Janitorial wages — Colorado Springs, CO metropolitan area
Colorado Springs has the highest concentration of military installations and aerospace defense employers of any top-100 US metro by percentage of workforce. Fort Carson, Peterson SFB, Schriever SFB, Cheyenne Mountain, NORAD, and the Air Force Academy together generate substantial federal cleaning contract volume at SCA rates that run $4–$6/hr above Colorado Springs’ commercial median. Colorado’s indexed minimum wage and a tight labor market driven by military and defense hiring make this a more expensive market than its Mountain West peer metrics suggest. BSCs without federal contracting capability are operating in a subset of the market.
BLS Wage Data: What Janitors Earn in Colorado Springs
Per BLS OEWS Metropolitan Area tables (May 2024), the Colorado Springs MSA places janitorial mean hourly wages (SOC 37-2011) in the $14.50–$17/hr range. The national mean of $17.43/hr sits near the top of Colorado Springs’ range. The metro employs approximately 7,000–10,000 janitors across federal installations, healthcare (UCHealth Memorial, Penrose-St. Francis), defense contractors, and commercial real estate.
| Percentile | Est. Hourly Wage | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 10th | $13.00–$14.50 | State minimum floor; retail and light commercial |
| 25th | $14.00–$15.50 | Suburban commercial and hospitality |
| 50th (median) | $14.50–$17.00 | Full-time commercial office and healthcare-adjacent |
| 75th | $18.00–$21.00 | Hospital EVS, defense campus, government |
| 90th | $22.00–$26.00 | SCA federal installation work, senior hospital |
Wage Drivers: What Shapes Colorado Springs Labor Costs
BEA Regional Price Parities place Colorado Springs near 97–101 nationally, per BEA Regional Price Parities. Military and aerospace employment sets a high reservation wage that pulls entry-level labor away from commercial cleaning. Healthcare (UCHealth, Penrose-St. Francis) and higher education (UCCS, Colorado College) anchor above-median demand. Colorado unemployment tracked 3.5–4.2% through 2024 per BLS LAUS.
Loaded Labor Cost: What Employers Actually Pay
Burden breakdown at $15.50/hr: FICA 7.65% ($1.19) + CO SUTA ~2% ($0.31) + workers’ comp $1.50–$2.20/$100 per Colorado CDLE, Workers’ Compensation + GL ($0.35/hr) + health ($2.00–$3.25/hr) + CO FAMLI paid leave ($0.20/hr) + PTO ($0.41/hr). $15.50 × 1.31 = $20.31 loaded; supervision adds $0.40–$0.58 = $20.71–$20.89 all-in. Colorado FAMLI adds a new employer cost that pre-2024 bids did not capture. Use the Opora bid generator to build your Springs cost model.
State Minimum Wage and Local Premiums
Colorado’s minimum wage reached $14.42/hr in 2024, indexed to CPI annually, per Colorado CDLE, Minimum Wage. Denver’s $18.81/hr city ordinance does not apply to Colorado Springs. Tipped exemptions do not apply to cleaning workers.
Union Landscape and Collective Bargaining
Colorado is not a Right-to-Work state, but commercial BSC janitorial work in Colorado Springs is predominantly non-union. Military installation cleaning at Fort Carson and Peterson SFB is SCA-governed, not collectively bargained. Hospital EVS at UCHealth and Penrose-St. Francis may involve SEIU Healthcare organizing. See SEIU.org for current Colorado context.
Workers’ Compensation Rates for NAICS 561720
Colorado workers’ comp for NAICS 561720 runs approximately $1.50–$2.20 per $100 payroll in the voluntary market. Coverage is mandatory for all employers with one or more employees. Details at Colorado CDLE, Workers’ Compensation.
Prevailing Wage and Service Contract Act Implications
Fort Carson, Peterson SFB, Schriever SFB, and the Air Force Academy all require Service Contract Act compliance on cleaning contracts. SCA rates are at SAM.gov Wage Determinations; Colorado Springs SCA janitor rates typically run $17–$21/hr. Colorado has a state prevailing wage law for public works. See DOL Service Contract Act.
Total Compensation: Benefits, Turnover, and Hiring Cost
Per BLS Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, benefits represent 28–32% of total compensation. Colorado’s FAMLI paid leave program launched in 2024, adding employer premium obligations above the federal baseline. Per ISSA benchmarks, janitorial turnover runs 75–200% annually. Replacing one Springs janitor costs roughly $1,600–$3,200 per event.
Colorado Springs Has More Federal Contracts per Capita Than Almost Any US Metro
The density of military and defense installations in El Paso County – Fort Carson, five separate Space Force/Air Force installations, NORAD – means that a Colorado Springs BSC with federal contracting capability can build a portfolio that is dominated by SCA-rate accounts paying $4–$6/hr above commercial. The compliance investment is substantial: background checks, base access protocols, certified payrolls, contracting officer relationships, and annual SCA rate update administration. But the risk profile of federal contracts (multi-year base periods, stable funding, defined scope) is also fundamentally different from commercial accounts that cancel with 30 days notice. The market rewards BSCs who make that investment.
Primary Sources
- BLS OEWS Metropolitan Area Estimates (May 2024)
- Colorado CDLE, Minimum Wage
- Colorado CDLE, Workers’ Compensation
- SAM.gov, SCA Wage Determinations
- US DOL, Service Contract Act
- BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics
- BEA Regional Price Parities
See the bid template guide for the Colorado Springs MSA. Build your cost model with the Opora bid generator. For healthcare facility cleaning, see the healthcare cleaning hub. Stress-test SCA vs. commercial margin with the bid stress test.
By the Opora Editorial Team · Last updated: 2026