Metro Job Market Pulse · General Market Conditions · September 2026
General Market Conditions Labor Market Report: Greeley, CO MSA — September 2026
Greeley holds near 4.3% as Colorado's job losses bypass Weld County
Greeley metro unemployment sat at 4.3% in the most recent official reading while Colorado shed 1,400 jobs statewide in August, with Weld County wages still trailing the state's $1,774 weekly average at $1,376 but holding steadier than several peer counties.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of September 2026.
Key indicators
- Greeley MSA unemployment rate: 4.3% — vs 4.0% Colorado, 4.1% U.S.
- Weld County avg weekly wage: $1,376 — vs $1,774 Colorado statewide average
- Colorado statewide job change: -1,400 jobs (Aug) — Third consecutive monthly decline in 2026
- Colorado labor force participation: 67.4% — Down from 68.1% a year earlier
Key takeaways
Greeley's labor market lags the state cycle, not just its level.
Colorado's August job losses were led by information, financial activities, and manufacturing — sectors with limited footprint in Weld County's blue-collar, public-sector-heavy base. That composition may explain why the metro's unemployment rate, while above state and national rates, has not shown the same month-to-month deterioration as Denver-anchored sectors.
Wage gap with the state is wide, and worth watching both ways.
Weld County's $1,376 average weekly wage sits roughly 22% below Colorado's statewide $1,774, a persistent gap tied to industry mix rather than a sudden shift. For commerce leaders, that gap is a cost-of-doing-business advantage; for policy economists, it is a reminder that statewide wage-growth headlines mask significant county-level variation.
Public-sector payrolls look like a stabilizing force, not a drag.
Weld County government employment grew to 986 workers by March 2026, and state projections show government among the sectors expected to add jobs in 2026. That contrasts with the national picture, where government shed 17,000 jobs in September and has cut 216,000 over the past year — a divergence worth flagging for anyone assuming federal-level public-sector softness applies locally.
Labor force participation, not job counts, is the number to track next.
Colorado's labor force participation rate slipped to 67.4% in August 2025 from 68.1% a year earlier, a decline state economists tie to slower population growth and reduced international migration. Weld County's historically strong labor force growth — roughly 22% over the past decade — makes it a useful bellwether for whether that statewide participation slide is reaching Northern Colorado.
Median advertised pay by role — Greeley, CO MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Sales Associate | $31,637 | $33,966 | $37,960 | Moderate decline | $33,325 |
| Retail Cashier | $29,771 | $33,048 | $34,683 | Stable | $31,200 |
| Warehouse/Fulfillment Associate | $35,415 | $41,600 | $43,680 | Stable | $38,000 |
| CDL Truck Driver | $60,320 | $79,291 | $85,541 | Stable | $78,000 |
| Delivery Driver | $33,550 | $35,893 | $37,440 | Significant decline | $34,344 |
| Construction Laborer | $38,450 | $43,680 | $45,760 | Stable | $40,560 |
| Electrician | $60,000 | $72,500 | $75,879 | Moderate increase | $71,404 |
| Manufacturing Production Worker/Assembler | $33,172 | $40,560 | $43,680 | Moderate decline | $39,520 |
| Customer Service Representative | $34,371 | $37,440 | $39,520 | Significant decline | $39,520 |
| Food Service Worker | $32,189 | $36,400 | $41,600 | Significant decline | $33,756 |
| Certified Nursing Assistant / Home Health Aide | $40,812 | $45,760 | $49,920 | Stable | $41,106 |
| Administrative Assistant/Office Clerk | $37,000 | $45,760 | $51,656 | Moderate increase | $43,680 |
| HVAC Technician | $65,181 | $78,790 | $83,200 | Moderate decline | $70,720 |
| Registered Nurse | $83,200 | $95,243 | $104,000 | Stable | $102,581 |
| Software Engineer | $96,355 | $120,044 | $139,654 | Moderate decline | $153,652 |
| Data Engineer * | $99,248 | $143,734 | $159,246 | Moderate increase | $139,500 |
| Accountant | $62,400 | $75,038 | $80,000 | Moderate increase | $72,182 |
| Financial Analyst | $75,320 | $94,457 | $97,283 | Moderate increase | $94,782 |
| HR Generalist/Manager | $67,492 | $81,500 | $94,440 | Significant increase | $75,000 |
| Marketing Specialist | $48,880 | $48,880 | $53,040 | Significant decline | $62,354 |
| Operations Manager * | $78,593 | $95,453 | $103,143 | Significant increase | $85,216 |
| Elementary/Secondary School Teacher | $42,640 | $60,895 | $67,340 | Stable | $56,731 |
| Account Manager | $56,758 | $79,200 | $89,500 | Stable | $92,749 |
| Warehouse Manager * | $51,506 | $52,225 | $53,015 | Significant decline | $75,000 |
| Business Analyst | $79,474 | $97,500 | $104,279 | Significant increase | $98,279 |
* State-level figure shown where metro postings were too few.
