There’s no question that Austin is a
great place to live and work – and that’s
reflected in the caliber of companies
who have chosen to make the Capital
City their corporate home – including
Freescale Semiconductor, Whole Foods,
Dell Inc., and National Instruments.
Many other businesses have moved
their research and development, manufacturing, and back-office facilities here
– Apple Computer, Samsung and the
Internal Revenue Service all have a large
corporate presence here.
Austin’s labor force is just one reason
companies make the move here – and
why the city has been consistently ranked
among the “hottest labor markets” in
the county by BizJournals.com, which
analyzes annual employment trends in the
nation’s 100 largest labor markets — especially job growth and unemployment.
It’s not surprising that the city’s high
percentage of college graduates are
fueling its successful business economy,
especially considering the number of top
colleges and universities that are based
in Central Texas, including the Univer-
sity of Texas at Austin; St. Edwards
University, Huston-Tillotson University;
Southwestern University in George-
town, and Texas State University in San
Marcos.
Consider that the latest U.S. Census found
that nearly 45 percent of Austin area residents age 25 and over hold a bachelor’s
degree – well over the national average
of 26.3 percent. The engineering, business and law schools at the University of
Texas have all been ranked among the
Top 10 Schools for Hispanics by Hispanic
magazine, and the magazine also named
Austin the Top City for Hispanics. It’s
clear that talented young graduates appreciate Austin’s many opportunities – not to
mention its quality of life – so recruiting
prospective employees is a win-win for
both companies and employees.
Research and development thrive here,
too, and that has also helped to attract
talent from all over the U.S. and internationally. The University of Texas has been
ranked number one of more than 400 major
research universities worldwide in a Milken
Institute study that looked at the ability of
universities to produce patents from their
biotechnology research.
Not surprisingly, the city has also been
able to build a formidable reputation as a
hub for biotech research and companies. In
fact, in a testament to that reputation, the
Clean Technology and Sustainable Industries Organization (CTSI), a not-for-profit
industry trade organization “committed
to the commercialization and global adoption of clean technologies and sustainable
industry practices,” created a new branch
here, naming it the new global headquarters
of the organization.
LABOR & UNEMPLOYMENT:
AUSTIN IS A GREAT PLACE TO BE
Statewide, Texas is in a good place. The
Texas Workforce Commission reports that
the state’s unemployment rate has consistently remained well below the national rate
(as of May 2017, the national unemployment
rate was 4. 3 percent). And, overall, the Texas
labor market continues to make positive gains
with the addition of jobs and a decline in the
unemployment rate. Austin has also reaped
these positive economic benefits. Even in
challenging times, the city has experienced
steady job, economic and income growth –
and all have contributed to a thriving business
climate. For example, the unemployment rate
of Austin was 3.2% as of April 2017.
