Hidalgo County's jobless rate rose in May

McALLEN -- Unemployment rates across the Rio Grande Valley were up in May, according to figures released Friday by the Texas Workforce Commission.

Hidalgo County registered a 6.1 percent jobless rate, up from 5.7 percent in April. However the area still added 700 jobs in May, led by increases in the healthcare, education and government sectors.

Cameron County's unemployment rate rose to 5.9 percent, up from 5.4 percent in April. The county recorded a net loss of about 800 jobs from April to May as it shed 1,100 farming jobs.

The rise in the unemployment rate is normal for this region in the spring, when jobless figures tend to fluctuate with changes in seasonal labor and the farming and education sectors.

The area tends to have fewer unemployed people in late summer and early fall.

Hidalgo County continues to outpace the rest of Texas and the nation in job growth. Since May 2008, the county has added 6,300 positions.

Texas' jobless rate increased to 4.3 percent in May from 3.9 percent the previous month.

State labor officials insist Texas is still doing well, as least in relative terms.

"Across nearly every industry, Texas employers added jobs at a stronger pace than the nation as a whole," Commissioner Ron Lehman, the workforce commission's employer representative, said in a news release.

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Kyle Arnold covers business, the economy and general assignments for The Monitor. You can reach him at (956) 683-4410.