Colorado Employment Situation – February 2022

Unemployment Rate Falls to 4.0%; Total Nonfarm Employment Returns to Pre-Pandemic Level

Household survey data:

According to the survey of households, Colorado’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate decreased to 4.0 percent in February from 4.2 percent, as revised, in January. Colorado’s unemployment rate of 4.0 percent marks the lowest level since it was 2.8 percent in February 2020. The national unemployment rate also declined two-tenths of a percentage point from January to 3.8 percent.

Other highlights from the household survey:

Colorado’s labor force grew by 11,600 in February to 3,199,000. The share of Coloradans participating in the labor force improved to 68.7 percent last month, the highest rate since March 2020. The state continues to experience a faster rate of recovery in the participation rate than the U.S.

The number of individuals employed in Colorado increased by 17,100 in February to 3,072,200, which represents 66.0 percent of the state’s 16+ population. Colorado’s employment-to-population ratio has nearly returned to pre-pandemic levels.

The Colorado counties with the highest unemployment rates in February were: Huerfano (7.2%), Pueblo (6.1%), Fremont (5.8%), Rio Grande (5.6%), and Las Animas (5.5%). County-level unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted and are directly comparable to Colorado’s February unadjusted rate of 4.0 percent.

Employers in Colorado added 14,100 nonfarm payroll jobs from January to February for a total of 2,826,900 jobs, according to the survey of business establishments. Private sector payroll jobs increased 13,700 and government rose by 400. After the February gain of 14,100, Colorado has fully recovered the total nonfarm jobs lost in early 2020. Over the past 22 months, the state has added 381,800 nonfarm payroll jobs, compared to losses totaling 374,500 in March and April 2020. That translates to a job recovery rate of 101.9 percent, which exceeds the U.S. rate of 90.4 percent.

Since May 2020, Colorado’s private sector has grown by 383,300 jobs, compared to declines of 358,800 in early 2020. That translates to a job recovery rate of 106.8 percent and outpaces the U.S. rate of 93.2 percent.

The following are unemployment percentages from counties in southeast Colorado: