Press Release: Colorado Employment Situation – February 2026

Nonfarm Payroll Jobs Decrease by 7,200 in February; Unemployment Rate Unchanged at 3.9 Percent

Household survey data

• According to the survey of households, the number of unemployed individuals increased by 1,000 to 127,300 from January to February. Colorado's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was unchanged over the same time period at 3.9 percent. The national unemployment rate increased by one-tenth of a percentage point to 4.4 percent from January to February.
  
• Colorado's labor force decreased by 10,300 in February to 3,238,500. The share of Coloradans participating in the labor force was 66.6 percent in February, two-tenths of a percentage point lower than in January, this marks the lowest labor force participation rate since September 2020. The U.S. labor force participation rate decreased one-tenth of a percentage point to 62.0 percent in February.
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  The number of individuals employed in Colorado decreased by 11,300 in February to 3,111,200, which represents 64.0 percent of the state's 16+ population. Colorado's employment-population ratio of 64.0 percent in February decreased two-tenths of a percentage point from January. The national employment-population ratio decreased one-tenth of a percentage point from the month prior to 59.3 percent in February.

Establishment survey data

• Employers in Colorado lost 7,200 nonfarm payroll jobs from January to February for a total of 2,953,500 jobs, according to the survey of business establishments. Private sector payroll jobs decreased by 7,200, while government was unchanged.
  
• January estimates were revised down by 5,300 jobs to 2,960,700, making the over the month change from December to January an increase of 1,300 jobs rather than the originally estimated increase of 6,600 (monthly revisions are based on additional responses from businesses and government agencies since the last published estimates).
  
• The private industry sector with significant over the month job gains in February was: construction (≈1,000). The private industry sectors with significant over the month job losses were: other services (≈2,200), trade, transportation, and utilities (≈1,700), and educational and health services (≈1,000).
  
• Since February 2025, nonfarm payroll jobs have decreased by 9,100, with the private sector decreasing by 5,600 and government losing 3,500 jobs. The largest private sector job gains were in educational and health services (≈13,400) and construction (≈2,500). During that same period, payroll jobs declined in financial activities (≈4,800), professional and business services (≈4,600), manufacturing (≈3,800), leisure and hospitality (≈3,700), information (≈3,300), mining and logging (≈1,100), and other services (≈1,000). Colorado's rate of job growth over the past year is -0.3 percent, below the U.S. rate of 0.1 percent.
  
• Over the year, the average workweek for all Colorado employees on private nonfarm payrolls decreased from 33.4 to 33.3 hours, while average hourly earnings grew from $39.72 to $39.79, two dollars and fifty cents more than the national average hourly earnings of $37.29.

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Informational Section

All Colorado estimates from the establishment and household surveys, including greater geographic detail, are available at Colorado LMI Gateway. Estimates for all states and the nation are available at the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

For data visualizations, visit CDLE's Labor Market Information on Tableau.

The March 2026 Colorado Employment Situation will be released at 8:00 AM on Wednesday, May 6, 2026. Due to the federal government shutdown that occurred in October 2025, there is no household survey data available for October 2025 and subsequent releases for monthly state level estimates from the household and establishment surveys have been delayed by approximately three weeks. Typical production schedules are set to resume in June 2026 with the release of May 2026 data. The full schedule of release dates for calendar year 2026 estimates is available at Labor Market Information.

Technical Notes

This release provides information on industry employment and labor force statistics for February 2026, the most current estimates available from the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment. The reference period for the establishment survey was the pay period or week that includes the 12th of the month.

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.

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 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.

Resources Mentioned

February 2026 Press Release