PRESS RELEASE th
Colorado Department of Labor and Employment • 633 17 Street, Suite 1200 • Denver, CO 80202 • (303) 318-8004 • Fax: (303) 318-8070
For Immediate Release Date: Contact: Phone: Fax: Web:
September 20, 2016/ 8:00 A.M. Office of Government and Public Relations Bill Thoennes at (303) 318-8004 or Cher Haavind at (303) 318-8003 (303) 318-8070 http://www.colmigateway.com
Colorado Employment Situation August 2016 Employers in Colorado added 4,100 nonfarm payroll jobs from July to August for a total of 2,617,800 jobs, according to the survey of business establishments. Private sector payroll jobs increased 3,400 and government increased 700. According to the survey of households, the Over the Year Growth Rate 2011 to Present unemployment rate was unchanged from July to August at 3.8 percent. The number of people actively participating in the labor force decreased 3,000 over the month to 2,890,800 and the number of people reporting themselves as employed decreased 1,700 to 2,781,700. The larger decrease in labor force than in total employment caused the number of unemployed to decrease 1,300. Despite the decline in the number of unemployed, the unemployment rate was unchanged from July due to rounding. The national unemployment rate was also unchanged from July to August at 4.9 percent. U.S. and Colorado Nonfarm Payroll Jobs
Source: CDLE, Labor Market Information/Bureau of Labor Statistics
U.S.
Jul-16
May-16
Jan-16
Mar-16
Jul-15
Sep-15
Nov-15
May-15
Jan-15
Mar-15
Jul-14
Sep-14
Nov-14
May-14
Jan-14
Mar-14
Nov-13
0.0%
Jul-13
0.0%
Sep-13
0.5%
May-13
0.5%
Jan-13
1.0%
Mar-13
1.0%
Nov-12
1.5%
Jul-12
1.5%
Sep-12
2.0%
Jan-12
2.0%
Mar-12
2.5%
May-12
2.5%
Nov-11
3.0%
Jul-11
3.0%
Sep-11
3.5%
Jan-11
3.5%
Mar-11
4.0%
May-11
4.0%
Colorado
Over the year, the average workweek for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls decreased from 34.8 to 33.9 hours and average hourly earnings decreased from $27.00 to $26.69. The largest over the month private sector job gains were in leisure and hospitality, professional and business services, and construction. The largest over the month declines were in trade, transportation, and utilities.
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Over the year, nonfarm payroll jobs increased 71,600 with an increase of 60,700 in the private sector and an increase of 10,900 in government. The largest private sector job gains were in construction, leisure and hospitality, and education and health services. Mining and logging declined over the year. Over the year, the unemployment rate is up one-tenth of a percentage point from 3.7 percent in August 2015. The number of Coloradans participating in the labor force increased 69,900, total employment increased 65,600 and the number of unemployed increased by 4,200. The national unemployment rate declined from 5.1 percent in August 2015 to 4.9 percent in August 2016. ### All Colorado estimates from the establishment and household surveys, including greater geographic detail, are available at: http://www.colmigateway.com. Estimates for all states and the nation are available at: http://www.bls.gov. The September 2016 Colorado Employment Situation will be released at 8:00 AM on Friday, October 21, 2016. The full schedule of release dates for calendar year 2016 estimates is available at http://www.colmigateway.com. ### Nonfarm payroll jobs estimates are based on a survey of business establishments and government agencies, and are intended to measure the number of jobs, not the number of people employed. Other series based on this survey include private sector average weekly hours, average hourly earnings and average weekly earnings. The unemployment rate, labor force, labor force participation, total employment and the number of unemployed are based on a survey of households. The total employment estimate derived from this survey is intended to measure the number of people employed. The business establishment survey covers about seven times the number of households surveyed and is therefore considered a more reliable indicator of economic conditions. Because the estimates are based on two separate surveys, one measuring jobs by worksite and the other measuring persons employed and unemployed by household, estimates based on these surveys may provide seemingly conflicting results.
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