forbes’ rankings are based on short, medium and long-term job creation, going back to 2004, and factor in momentum — whether growth is slowing or accelerating.
Topping Forbes’ list were the technology centres of San Francisco and San Jose in Northern California. Orlando in Florida also saw a resurgence, placing third this year, up from 17th in 2015.