Culture / Newsy

Texas’ True Jobs Mecca — Dallas Dominates, Leaving Houston and Austin Far Behind: The Real Manufacturing Truth

BY // 08.16.17

While Dallas manufacturing grew at one of the highest rates in the country last year, the manufacturing industries in Austin and Houston were plummeting to the bottom.

A new report released by Headlight Data ranks the Top 10 counties with the best and worst manufacturing economies in 2016. Headlight analyzed data from the U.S. Department of Labor Statistics to make the list.

Dallas came in at No. 3 in the nation on the list of the best manufacturing economies, with 3,200 manufacturing jobs created in 2016. That is the best in Texas by far.

Dallas has the second best economy for computer and electronic manufacturing, and the third best for rubber and plastic product manufacturing, which helped drive the overall growth.

On the other hand, Austin and Houston came in second to last and last, respectively, on the list of the America’s worst manufacturing economies.

Travis County, the county where Austin is located, lost 3,000 manufacturing jobs last year.

Harris County, which encompasses Houston, was by far the worst county on the list, with a staggering 18,900 jobs lost in 2016. The steep fall in Houston’s manufacturing industry can be partially attributed to the decline of the oil market.

Houston’s neighbor to the north, Montgomery County, which includes The Woodlands, also had a bad year for manufacturing. It was sixth on the list of the worst counties, with 2,100 jobs lost.

While Dallas’ manufacturing economy thrived in 2016, nearby Tarrant County was just behind Montgomery on the list of the worst economies. Tarrant County lost 2,100 manufacturing jobs in 2016, making it the seventh worst county.

In fact, Dallas was the only Texas county that made the list of the Top 10 manufacturing economies.

The first and second spots were snagged by Jefferson County, Kentucky (where Louisville is located) and Fulton County, Georgia (the home of Atlanta).

For Dallas this is more confirmation of its sudden cool kid status. Dallas also recently found itself ranked one of the most high-tech cities in the world.

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