Colorado’s unemployment rate fell in August for a second consecutive month to 6.7% from 7.4% in July as nearly 26,000 more people returned to work or found new jobs, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment reported Friday.

First-time Colorado unemployment claims fall to six-month low

The August rate is the lowest since March, just before a statewide stay-at-home order shuttered many businesses and threw hundreds of thousands of Coloradans out of work. The state’s jobless rate peaked at 12.2% in April with nearly 375,000 people out of work, but the number of unemployed since then has declined by nearly 45% to 206,074. The gains came despite 2,500 people returning to the job market last month.

Denver job market well below pre-pandemic levels, survey shows

Unemployment rates fell in all seven Colorado metro areas, with Colorado Springs declining to 6.2% in August from 6.9% in July and Denver decreasing to 7% from 7.9% during the same period. Fort Collins had the lowest jobless rate among the seven metro areas at 5.6% and Pueblo had the highest at 7.3%. Gilpin County, which includes Black Hawk and Central City, had the state’s highest unemployment rate at 10.7%.

Colorado Springs jobless rate drops in August

Colorado added nearly 37,000 payroll jobs between July and August, with nearly half in the sectors that include hotels, restaurants, private schools and colleges, and health care. However, the state’s economy is still down nearly 150,000 jobs from August 2019 — a 5.3% decline. The payroll numbers come from a survey of employers, while the unemployment rate comes from a separate survey of households.

This is a developing story; return to gazette.com for updates.