Construction and manufacturing jobs also fell, with both sectors losing several thousand jobs over the course of 1991. A national recession added to Houston's problems and slowed its recovery, as did various proposals for health care reform, a review of the space station and a Btu tax. All comparisons begin with August of each year. The other two growth periods are very similar in the number of total and private - sector jobs created. Given the trend throughout American business to outsource accounting, legal, personnel and other functions, upstream energy probably drives growth in some business services.
Energy certainly plays a role here.
At the same time, electronic and computer - related employment in manufacturing is up by 1,200. Recent growth in the construction industry has been faster than at any time during the past six years. Over the past 12 months, local contractors have had all the work they could handle in local retail, apartment and warehouse construction. These projects should keep local construction growing for another year or so, and combined with other chemical expansions announced around the world, this construction has already improved the local market for engineers. Health services have not contributed to recent local job growth.