Overall unemployment rate moved down to 3.3% with the biggest shift in Restaurants & Hotels, which lost 3,300 roles, based on the most recently available information published in September 2022.

Total employment in the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO market rose by 13,011 jobs in August and the unemployment rate decreased compared to the prior month by 20 bps to 3.3%. The national unemployment rate stayed flat over the same time period at 3.8%.

  • Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO unemployment rate is 49 bps below the national rate which is a positive sign.
  • Unemployment in the market is 200 bps below the unemployment rate in the market last year at this time, which is a positive.
  • Average wages (per hour) grew in August versus prior month by 5.3% and are down compared to last year at this time in the market.
Month over Month Unemployment Change
Year over Year Unemployment Change
Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO Unemployment August 2022

For key employment segments of the market, total jobs grew by 0.1% . Key sectors include:

  • Business Services: 319,600; +1,300
  • Transportation & Utilities: 287,600; +800
  • Education & Healthcare: 195,500; +2,100
  • Government: 192,500; +500
  • Restaurants & Hotels: 169,600; -3,300
  • Construction, Mining: 117,100; +800
  • Financial Services: 114,400; -500
  • Manufacturing: 73,400; -300
  • Other Jobs: 62,700; +100
  • IT & Development: 53,900; -300
Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO Unemployment by Industry August 2022

Data is based on the most recent 12 months available, through August 2022 (Data published September 2022 and reports created on September 28, 2022).  Source: Government data agency and locally acquired statistics.

Note: All reported data is not seasonally adjusted.