The state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate continues to decline, dropping from 7 percent in September to 6.9 percent in October. The national unemployment rate edged up to 10.2 percent.
The devil is in the details with these employment numbers, though - according to the figures from the state Department of Labor and Employment, the number of working Coloradans fell by 9,600 in October, to 2,474,300. The number of people looking for work also fell, by 3,200, to 184,300.
Put those numbers together and you’ll see that what’s happening here is that more unemployed Coloradans are not looking for work: They’ve given up. Which is, I suppose, still good news if you’re job hunting (less competition is less competition), but it’s not much of a foundation to build an economic recovery on.
A few other highlights from the monthly report:
- - government added 7,300 jobs statewide
- - education and health services added 1,900 jobs
- - leisure and hospitality lost 7,100 jobs
- - construction lost 4,800 jobs
