RBC I The unseasonably adjusted unemployment rate inched up half a percent during November in Rio Blanco County. The increase was the first in the past 12 months, following a low of 2.5 percent in October.
According to the Colorado Department of Labor and Unemployment, Rio Blanco suffered a loss of 118 jobs between October and November, which may be due to the seasonal jobs in the area that are discontinued with the advent of winter conditions.
The department reported that in November, the county had an available workforce of 4,526 and that there were 4,392 employed and 134 on the unemployment list, setting up the 3 percent jobless rate. Those figures compare to 4,626 available workers in October while 4,510 were working and 116 were unemployed, for a rate of 2.5 percent.
The November 2014 rate was still much lower than the jobless rate reported by the DLU in November 2013, when there were 4,476 available workers in Rio Blanco County and 4,286 were working and 190 were on the unemployment list, for a percentage of 4.2 percent.
Meanwhile, November’s overall Colorado unemployment rate jumped a slight amount over October but remained 2.1 percent lower than in November of 2013.
In November, state figures indicate there were 2,808,470 persons in the available state workforce with 2,695,812 working and 112,658 unemployed for an overall rate of 4 percent. Statewide in October, the available workforce numbered 2,817,863 with 2,712,893 working and 104,970 unemployed for a 3.7 percent unemployment rate.
One year ago in November, the unemployment rate throughout Colorado was 6.1 percent with 2,752,847 in the available workforce. Of that number, 2,584,610 held jobs and 168,237 listed as unemployed.
Looking at all of Colorado’s counties, 12 had unemployment rates lower than Rio Blanco.
The 12 counties (county seats in parenthesis) with unemployment rates lower than Rio Blanco were: Cheyenne (Cheyenne Wells) and Jackson (Walden) 1.5 percent; Baca (Springfield) 1.7 percent; Yuma (Wray) 1.8 percent; Kiowa (Eads) 1.9 percent; Phillips (Holyoke) 2.0 percent; Sedgwick (Julesburg) 2.1 percent; Washington (Akron) 2.2 percent; Kit Carson (Burlington) 2.3 percent; Hinsdale (Lake City) 2.4 percent; Dolores (Dove Creek) 2.5 percent; and Lincoln (Hugo) 2.7 percent.
The nine counties (county seats in parenthesis) with the highest unemployment rates in Colorado in November were: Costilla (San Luis) 7.4 percent; San Miguel (Telluride) 7.1 percent; Pitkin (Aspen) 6.3 percent; Huerfano (Walsenburg) 6.1 percent; San Juan (Silverton) and Pueblo, (Pueblo) 5.6 percent; Fremont (Canon City) 5.5 percent; Otero (LaJunta) 5.3 percent; and Rio Grande (Del Norte) 5.2 percent.
