Colorado Employment Situation – April 2022

14,600 Nonfarm Payroll Jobs Added in April; Unemployment Rate Falls Slightly to 3.6%

Household survey data:

According to the survey of households, Colorado’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell one-tenth of a percentage point in April to 3.6 percent. This marks the lowest rate since February 2020, when it was 2.8 percent. The national unemployment rate was also 3.6 percent in April, unchanged from the month prior.

Other highlights from the household survey:

Colorado’s labor force grew by 13,600 in April to 3,225,600. The share of Coloradans participating in the labor force improved to 69.1 percent last month, the highest rate since March 2020. The state continues to experience a much faster rate of recovery in the participation rate than the U.S.

The number of individuals employed in Colorado increased by 15,400 in April to 3,108,800, which represents 66.6 percent of the state’s 16+ population. Colorado’s employment-to-population ratio has surpassed the pre-pandemic, February 2020 level, when it was 66.5 percent.

The Colorado counties with the highest unemployment rates in April were: Huerfano (6.1%), Pueblo (5.1%), Fremont (4.8%), Las Animas (4.7%), and Rio Grande (4.5%). County-level unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted and are directly comparable to Colorado’s April unadjusted rate of 3.1 percent.

Establishment survey data:

Employers in Colorado added 14,600 nonfarm payroll jobs from March to April for a total of 2,848,600 jobs, according to the survey of business establishments. Private sector payroll jobs increased 15,100 and government shed 500 jobs. Over the past two years, Colorado has added 403,500 nonfarm payroll jobs, compared to losses totaling 374,500 in March and April 2020. That translates to a job recovery rate of 107.7 percent, which exceeds the U.S. rate of 94.6 percent.

Since May 2020, Colorado’s private sector has grown by 407,600 jobs, compared to declines of 358,800 in early 2020. That translates to a job recovery rate of 113.6 percent and outpaces the U.S. rate of 97.6 percent.

Here are the unemployment percentages for counties in southeast Colorado: