Texas upstream oil and gas sector loses 1,200 jobs in July 2026, recording second straight monthly decline

Texas upstream oil and gas employment fell by 1,200 jobs between June and July 2026, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data cited by the Texas Independent Producers and Royalty Owners Association. The decline broke down into 300 jobs lost in oil and natural gas extraction and 900 in the service sector.

It was the steepest single-month drop of the year—and the second consecutive monthly decline, following a revised loss of 300 jobs in June.

July employment figures and the two-month decline

Texas upstream employment sat at 195,800 in July 2026, per BLS Current Employment Statistics data cited by TIPRO. That’s 1,200 fewer jobs than June—the steepest single-month drop recorded so far this year.

Job postings—more than 10,900 unique listings in Texas alone during July—point to continued hiring demand, and tax revenues hit record or near-record levels.

The losses split across two subsectors: oil and natural gas extraction shed 300 positions, landing at 62,800 total, while oilfield services took the harder hit, losing 900 jobs to finish at 133,000.

June’s numbers also got revised. What initially looked like a 400-job gain turned out to be a 300-job loss once updated data came in—confirming back-to-back monthly declines for the first time in 2026.

Context still matters, though. Employment started the year at 192,400 in January and climbed to a 2026 peak of 197,300 in May. Even after two down months, the sector is still up 3,400 jobs—1.8 percent—since January. The recent slide gave back only part of a larger spring surge.

Why employment pulled back after a spring peak

The climb from January through May was sharp. 5,800 jobs were added from a February low of 191,500 to the May peak, so the reversal since then looks modest by comparison—though it’s raised real questions about what’s driving it.

TIPRO points to several factors. Oil prices have been elevated but volatile, tied partly to the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict, and that kind of uncertainty makes operators cautious about committing to new hires even when fundamentals look solid. Tariffs on steel and other materials are raising the price tag on every new well drilled. Federal permitting delays are also stretching out investment timelines, making it harder for companies to plan—and staff up—with any confidence.

TIPRO isn’t overreading the two-month trend, though. Month-to-month swings of this scale are common in upstream employment data—the sector already saw a 900-job drop in February before bouncing back strongly through spring. In the association’s view, the current pullback is a pause rather than a structural shift.

Job postings signal continued hiring demand despite the dip

The clearest counterpoint to the employment dip shows up in job postings. Texas recorded 10,951 unique oil and gas job postings in July, with 4,363 new ones added during the month alone.

No other state came close. Pennsylvania ranked second with 3,404 unique postings, California followed at 3,278, and Ohio came in at 2,694. Texas’s lead wasn’t remotely narrow.

Nationally, there were 69,755 unique oil and gas job postings across the U.S. in July, including 27,562 new ones added during the month. TIPRO reads this as a forward-looking signal—when companies are posting at that volume, they expect to be hiring, even if payroll numbers haven’t caught up yet. The association sees the two-month dip as more likely a short-term pause before renewed growth than the start of something longer.

Tax revenues and U.S. production reach record levels

Whatever the employment data suggests about near-term uncertainty, the financial picture looks strong. Texas collected $567 million in oil production taxes in July 2026—up 31 percent compared to July 2025. Natural gas production taxes brought in $241 million, a 36 percent year-over-year increase.

June was even more striking. It set an all-time record for monthly oil production tax collections in Texas, pulling in $736 million—82 percent above June 2025 levels. Numbers like that don’t happen without serious production activity behind them.

On the national side, the EIA’s August 2026 Short-Term Energy Outlook projects U.S. marketed natural gas production will average 122.5 billion cubic feet per day in 2026, which would beat the previous record of 118.5 Bcf/d set in 2025. Much of that growth ties back to the Permian Basin and the Haynesville shale formation. U.S. crude oil production is forecast at 13.8 million barrels per day in 2026, rising to 14.2 million bpd in 2027, with Texas and the Permian Basin identified as the primary drivers.

The steepest single-month loss of 2026

Texas upstream employment fell to 195,800 in July 2026, down 1,200 from June and 1,500 from the May peak of 197,300. Back-to-back monthly losses in June and July marked the first consecutive declines of the year, and July’s drop was the steepest single-month loss recorded in 2026.

Employment is still 3,400 jobs above where it started in January. Job postings—more than 10,900 unique listings in Texas alone during July—point to continued hiring demand, and tax revenues hit record or near-record levels. U.S. production forecasts for both oil and natural gas are trending higher. TIPRO’s read: the recent dip is a temporary pause, with the underlying data still pointing toward growth.

Kelly Lippke

Kelly is an experienced writer with 15 years of experience exploring the big stories that shape our world, from tech breakthroughs and space exploration to climate, energy, and the fascinating quirks of science. She has a talent for turning complex ideas into sharp, memorable insights that stay with readers long after they’ve finished reading.