After losing almost 2,000 jobs in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, The Woodlands has bounced back with numbers for its major employers now topping 40,000 jobs.

In 2021, the major employers report from The Woodlands Area Economic Development Partnership showed a combined 38,660 jobs. However, the 2022 report showed a loss of 1,987 jobs, dropping to 36,673. The community saw a rebound in 2023 to 39,820 jobs.

The community's 85 major employers have grown the job count to 40,036, according to Woodlands Area Economic Development Partnership Chief Executive Officer Gil Staley.

RESTROOM REDO: The Woodlands moves forward with $840K park restroom upgrades

"I can say, without a doubt, if you look at that growth year over year, we gained all of the jobs we lost during COVID," Staley said during The Woodlands Township Board of Directors meeting in December.

Staley said the pandemic was the first time in the history of The Woodlands that the community ever saw its major employers lose jobs, adding it was

"something we don't even think about anymore," Staley said.

Township board member Shelley Sekula-Gibbs said the growth is good news for the community.

"Without the jobs and sales tax, we would not be able to provide the amenities that we do from this board to our taxpayers," she said.

According to data presented by Staley, 81.3% of the jobs are full-time with the rest being part-time and contract work.

LOCAL SHOWING: Conroe native, Country star Parker McCollum among Inaugural ball entertainers

While Conroe ISD remains the largest employer for The Woodlands, Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Medical Center, Houston Methodist The Woodlands Hospital, St. Luke's The Woodlands Hospital and Texas Children's Hospital The Woodlands round out the top five largest employers.

"It's fantastic," Staley said. "We are very, very proud of that."

Staley said 31.3% of the major employer jobs are in health care, with education making up 18.8%. Professional and business services make up 11.3%, energy 8.8% and the chemical sector around 7.6%. Transportation, hospitality, financial services, public agencies, manufacturing, real estate development, life science and social service make up the remaining percentage.

"They have to grow," Staley said of the health care and education industries in The Woodlands. "The population demands it."