How Hispanics Are Shaping Texas’ Economic Landscape

Most of the state’s new workers are Latino, as nearly two-thirds of workers are added to the state labor force over the last decade, reports The Dallas Morning News.

According to the report, Latino workers have grown to cover nearly 40% of Texas’ labor force, this matches with the total population of Latinos in Texas, which is around 40% – making them the largest ethnic group in the state.

Texas hosts one of the largest Latino economies in the U.S., with more than 5.9 million Latino workers, and Hispanics have the highest labor participation rate among any ethnic group in Texas.

Hispanic workers brought $465 billion into Texas gross domestic income, second to California Latinos who contributed to $682 billion to their state. Latinos are also responsible for nearly 40% of the state’s economic growth between 2011 and 2021.

Despite Latinos being the larger racial-ethnic group in the state, they have lower educational attainment than other groups. Two thirds of Latinos in Texas earned a high school diploma in 2019 by age 25, which is less than other groups, with 91.2% of Black adults earning their high school diploma, 89.4% of Asian adults and 94.4% of white adults.

As educational attainment remains a challenge for Latinos in Texas, their contribution to the state’s economy is growing and soon could become the largest working force in Texas.