Colorado Employment Situation – May 2022

Unemployment Rate Falls to 3.5% in May; 5,400 Nonfarm Payroll Jobs Added

Household survey data:

According to the survey of households, Colorado’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell one-tenth of a percentage point in May to 3.5 percent. This marks the lowest rate since February 2020, when it was 2.8 percent. The national unemployment rate was 3.6 percent in May, unchanged from the prior two months.

Other highlights from the household survey:

Colorado’s labor force grew by 15,400 in May to 3,240,700. The share of Coloradans participating in the labor force improved to 69.4 percent last month, the highest rate since March 2020. May also marks the first time since 2012 that the state’s participation rate has exceeded 69 percent for two consecutive months.

The number of individuals employed in Colorado increased by 17,200 in May to 3,126,100, which represents 66.9 percent of the state’s 16+ population. Colorado’s employment-to-population ratio is at its highest level since November 2019, which was also 66.9 percent.

The Colorado counties with the highest unemployment rates in May were: Huerfano (5.4%), Pueblo (4.9%), San Miguel (4.6%), Las Animas (4.3%), and Fremont (4.2%). County-level unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted and are directly comparable to Colorado’s May unadjusted rate of 3.0 percent.

Establishment survey data:

Employers in Colorado added 5,400 nonfarm payroll jobs from April to May for a total of 2,855,400 jobs, according to the survey of business establishments. Private sector payroll jobs increased 5,200 and government added 200 jobs. Over the past 25 months, Colorado has added 410,300 nonfarm payroll jobs, compared to losses totaling 374,500 in March and April 2020. That translates to a job recovery rate of 109.6 percent, which exceeds the U.S. rate of 96.3 percent.

Since May 2020, Colorado’s private sector has grown by 414,000 jobs, compared to declines of 358,800 in early 2020. That translates to a job recovery rate of 115.4 percent and outpaces the U.S. rate of 99.0 percent.

Here are the unemployment percentages for counties in southeast Colorado: