Denver's independent PEO broker:
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Why Denver businesses use an independent PEO broker

Denver has emerged as one of America's premier tech hubs, attracting companies from both coasts with a strong educated workforce.

Our process for Denver businesses

Denver is the business center of the Mountain West and, over the last decade, one of the more compliance-intensive states in the country for employers. Colorado added a state paid family and medical leave program (FAMLI), a paid sick leave law, pay-range disclosure on every job posting, and a series of wage-and-hour rules that a payroll service does not administer. Denver employers use a PEO for the same reasons employers everywhere do, but the compliance load is a bigger part of the decision here than in Texas or Florida.

The employer base is diverse. Technology and software companies in LoDo, RiNo and the Tech Center; aerospace and defense contractors along the Front Range from Boulder to Colorado Springs; healthcare practices around UCHealth, HealthONE and the Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora; construction subcontractors building out the metro; energy and professional services firms downtown; and an outdoor industry and hospitality base that serves both the city and the mountains.

Colorado's rules apply to remote employees who live in the state, so companies headquartered elsewhere with Denver staff carry them too. The Denver PEO decision is about FAMLI and paid sick leave administration, benefits pricing in a market where the technology employers set expectations, and workers comp for construction, aerospace manufacturing and outdoor work.

City and County of Denver (with Arapahoe, Jefferson, Adams and Douglas) · Denver-Aurora-Lakewood metro (the Front Range) · roughly 3 million residents

Workers comp in Denver

Colorado requires workers compensation coverage from the first employee. Denver comparisons are decided on class-code pricing for the construction trades (5645, 5551, 5213), precision manufacturing and aerospace parts, trucking and warehousing (7219, 8292), restaurants (9082) and outdoor and ski-related work; office, technology and clinical staff (8810, 8832) are cheap everywhere. Colorado is a competitive private market with Pinnacol Assurance as the largest carrier, so a small employer's standalone policy may already be reasonable, and the PEO case is strongest for employers with an elevated mod, a deposit requirement or a mix of office and field staff being rated at the field code. We quote every PEO by class code on the actual payroll split and confirm pay-as-you-go premium with no deposit.

Health benefits in Denver

Denver is a competitive medical market with strong networks from UCHealth, HealthONE and Kaiser, and Kaiser's HMO presence gives Colorado employers a lower-cost option most states do not have. Small-group renewals have still run ahead of the national average, and technology and aerospace recruits expect big-company plans. PEO master plans price across thousands of employees and let an employer pair a lower-cost option with a richer PPO; some PEOs include Kaiser in Colorado and some do not, which is worth checking early. We confirm each PEO's Colorado plan lineup, participation thresholds and out-of-state network coverage for remote staff before quoting.

Colorado employment rules that apply in Denver

• Workers compensation is mandatory in Colorado with one or more employees.
• Colorado FAMLI: employer and employee premium contributions with paid family and medical leave benefits administered by the state; the PEO handles withholding, remittance and claim coordination.
• Healthy Families and Workplaces Act: paid sick leave accrual (one hour per 30 worked, up to 48 hours a year) for every employer, plus public health emergency leave.
• Equal Pay for Equal Work Act: pay range and benefits summary on every job posting and notice of promotional opportunities.
• Colorado state income tax is a flat rate; Denver, Aurora, Glendale, Greenwood Village and Sheridan levy occupational privilege taxes on employees and employers working in those cities.
• Colorado wage rules include daily overtime after 12 hours, required rest and meal periods, and a state minimum wage above the federal rate, with Denver's local minimum wage higher still.

What to check before you sign

1. Ask each PEO to show how it administers FAMLI premiums and claims and Healthy Families paid sick leave accrual in payroll; ask to see it, not hear about it.
2. Confirm the medical plan lineup for Colorado, including whether Kaiser is offered, and check out-of-state networks for remote staff.
3. Get workers comp quoted by class code on your actual payroll split, and compare it against your current Pinnacol or carrier policy at the same mod.
4. Check the PEO's state footprint against every state where you have or expect an employee, and confirm it applies Denver's occupational privilege tax by work location.
5. Ask for compliant Colorado job-posting templates and how pay-range disclosure is handled.
6. Compare the administrative fee as a flat per-employee-per-month figure; percentage-of-payroll pricing penalizes technology and engineering salaries.