People not in the labor force by desire and availability for work, age, and sex : U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

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HOUSEHOLD DATA
ANNUAL AVERAGES
35. People not in the labor force by desire and availability for work, age, and sex [In thousands]
Category	Total		Age						Sex
	2024	2025	16 to 24 years		25 to 54 years		55 years and over		Men		Women
	2024	2025	2024	2025	2024	2025	2024	2025	2024	2025	2024	2025
Total not in the labor force	100,465	102,846	17,195	17,661	21,120	21,547	62,151	63,637	41,965	42,964	58,500	59,881
Do not want a job now(1)	94,875	96,828	15,492	15,743	18,824	19,112	60,559	61,973	39,296	40,126	55,579	56,702
Want a job(1)	5,590	6,018	1,703	1,919	2,296	2,435	1,592	1,664	2,669	2,838	2,921	3,180
Did not search for work in previous year	3,375	3,591	980	1,067	1,248	1,325	1,147	1,200	1,559	1,631	1,816	1,961
Searched for work in previous year, but not in past 4 weeks(2)	2,216	2,427	722	852	1,048	1,111	445	464	1,111	1,208	1,105	1,219
Not available to work now	658	711	255	314	313	308	90	89	282	304	375	406
Marginally attached (available to work now)(3)	1,558	1,716	468	538	735	803	355	375	828	903	729	813
Discouraged over job prospects(4)	408	509	103	143	204	247	101	120	243	314	165	195
Reasons other than discouragement	1,150	1,207	364	395	531	556	254	256	586	589	564	618
Family responsibilities	165	181	23	27	99	110	42	44	56	61	109	119
In school or training	173	195	131	159	39	34	3	3	94	93	79	103
Ill health or disability	142	151	18	16	59	77	64	58	71	74	71	77
Other(5)	669	680	191	194	334	335	144	151	364	362	305	318
Footnotes (1) Includes some people who are not asked if they want a job. (2) People who had a job in the prior 12 months must have searched since the end of that job. (3) People "marginally attached to the labor force" are those who want a job, have searched for work during the prior 12 months, and were available to take a job during the reference week, but had not looked for work in the past 4 weeks. (4) Discouraged workers are people marginally attached to the labor force who did not actively look for work in the prior 4 weeks for reasons such as thinks no work available, could not find work, lacks schooling or training, employer thinks too young or old, and other types of discrimination. (5) Includes those who did not actively look for work in the prior 4 weeks for such reasons as child-care and transportation problems, as well as a small number for which reason for nonparticipation was not ascertained.
NOTE: Updated population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data. Annual estimates for 2025 are 11-month averages that exclude October. (Data for October 2025 were not collected due to the federal government shutdown.) As a result, 2025 annual estimates are not strictly comparable with annual averages for other years.

Last Modified Date: February 20, 2026