February 2011
Metro Denver year-over-year labor market gains suggest rebuilding has begun
The region's labor market has a long recovery ahead, but year-over-year gains suggest the rebuilding has begun, according to data compiled by the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation (Metro Denver EDC) in its Monthly Economic Summary for February 2011.
On a national level, most economic indicators showed much-anticipated signs of improvement by the end of 2010. Preliminary data show the U.S. GDP increased at a real rate of 3.2 percent in the fourth quarter as exports increased and household spending rose at the fastest pace reported since early 2006. Consumer confidence readings ended 2010 at higher levels than they reached in late 2009, although households are still watching for signs of increased job prospects and higher income. Progress toward those goals can seem inconsequential following such a significant downturn, but 2010 still marked a critical turning point for employment.
Metro Denver employers added a net total of 400 jobs between November and December. The small gain reflected seasonal data fluctuations, as layoffs in natural resources and construction that typically occur at this time of year offset seasonal hiring in wholesale and retail trade. The region began 2010 with an employment base dramatically smaller than it had been in previous years and incurred slight job gains during the year.
"Metro Denver's average employment for all of 2010 was 1.4 percent below the 2009 average, but December was the second-consecutive month in which employment rose above last year's level," stated Patty Silverstein, chief economist for the Metro Denver EDC.
The same was true of Colorado, as the state's average employment for all of 2010 was 1.8 percent below the average for 2009. Because employment in other states recovered more in 2010, the national average employment total for the year was just 0.5 percent below the 2009 average.
Small gains in job growth are promising, as are recent company announcements-particularly in aerospace and energy-and state technology rankings place Colorado among the best in high-paying job generation.
Colorado ranked third in the Milken Institute's 2010 State Technology and Science Index, which measures how well states capture their technology assets and use them to generate high-paying jobs. Researchers ranked states using 79 indicators in five broad categories: research and development, human capital capacity, science and technology workforce, technology concentration, and risk capital and entrepreneurship. Colorado ranked behind Massachusetts and Maryland and received its highest individual scores in technology concentration (second) and human capital (third).
Boulder-based Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. will add roughly 250 new positions to support work on several major contracts. Spokespeople say increased hiring over the next several months will help the company staff the projects, which include the WorldView III imaging satellite and NASA's meteorological Joint Polar Satellite System-1.
Spokespeople for Oklahoma City-based Chesapeake Energy Corp. say the company will accelerate oil shale drilling activity on private property it leased in the Niobrara Formation, which includes parts of northern Colorado and southern Wyoming. The business plans to sell part of its interest in the formation to Chinese oil company CNOOC Ltd., and funds from the sale will help Chesapeake quickly boost its rig count. The company's estimates show increased drilling activity could support roughly 1,600 new jobs on oil rigs and more than 2,000 jobs in restaurants, retail stores, and other supporting businesses in the local economy. The distribution of jobs between Colorado and Wyoming will depend on the location of the new rigs.
Overall, 12 indicators moved in a positive monthly direction in this report, compared to 10 indicators in the previous report. Fourteen indicators moved in a positive annual direction, compared to fifteen indicators in the previous report.