Southwest Energy to cut 1,100 jobs in Houston

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- While oil prices rebounded slightly yesterday, they're still around $30 a barrel and the pain is being felt here in Houston.

Southwest Energy announced it would reduce its workforce by nearly half, a loss of 1,100 jobs.

An earnings report from Schlumberger showed it had cut 10,000 jobs in the fourth quarter. This came on top of 20,000 job reductions earlier in the year.

Roughly 45 percent of the jobs in Houston are tied to the price of oil.

Setbacks in the oil and gas sector can be felt by everyone.

One silver lining is that during the '80s, city leaders managed to embark on ambitious public projects. The Wortham Theater was built in 1986 and 1987.

If low oil prices cause real estate prices to drop, Houston could take advantage to add more parks and other public spaces.