The pandemic hasn't been easy for people like Katherine O'Brien who have been looking for work.
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"I was in a shelter," O'Brien recalled. "Then I moved out of the shelter and into my car."
She is no longer living in her car after Workforce Solutions helped her find a new job at One Purpose Enrichment.
"It was hard," O'Brien said. "I actually had no hope. I was like, 'I don't want a job. Nobody will hire me. They don't have any jobs.'"
The employment situation became even more dire on Friday. Originally, reports showed the Houston area gained back 60% of the jobs lost during the pandemic by December. As it turns out, the amount of jobs gained back is not even at 50%.
"Before, it was pretty clear we were past the halfway mark," said Parker Harvey, a Workforce Solutions principal economist. "Now, we may not be."
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The state took a deeper dive and discovered it overcounted about 65,000 jobs. Overall, the Houston-area unemployment rate remains about two percentage points higher, sitting at about 8.3% in January, than the rest of the country, despite businesses being open.
"This is something I struggle to understand myself for the last several months," Harvey said. "You would've thought our rate would've matched the U.S. or trend in the same direction."
On Monday, a program will start to help a group impacted during the pandemic. Last year, teen unemployment rose above 30% nationally. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said young people had an even harder time.
Turner said 53% of Hispanics, 45% of Blacks, 48% of Asians and 38% of whites are reportedly struggling.
To help bring the number down, Hire Houston Youth will start to match young people with jobs starting Monday. It's a program that's helped thousands of people ages 16 to 24 land jobs over the summer.
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Luis Moreno is one of those individuals who found help through the program.
"I think about it all the time," Moreno said. "Like, 'Man, what if I didn't apply? Where would I be now?' Luckily, everything played out well."
In the past, the program would help through in-person events where people could apply. This year, it'll be virtual. If you're interested, visit the Hire Houston Youth website.
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