Harris County, TX jobs, unemployment and layoffs
Harris County economy
5.0%
unemployment, Aug 2026
5.0% the month before
2,548,851
in the labor force
Source: BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics
4,758,579
people in Harris County
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
$73,104
median household income
Source: Census ACS
39%
of workers in white-collar occupations
Management, business, financial and professional; Census ACS
Harris County layoffs
23
WARN layoff notices, last 12 months
2,994
workers named
A floor: states may leave out counts
20
employers
Employers hiring most in Harris County
Employers with the most open professional roles in this county’s cities. The county is taken from each job’s city, so roles with no city are not counted.
- Hewlett Packard Enterprise96 open roles
- HP93 open roles
- Juniper Networks61 open roles
- Fervo Energy57 open roles
- Intuitive Machines53 open roles
- Trinzic53 open roles
- EoS Fitness46 open roles
- Sysco43 open roles
- Amazon42 open roles
- Weatherford International41 open roles
Largest employers headquartered in Harris County
- Halliburton20,001–100,000 employees
- Hewlett Packard Enterprise20,001–100,000 employees
- Quanta Services20,001–100,000 employees
- Conocophillips5,001–20,000 employees
- Kinder Morgan5,001–20,000 employees
- LyondellBasell Industries N.V.5,001–20,000 employees
- University of Houston5,001–20,000 employees
Employee counts with a year are published figures (Wikidata). Other sizes are estimates from our company directory, not payroll counts.
Colleges in Harris County
| College | City | Type | Students |
|---|---|---|---|
| University of Houston | Houston | Public 4-year | 20,000+ |
| University of Houston-Downtown | Houston | Public 4-year | 10,000–19,999 |
| Rice University | Houston | Private nonprofit 4-year | 5,000–9,999 |
| Texas Southern University | Houston | Public 4-year | 5,000–9,999 |
| University of Houston-Clear Lake | Houston | Public 4-year | 5,000–9,999 |
| Baylor College of Medicine | Houston | Private nonprofit 4-year | 1,000–4,999 |
| Houston Christian University | Houston | Private nonprofit 4-year | 1,000–4,999 |
| South Texas College of Law Houston | Houston | Private nonprofit 4-year | 1,000–4,999 |
| The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston | Houston | Public 4-year | 1,000–4,999 |
| University of St Thomas | Houston | Private nonprofit 4-year | 1,000–4,999 |
| College of Biblical Studies-Houston | Houston | Private nonprofit 4-year | Under 1,000 |
| Texas Chiropractic College Foundation Inc | Pasadena | Private nonprofit 4-year | Under 1,000 |
| The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center | Houston | Public 4-year | Under 1,000 |
Conferences in Harris County
Industry conferences and trade shows held in Harris County. 25 with dates announced.
- SNAME Maritime Convention
Oct 28 to Oct 30, 2026 · Houston, TX
Paid ticket. Fees not read.
Open call for speakers
- AfroTech Conference
Nov 2 to Nov 6, 2026 · Houston, TX
Ticket $625 to $850. Premier $625, Executive $850 plus fees (All Access $2,250, Medical $925, virtual AI training $97).
- M&A Source Conference & Deal Market
Nov 2 to Nov 4, 2026 · Houston, TX
Paid ticket. Pricing not retrieved; site blocked direct fetch.
- Data Center Energy Industry Update
Nov 2, 2026 · Houston, TX
By invitation only. Free for invited iMasons members.
- HBA Annual Conference
Nov 16 to Nov 18, 2026 · Houston, TX
Paid ticket. Pricing not read. HBA also lists a new FIVE Experience in New York, June 15-18, 2027.
- SACSCOC Annual Meeting
Dec 5 to Dec 8, 2026 · Houston, TX
Ticket $725 to $1,225. Member $725 early (before Oct 7), $825 Oct 8-31, $925 late; non-member $1,025/$1,125/$1,225. Saturday…
- NACWA Winter Conference
Feb 2 to Feb 5, 2027 · Houston, TX
Paid ticket. Prices not on listing page.
- NAPE Summit Week
Feb 3 to Feb 5, 2027 · Houston, TX
Ticket $355 to $1,095. NAPE Experience Plus (conference + expo): $695 preferred to Oct 9, $895 Oct 10-Dec 11, $995 Dec 12-Feb 1,…
- Hydrogen Technology Expo North America
Feb 10 to Feb 11, 2027 · Houston, TX
Free expo, paid sessions. Expo entry free; conference pass prices not listed.
- CX USA Exchange
Feb 24 to Feb 25, 2027 · Houston, TX
By invitation only. Ticket price not published; invitation required.
- CERAWeek
Mar 8 to Mar 12, 2027 · Houston, TX
Ticket $2,250 to $11,000. Executive Conference pass (includes Innovation Agora): $8,500 through Nov 20, 2026; $10,000 Nov 21 to…
- HNBA Corporate Counsel Conference
Mar 10 to Mar 12, 2027 · Houston, TX
Paid ticket. Volunteer bailiffs receive complimentary registration valued at $1,600, which suggests the standard price is near…
Showing 12 of 34 conferences, 25 with dates announced.
Workforce development and job centers
The public workforce board and American Job Centers serving Harris County. They offer free help with job search, training and filing for benefits.
- Gulf Coast Workforce Development Board
Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Colorado, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Matagorda, Montgomery, Walker, Waller, Wharton
Workforce Solutions Gulf Coast - Baytown
Baytown · Comprehensive · 281-837-0079
M-F 8am-5pm
Workforce Solutions Gulf Coast - Acres Homes
Houston · Comprehensive · 832-856-2885
Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm
Workforce Solutions Gulf Coast - East End
Houston · Comprehensive · 713-228-8848
Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm
Workforce Solutions Gulf Coast - Northeast
Houston · Comprehensive
Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm
Workforce Solutions Gulf Coast - Northline
Houston · Comprehensive
Monday-Friday 8am-5pm
Workforce Solutions Gulf Coast - Southeast
Houston · Comprehensive · 713-576-2580
Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm
Workforce Solutions Gulf Coast - Southwest
Houston · Comprehensive · 281-564-2660
Monday - Friday, 8am-5pm
Workforce Solutions Gulf Coast - Willowbrook
Houston · Comprehensive · 281-807-9462
Monday - Friday, 8:00AM-5:00PM
Workforce Solutions Gulf Coast- Cypress Station
Houston · Comprehensive · 281-891-2850
Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 5:00pm
Workforce Solutions Gulf Coast - Humble
Humble · Comprehensive · 281-446-4837
Monday - Friday, 8am-5pm
Cities in Harris County
Other Texas counties
Laid off or looking for work in Harris County?
See what to do first and the jobs open near you.
See your options after a layoffSources: Census Bureau and BLS (county unemployment is not seasonally adjusted); WARN notices from Texas’s published record; job counts from our live job board; IPEDS for colleges; CareerOneStop for workforce boards and job centers.