The last time Centennial Container saw the cost of its unemployment insurance premiums increase, owner Jim Noon didn’t think too much about the additional $40 a year per employee. “I mean, it adds up, but it’s not close-the-business material,” said Noon, who called a January 2020 state law to increase the base wage employers must […]
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What’s Working: Colorado sees more jobs return as some federal coronavirus aid programs are set to end
As spring’s milder weather and vaccine proliferation boosts businesses’ outlook on the economic recovery, Colorado’s job market has already seen improvement in the winter months, according to the latest state employment data. The state dropped 1,900 people from unemployment in February, though it wasn’t enough to make a dent in the state’s unemployment rate. February’s […]
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What’s Working: Colorado’s job board has 82,000 openings. But are they real?
On the same day a group of frustrated and unemployed Coloradans organized a message-writing campaign to the media and politicians about unpaid jobless benefits, a group of business leaders voiced their frustrations about a related topic: jobs. “Quality of life actually starts with having a job,” Diane Schwenke, president and CEO of the Grand Junction […]
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Colorado’s unemployment system kept inadequate records on who was overpaid or not paid at all, auditor says
Colorado’s Office of the State Auditor on Tuesday criticized the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment for its lack of proper financial reporting and oversight of billions of dollars in payments to unemployed Coloradans. In an unusual move, the report added a disclaimer to its annual audit of state government finances that honed in on […]
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Colorado’s pandemic job losses not as bad as previously announced
Colorado’s job losses weren’t as terrible as previously thought. With newer data, the state Department of Labor and Employment on Monday said it revised December’s unemployment rate to 6.9%, which sounds a lot better than the 8.4% announced earlier. Ryan Gedney, the labor department’s senior economist, said the change is due to the U.S. Bureau […]
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What’s Working: A “no gap” Colorado unemployment experience and why Charter increased its minimum wage to $18
This weekend was set to be full of mayhem with unemployment benefits ending for Coloradans on Saturday and a new wait expected as the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment reprogrammed its system to add in the next round of federal benefits. But there was a lot of early behind-the-scenes action by the labor department […]
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Colorado labor department will take unemployment system offline to prepare for new federal jobless benefits
President Joe Biden’s signature on the American Rescue Plan Act on Thursday spurred the state’s Department of Labor and Employment into action so out-of-work Coloradans see no delay in receiving federal jobless benefits. In anticipation of the bill’s passage, the state labor department planned to take the unemployment system offline Friday night to prepare it […]
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Colorado unemployment office expects “no gap” in payments after Congress passes new relief plan
Within hours of Congress passing the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act on Wednesday, the state labor department shared some unexpected news with Coloradans on unemployment: “We anticipate no gap in benefits for most claimants.” The boldface words on its site and in an email sent to people making weekly claims for unemployment were the […]
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What’s Working: Forgivable loans for the unemployed, the end of pandemic jobless benefits is next week
If you are self-employed and applied for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance last year, please take note: A major change in the federal Paycheck Protection Program may make more sense than sticking with unemployment. The change allows sole proprietors to apply for a loan based on gross income, rather than net income. It went into effect Friday. […]
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International fraud rings with “local nexus” are attacking Colorado’s unemployment system, investigators suspect
The incessant attacks on Colorado’s unemployment system likely by local and international fraudsters hasn’t slowed and state labor officials have had it. The state Department of Labor and Employment joined forces with the Attorney General’s Office on Thursday to fight the fraudulent claims that overwhelmed the state last year, caused months-long delays for many on […]