The Job Growth indicator assesses the health of the local economies along the Yampa River based on the “change in five year average” for employment, wages, and establishments. Data for Routt County, Moffat County, and the state of Colorado is obtained from the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, Labor Market Information (LMI) Gateway.

This indicator does not directly capture the Yampa River’s influence on job growth within the two counties. Rather, by tracking job growth compared to the state, trends over time become visible. River-related recreation and visitation can potentially provide for river-related job growth or be a quality of life appeal for workers in Moffat and Routt counties. Due to the planned shutdown of all three units of Craig Station in Moffat County by 2030, and of Hayden
Station Unit 2 in Routt County by 2036, there is a concern that Moffat County specifically will have issues creating high- to middle-income jobs after those jobs are no longer available through the power and mining sectors.