WageScape's median is calibrated to correct for spurious low-value postings (reported as the 60th percentile of raw advertised pay). Download: CSV · JSON
Industry snapshot
| Sector | Median advertised pay | Pay trend | Postings trend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Construction | $72,800 | Stable | Significant increase |
| Manufacturing | $67,497 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Retail Trade | $36,675 | Moderate decline | Significant increase |
| Transportation, Warehousing & Utilities | $59,280 | Stable | Significant increase |
| Information | $57,502 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Financial Activities | $55,000 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
| Professional & Business Services | $52,000 | Stable | Significant increase |
| Education & Health Services | $50,305 | Moderate decline | Significant increase |
| Leisure & Hospitality | $35,393 | Moderate decline | Significant increase |
| Government | $70,096 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
Local market conditions
Greeley metro unemployment registered 4.3% in the latest official reading, modestly above both the state's 4.0% and the national 4.1%, even as Colorado posted a third consecutive month of statewide job losses in August driven by declines in information, financial activities, and manufacturing. Weld County's economy remains anchored by manufacturing, transportation/warehousing, and healthcare alongside large public-sector employers including county government and the local school district, insulating the metro somewhat from the white-collar softness showing up in Denver-area financial and professional services data.
What it means
Statewide job losses are concentrated in sectors underrepresented locally, which is consistent with Greeley's labor market cooling more gradually than Colorado's urban corridor rather than mirroring it directly. Commerce leaders weighing expansion or facility investment should treat Weld County's sub-$1,400 average weekly wage, still well below the state's $1,774, as both a cost advantage and a signal of a less white-collar-dependent local economy than Denver or Boulder. Current conditions suggest monitoring whether Colorado's statewide out-migration and population slowdown begins constraining the manufacturing and logistics labor pool that underpins Weld County's job base.
Looking ahead
Worth watching: Colorado's third straight month of statewide job losses raises the question of whether Weld County's relatively insulated industry mix continues to hold through year-end, or whether softness in financial activities and manufacturing eventually reaches the metro's logistics and production employers.
Early indicator: Labor force participation has already declined nearly a full point statewide over the past year. Watch whether Weld County's labor force, which grew 22% over the past decade, shows the first signs of plateauing in upcoming quarterly releases.
Potential inflection point: National wage growth has slowed to 3.0% annually against 3.4% inflation, erasing two years of real wage gains. Whether Colorado's 2% inflation-adjusted wage growth in Weld County holds through the next BLS release will indicate whether local purchasing power is diverging from the national squeeze or following it with a lag.
Expected: BLS metro-level data for Greeley typically lags by one to two months; the next substantive unemployment and employment update covering early 2026 conditions should arrive within the briefing window and will be the first real test of whether the metro's relative stability is persisting into the new year.
Methodology
Advertised pay from active employer job postings, not survey data. WageScape's median is calibrated to correct for spurious low-value postings: distribution analysis shows roughly the lowest 10% of raw values are erroneous entries, so the reported median is the 60th percentile of raw advertised pay. WageScape observes 98% of U.S. job openings daily.
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