Traffic technicians spend most of their time conducting field studies under the direction of a traffic engineer. They conduct studies to determine traffic volume, speed, the effectiveness of traffic signals, the adequacy of traffic lights, and any other factors that might influence traffic conditions.

Most employers in Colorado prefer applicants for traffic technician jobs to have at least bachelor's degree and some short-term on-the-job training, but not all employers enforce these requirements, according to the Colorado Department of Labor & Employment.

As positions for traffic technicians are relatively new, there are few workers throughout Colorado, but available positions will steadily grow during the near future. Employment is expected to increase from 86 workers during 2009 to 97 workers by 2019, accounting for 11 additional jobs and an average annual growth rate of 1.2 percent.

During 2009, the average wage for traffic technicians in Colorado was $23.70 per hour or $49,286 per year, while the average entry-level wage was $18.13 per hour or $37,711 per year and the average experienced-level wage was $26.26 per hour or $54,628 per year.

Some related occupations include: cost estimators; mathematicians; mathematical technicians; civil drafters; fabric and apparel patternmakers; medical appliance technicians; transportation vehicle, equipment and systems inspectors, except aviation; and freight and cargo inspectors.

Computer technology company Sun Microsystems Inc. recently announced that it will cut hundreds of jobs in January 2010 at the company's Colorado facility as part of a national round of layoffs that will result in the loss of thousands of jobs.

The company, which is based in Santa Clara, Calif., submitted an advance notice of mass layoffs to state labor officials under the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act. According to an article by the San Francisco Business Times, mass layoffs are considered those in which 50 or more workers are let go within a 30-day period.

Sun Microsystems Inc. plans to cut 128 jobs at the company's Broomfield, Colo., campus, second only to the company's facility in Menlo Park, Calif., where 200 workers will be laid off. Overall, the company will layoff about 3,000 employees, or about 10 percent of its workforce.

Company officials said the job cuts are in response to a dwindling customer base. In addition, Oracle Corp.'s $7.4 billion purchase of Sun Microsystems Inc. is being held up by European regulators because of antitrust concerns in the business database market, which experts say is causing the company $100 million per month.

The lost jobs will only add to Colorado's declining economy. Although the state has managed to add jobs and see a slight decrease in the unemployment rate as of late, Colorado has still lost a considerable amount of workers since last year.

During October, Colorado saw its unemployment rate decrease from 7 percent to 6.9 percent, following a decrease from 7.3 percent during September. The state's current rate is lower than the national unemployment rate of 10.2 percent.

The state had a total non-farm employment of 2,241,100 workers during October, according to the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is up from 2,240,100 workers during September, but a 4.3 percent decrease from last year.