New numbers paint a grim picture for unemployment in Grand County and the state as a whole.<\/p>\n
According to the Colorado Department of Labor and Unemployment, Grand County joblessness spiked to 19% in April, or nearly one in five workers. This is equal to 1,759 unemployed workers of the roughly 9,300 person workforce.<\/p>\n
The number is jarring for a county that, until March, hadn\u2019t seen a monthly unemployment rate hit 4% since May 2015. It\u2019s the worst joblessness Grand County has seen in at least 30 years of data, not seasonally adjusted.<\/p>\n
April\u2019s unemployment is almost double the worst month following the 2008 recession, which was 11.1% in May 2010. Since 1990, the highest joblessness rate before last month for the county was 11.4% in May 1992.<\/p>\n
Pitkin, Summit and Eagle counties had even higher rates for April at 23.1%, 21.1% and 20.5% unemployed respectively.<\/p>\n
The state\u2019s joblessness rate for April was 11.3% and the country as a whole reached 14.7%. The biggest decrease in jobs across the state from March to April was in leisure and hospitality.<\/p>\n
According to the state, Grand County has 179 job openings advertised online. WorkInGrand.com advertises 83 job postings.<\/p>\n
Food and retail remain the top growing occupations for the county, but is unclear how current regulations due to the COVID-19 pandemic might affect these opportunities.<\/p>\n