The Valley’s job growth is losing steam as Brownsville slips and McAllen slows

The Rio Grande Valley may have tens of thousands of jobs on the horizon, but the current job market shows sluggish growth compared to last year, according to data from the Texas Workforce Commission released on Friday. 

One metro lost jobs over the year, while the other posted only modest growth.

The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), which typically releases jobs data first, is scheduled to release local metro jobs data in mid-April. 

The latest figures indicate the Brownsville-Harlingen metro’s total nonfarm jobs decreased slightly over the year, driven by a decline in manufacturing. 

By comparison, the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro area grew by less than 1% over the year. Employment there was dragged down by a decline in professional and business services, but buoyed somewhat by growth in manufacturing, private education, and health services jobs. 

Taken together, the data show weaker momentum in both of the Valley’s largest metros, though for different reasons.

The Brownsville metro had 158,800 nonfarm jobs in January, down from 162,100 jobs in January 2025. That’s a decline of 2% over the year, or 3,300 fewer jobs. 

The McAllen metro had 307,800 nonfarm jobs in January, up from 306,100 jobs in January 2025. That’s an increase of 0.6% over the year, or a gain of 1,700 jobs. 

That means the Brownsville-Harlingen metro moved backward on an annual basis, while the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro remained in positive territory but grew more slowly than the state.

By comparison, Texas added 131,600 jobs over the year for a total of 14.2 million jobs in January. That’s a 0.9% increase. 

Nationwide, job growth rose by 0.2%. The U.S. added 341,000 jobs for a total of 156 million in January.

Industry breakdown shows weaknesses

Manufacturing was the weakest industry in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro in January. Employment in that industry decreased by 11.6% over the year to 6,100 jobs. 

The manufacturing weakness comes as layoffs tied to First Brands Group’s bankruptcy have hit operations on both sides of the Rio Grande.

Hundreds of workers were laid off this year by companies under its umbrella, including Cardone in Harlingen and Trico Products in Brownsville. Thousands more were laid off in Matamoros, the Mexican border city across from Brownsville. 

The job losses in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro extended beyond manufacturing.

Mining, logging, and construction fell 7.7% over the year to 3,600 jobs, while the information sector dropped 7.1%. 

Trade, transportation, and utilities slipped 1.1%, and both professional and business services and private education and health services declined by more than 5%.

Still, the metro did post some gains. 

Leisure and hospitality jobs rose 5.4% over the year, other services increased 2.8%, government grew 2.5%, and financial activities climbed 1.8%.

In the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission metro, the weakest industry sector in January was professional and business services, which declined by 12.1% over the year to 23,300 jobs. 

The information sector there decreased by 2.8% to 3,500 jobs, and government jobs were down by 0.3% over the year. 

But private education and health services — the largest industry sector in the McAllen metro — grew by 3.6% over the year to 97,100 jobs. 

Leisure and hospitality added 2.9% more jobs, and manufacturing expanded by 2.8%. 

Other services there grew by 1.4% over the year, and financial activities, mining, logging, and construction grew by 1%. 

Trade, transportation, and utilities grew by 0.7% compared to last year. 

Big changes in the economy 

January 2026 marks the first full year since President Donald J. Trump took office. 

His administration has overhauled the government workforce by reducing its employee count; canceled grants and business contracts nationwide; focused on reducing the immigrant population; and levied tariffs on most imports to the U.S. 

Texas has also adopted more stringent policies that prohibit immigrants who lack legal work authorization from participating in the workforce. 

The state now requires proof of status to obtain professional licenses and register vehicles, and has eliminated the ability for refugee, asylum, and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) recipients to renew their work permits, including teaching certifications or commercial truck licenses. 

There’s also been a significant decrease in the international migration to the Rio Grande Valley, according to population estimates as of July 2025. That figure went down from thousands of immigrants residing along the border to just a few hundred. 

Here’s the impact so far on the trade, transportation, and logistics sector: the Brownsville metro saw a 1.1% decline over the year and 3% drop over the month for 26,000 jobs, while the McAllen metro increased by 0.7% over the year but dropped 3.2% over the month to 57,300 jobs. 

It’s unclear whether the big company expansions on track for the next five years across the Valley will override this downward trend in jobs, which follows state and national trends.