Advanced Search
Index: Economy / Subcategory: Business

Larimer County Employers

Date posted: 07/01/2009

Major Employers, in the context of this measure page, are those establishments in Larimer County that employ the largest number of people. Requests for employment numbers were made directly to each establishment. Responses ranged from an exact number or a refusal, to a range of numbers or a state-wide total. Hence, it must be noted that the process of determining who the major employers are is not an exact science, and the numbers provided should be taken as approximations, not exact counts.

Data for the remaining charts are from the United States Census Bureau's County Business Patterns (CBP), a series that provides state and local economic data by industry (NAICS). Some NAICS industries are excluded. CBP's employee count consists of those who are on the payroll in the pay period including March 12; therefore employment numbers by industry on this page may not match data presented on the Employment & Average Wages by Industry Compass page, which presents annual average data. Additionally, data are released annually; however, because it is a composite of several sources, the data are two years behind the current year.

What this chart shows: Major Employers by Employee Count, Larimer County, 2008

Major Employers by Employee Count, Larimer County, 2008

Data Source: Northern Colorado Economic Development Corporation

See data table

What these data tell us:

Seven of the ten largest employers in Larimer County are involved in education, health services, or local government. Colorado State University, the largest employer, had 6,948 regular faculty and staff, as well as 4,700 student workers (graduate teachers, researchers, and other student employees) who are not counted as regular employees.

As stated earlier, these numbers are approximations. Employee counts are fluid throughout the year for various reasons such as retirement, hiring freezes, whether or not school is in session, and the use of temporary and seasonal labor. Additionally, the definition of 'employee' has an impact on the numbers given by the employers. For example, in the data table below, Poudre Valley Health System (PVHS) shows a drop and gain of over 1,700 employees between 2002 and 2004. When the Northern Colorado Economic Development Corporation collected data in 2003, PVHS's 'full-time equivalent' employees were excluded. The inclusion of temporary student employees raised Colorado State University's employee count for 2003, as did seasonal hourly workers for the City of Fort Collins in the same period. Poudre School District was contacted early in June 2004, while school was still in session; hence their employee count included part-time aids and temporary hourly workers.

What this chart shows: Businesses Employing Fewer Than 10 Persons, United States, Colorado, Larimer County, 2002-2006

Businesses Employing Fewer Than 10 Persons, United States, Colorado, Larimer County, 2002-2006

Data Source: United States Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, Number of Establishments by Employment-Size Class

See data table

What these data tell us:

The national percentage of businesses employing fewer than ten persons was a consistent 73% during the five years between 2002 and 2006. Colorado and Larimer County percentages were 2-3 points higher than the national percentage during the same period.

What this chart shows: Employers by Size (Number of Employees), Larimer County, 2006

Employers by Size (Number of Employees), Larimer County, 2006

Data Source: United States Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, Number of Establishments by Employment-Size Class

See data table

What these data tell us:

Businesses with up to four employees accounted for 56% of all establishments in Larimer County in 2006. Ninety-eight percent (98%) of Larimer County business establishments had fewer than 100 employees, which mirrored Colorado (98%) and the nation (98%) during the same period.

What this table shows: Establishment & Employee Count by Industry (NAICS), Larimer County, 2006

Industry Code Description

Number of Employees

Number of Establishments

Forestry, fishing, hunting, and agriculture support

55

18

Mining

223

30

Utilities

194

11

Construction

9,251

1,243

Manufacturing

11,509

410

Wholesale trade

6,076

370

Retail trade

16,891

1,275

Transportation & Warehousing

2,358

177

Information

2,734

156

Finance & Insurance

3,601

578

Real Estate, Rental & Leasing

2,085

542

Professional, Scientific & Technical Services

10,388

1,270

Management of Companies & Enterprises

954

34

Admin, Support, Waste Mgt, Remediation Services

6,915

537

Educational Services

1,663

104

Health Care and Social Assistance

13,112

868

Arts, Entertainment & Recreation

1,673

152

Accommodation & Food Services

13,945

784

Other Services (except Public Administration)

4,623

775

Unclassified establishments

32

15

Data Source: United States Census Bureau, County Business Patterns

What these data tell us:

In 2006, Larimer County's Retail sector employed the most people (16,891). The Accommodations & Food Services sector had the second highest employment numbers at 13,945 with Health Care & Social Assistance a close third at 13,112. The Manufacturing sector ranked second in the number of people employed until 2002, when the number of workers fell below 12,000 for the first time. In 2006, that sector ranked fourth with 11,509, employees.

The Retail sector also had the largest number of establishments (1,275) in the County in 2006. The Professional, Scientific & Technical Services sector had the second highest number of establishments in the County (1,270). Construction had the third highest number of establishments at 1,243.

The predominance of the Retail sector in the number of establishments and the number of employees is reflected in statewide numbers as well, with 19,309 Colorado retail businesses employing 256,958 people in 2006. Retail business accounted for 15.6% of the employees and 13.6% of all establishments in Larimer County, compared to 12.7% of employees and 12.5% establishments statewide.

