MINING

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(10 - 14)

Employment change from last quarter	+ 0.9
Employment change from year ago	+ 2.9
Wage change from year ago	+ 8.1

QUARTERLY

Mining employment rose 0.9% over last quarter adding 129 employees. Activity within the sectors was mixed, however. Mining & Quarry Nonmetal (14) reflected the largest quarterly increase up 205 employees. About half of the sector increase occurred in Sand & Gravel which experienced some seasonal gain going into summer construction projects and the accompanied demand for cement. Some seasonal gains were found in the mining or quarrying of Dimension Stone and Crushed & Broken Stone. A small expansion undertaken by a large company and some seasonal increases due to improved weather added 46 to Coal Mining (12). Employment in Oil & Gas (13) dropped by 88. Losses were attributed solely to temporary project completions in Oil & Gas Field Services. Projects peaked in first quarter and slipped this quarter. Losses were offset by a small temporary gain in Oil & Gas Production. Metal Mining (10) employment fell by 32. Layoffs in late first quarter in Gold & Silver Ores created a second quarter loss.


ANNUAL

Mining employment was up 2.9% over second quarter a year ago adding 392 employees. Oil & Gas Extraction (13) reported the largest gain up 352 employees. A number of short term projects in Oil & Gas Field Services, which are done on a contract or fee basis, accounted for the majority of the employment gain. Mining & Quarry Nonmetal (14) rose by 203 employees. The addition of about 40 employees from January SIC changes along with expansions in sand and gravel pit operations generated the bulk of the gain. Metal Mining (10) reported a loss of 93 employees over the year. Activity within the sector was mixed. Gold & Silver Ores reflected layoffs dropping over 100 employees. Metal Mining Services lost about 85 due to the completion of drilling projects. Production increases necessitating employment gains added almost 40 to Ferroalloy Ores and 60 to Misc Metal Ores which contains uranium. Administrative cutbacks and a contract completion caused a drop of 79 in Coal Mining (12) over the year.

Colorado Employment and Wages (ES202) Second Quarter 1998