Colorado nonfarm jobs declined in March

Total nonfarm payroll jobs in Colorado declined 3,900 from February to March to 2,504,100 jobs, according to the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment.

Private sector payroll jobs decreased 4,600 and government jobs increased 700, according to the survey of business establishments by the state.

According to a survey of households, the unemployment rate was unchanged from February to March 2015 at 4.2 percent. The number of people actively participating in the labor force increased 1,900 to 2,833,000.

Total employment increased 2,400 to 2,714,700 causing the number of unemployed to decrease 500. The national unemployment rate was also unchanged from February to March at 5.5 percent.

Over the year, the average workweek for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls decreased from 34.9 to 34.5 hours and average hourly earnings increased from $26.39 to $26.84.

The largest over the month private sector job gains were in financial activities. The largest over the month declines were in professional and business services.

Over the year, nonfarm payroll jobs increased by 67,700 with an increase of 62,800 in the private sector and an increase of 4,900 in government. The largest private sector job gains came from construction, education and health services, and leisure and hospitality. The information sector declined over the year.

Over the year, the unemployment rate has fallen 1.3 percentage points from 5.5 percent in March 2014. The number of Coloradans participating in the labor force increased 28,500, total employment increased 64,800 and the number of unemployed decreased 36,300. The national unemployment rate declined from 6.6 to 5.5 percent from March 2014 to March 2015.

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