Please note that the County Business Pattern's employee count consists of those who are on the payroll in the pay period including March 12; therefore employment numbers by industry on this page may not match data presented on the Employment and Average Wages by Industry Compass page, which presents annual average data.

Additional Information:

On Compass-

Outside Compass-

Additional Definitions:

Data Tables:

Major Employers by Employee Count, Larimer County, 2002-2008

Employers in Larimer County

Number of Employees

2002

2003

2004

2006*

2007

2008

LSI Logic

283

341

290

341

n/a

341

First National Bank

356

367

355

367

487

367

US Postal Service

n/a

412

438

412

412

412

Waterpik Technologies

550

585

460

585

n/a

585

Front Range Community College

595

481

480

481

481

481

Celestica

500

650

650

n/a

n/a

n/a

Center Partners

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

700

700

City of Loveland

n/a

890

678

890

643

890

Anheuser-Busch

740

760

743

760

760

760

Hach Chemical Company

n/a

550

793

550

900

550

Advanced Energy

775

825

800

825

594

825

Woodward Governor

575

650

800

650

1,200

650

Wal-Mart Super Center

600

909

900

909

n/a

909

McKee Medical Center

n/a

950

950

950

950

950

Larimer County

1,700

1,467

1,394

1,467

1,500

1,467

City of Fort Collins

1,400

1,864

1,400

1,864

1,884

1.864

Thompson School District

n/a

1,888

2,000

1,888

1,890

1,888

Agilent Technologies

1,850

2,454

2,800

2,800

2,800

2,800

Poudre Valley Health System

2,610

861

2,800

3,020

3,488

3.020

Hewlett-Packard

3,000

3,182

3,000

3,182

3,250

3,182

Poudre R-1 School District

3,014

3,014

3,732

3,014

3,325

3,014

Colorado State University

6,950

7,945

6,948

6,948

7,945

6,948

n/a - not available

*2005 data are not available

See chart

Businesses Employing Fewer Than 10 Persons, United States, Colorado, Larimer County, 2000 - 2006

 

United States

Colorado

Larimer County

Number

% of Total

Number

% of Total

Number

% of Total

2000

5,173,211

73.1708

103,982

75.6079

6,084

75.8887

2001

5,185,350

73.0814

104,800

75.2738

6,191

75.8701

2002

5,285,715

73.4048

107,917

75.8659

6,517

76.6705

2003

5,320,242

73.3346

109,881

76.3332

6,680

77.0295

2004

5,425,755

73.4429

113,050

76.7408

6,832

76.8677

2005

5,530,562

73.7438

116,354

77.0199

7,019

76.8111

2006

5,569,370

73.2700

118,388

76.6087

7,153

76.5109

See chart

Number of Establishments by Size (Under 100 Employees) by Industry (NAICS), Larimer County, 2006

Industry Code Description

Number of Employees

1-4

5-9

10-19

20-49

50-99

Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting

14

2

2

0

0

Mining

19

3

5

2

1

Utilities

6

2

1

0

2

Construction

856

174

116

69

20

Manufacturing

191

76

55

49

19

Wholesale Trade

214

65

47

28

8

Retail Trade

544

373

193

99

37

Transportation & Warehousing

122

17

23

10

2

Information

77

30

22

13

9

Finance & Insurance

395

101

54

19

4

Real Estate, Rental & Leasing

405

74

48

15

0

Professional, Scientific & Technical Services

933

155

102

55

18

Management of Companies & Enterprises

19

3

2

5

2

Admin, Support, Waste Mgt, Remediation Services

319

94

60

32

15

Educational Services

55

17

16

6

6

Health Care and Social Assistance

470

176

113

68

24

Arts, Entertainment & Recreation

91

31

12

5

9

Accommodation & Food Services

243

133

162

197

34

Other Services (except Public Administration)

474

165

96

32

7

Unclassified establishments

12

3

0

0

0

See chart

Number of Establishments by Size (100+ Employees) by Industry (NAICS), Larimer County, 2006

Industry Code Description

Number of Employees

100-249

250-499

500-999

1000+

Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting

0

0

0

0

Mining

0

0

0

0

Utilities

0

0

0

0

Construction

5

3

0

0

Manufacturing

11

3

6

0

Wholesale Trade

6

1

0

1

Retail Trade

27

1

1

0

Transportation & Warehousing

1

1

1

0

Information

4

1

0

0

Finance & Insurance

5

0

0

0

Real Estate, Rental & Leasing

0

0

0

0

Professional, Scientific & Technical Services

4

0

2

1

Management of Companies & Enterprises

3

0

0

0

Admin, Support, Waste Mgt, Remediation Services

16

1

0

0

Educational Services

3

1

0

0

Health Care and Social Assistance

15

0

1

1

Arts, Entertainment & Recreation

4

0

0

0

Accommodation & Rood Services

15

0

0

0

Other Services (except Public Administration)

1

0

0

0

Unclassified establishments

0

0

0

0

See chart

Businesses by Number of Employees, 2006,

United States, Colorado & Larimer County

 

Percent Under 10 Employees

Percent Under 100 Employees

Percent 100+ Employees

Larimer

77%

98%

2%

Colorado

77%

98%

2%

United States

73%

98%

2%

See chart