Colorado employment at 1,826,678 declined slightly from last quarter losing 18,923 employees. All industries except TCPU and Services declined over the quarter. Seasonal factors such as weather and post Christmas sales lull affected performance. Retail Trade reported the largest employee decrease dropping more than 10,000. Losses were greater than normal for this industry which is strongly impacted by after Christmas layoffs. In terms of percentages, Agriculture suffered the largest quarterly loss dropping 15.1%. Decreased farming activity and lawn and garden work typically cause job losses at this time of year. Gains occurring in Services are the result of increased hiring in a couple of sectors for the skiing season. Small gains in TCPU have also been influenced by ski area activity, reflected by gains in local transportation and airlines.
ANNUAL
Annually, employment grew 3.2% adding 56,908. Growth in Services, up 23,344, constituted almost half of the States annual employment gain. Strong demand for computer services and telemarketing have made this the number one growth sector of the Colorado economy. Based on percent of growth, Construction is strongest. Despite the completion of Denver International Airport and its strong impact on the job market in past years, building has continued to be strong in the Metro area and throughout the state. Mining continues to be a weak link. It is the only industry to register an employment loss over the year. Decreased exploration and drilling activity in the oil and gas arena currently affect Mining employment.
SIC CHANGES
One third of the employers covered by unemployment insurance are surveyed each year to determine that they are properly classified by : 1.Standard Industrial Classification (SIC), a code that identifies the type of product or services produced by a business; 2.County, each business is assigned a three digit code according to the county in which it operates.
This year the survey was conducted for all business in Retail and Wholesale Trade. SIC or county changes are made to first quarter data only, but the impact of those changes may be evident throughout the year, particularly when data are compared to the previous year. Virtually all industry groups are affected in some way since businesses may be moved out of a surveyed industry and into any industry for proper classification. The impact of change is determined by the overall change in employment and wages in each industry group.
Colorado Employment and Wages (ES202) First Quarter 1996
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