Houston Tops Cities in Job Creation

According to a new Gallup study:

Among the nation’s 50 largest U.S. metropolitan areas, Houston ranks as the best environment for job creation and San Diego ranks as the worst, based on reports of hiring activity versus layoffs from workers who live in those areas.

The Gallup poll ranked Orlando, Columbus, Ohio, San Antonio, and Salt Lake in the second through fifth places.

Following San Diego on the bottom of the list were New York’ Providence; Sacramento; Riverside, Calif.; and Los Angeles.

Gallup added:

An increase in reported hiring fueled Houston’s ascent to the top of the Job Creation Index rankings in 2012-2013, with 44% of Houston-area workers saying companies in the area are hiring, up from 39% in 2011. Houston’s hiring percentage ties with Orlando, Fla., as the nation’s highest; Los Angeles is at the bottom of the list, at 31%. The reason Houston tops Orlando in the overall ranking is that fewer workers in Houston reported layoffs, at 12%, and a higher 15% of Orlando-based workers said the company or employer they work for is letting people go.

Methodology: Gallup’s Job Creation Index score is based on the percentage of workers who say their employer is hiring and expanding its workforce versus the percentage saying their employer is letting people go and reducing its workforce. Houston’s top score of +32 on the index is based on 44% of Houston-area workers saying their employer was hiring and expanding, versus 12% saying their employer was letting people go and reducing in 2012 and 2013. Results are based on telephone interviews conducted as a part of Gallup Daily tracking Jan. 1, 2012-Dec. 3, 2013, with a random sample of 150,521 adults, aged 18 and older, employed full or part time, living in the 50 largest MSAs by population.