Technical information: (202) 691-6378 USDL 09-1021
http://www.bls.gov/cps/
For release: 10:00 A.M. (EDT)
Media contact: (202) 691-5902 Thursday, August 27, 2009
EMPLOYMENT AND UNEMPLOYMENT AMONG YOUTH--SUMMER 2009
From April to July 2009, the number of employed youth 16 to 24 years old
increased by 1.6 million to 19.3 million, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of
the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. This year, however, the pro-
portion of young people who were employed in July was 51.4 percent, the
lowest July rate on record for the series, which began in 1948. (July is
the traditional summertime peak for youth employment.) Unemployment among
youth increased by 1.1 million between April and July 2009, about the same
as in the summer of 2008. (Because this analysis focuses on the seasonal
changes in youth employment and unemployment that occur every spring and
summer, the data are not seasonally adjusted.)
Labor Force
The youth labor force--16- to 24-year-olds working or actively looking
for work--grows sharply between April and July each year. During these
months, large numbers of high school and college students take or search
for summer jobs, and many graduates enter the labor market to look for or
begin permanent employment. This summer, the youth labor force grew by
2.6 million to a total of 23.7 million in July. (See table 1.)
The labor force participation rate for youth--the proportion of their
population working or looking for work--was 63.0 percent in July 2009,
down by 2.1 percentage points from July 2008 and 14.5 percentage points
below its peak for that month in 1989 (77.5 percent). The youth partici-
pation rate was the lowest July rate since 1955 (62.8 percent).
The July 2009 labor force participation rate for 16- to 24-year-old
men, at 64.9 percent, was down by 3.2 percentage points from a year
earlier, and the rate for women, at 61.1 percent, was little changed over
the year. For several decades prior to 1989, young men's July labor
force participation rate showed no clear trend, ranging from 81 to 86
percent. Since July 1989, however, their participation rate has trended
down by about 18 percentage points. Young women's July labor force par-
ticipation rate peaked in 1989 after a long-term upward trend; their
rate has trended down by about 11 percentage points since then.
The July 2009 participation rates for whites fell by 2.1 percentage
points to 66.0 percent. The rates for blacks at 52.9 percent and Hispanics
at 59.4 percent were little changed from a year earlier. For all three
groups, labor force participation rates were significantly lower than
their peak levels reached in July 1989. The participation rate for Asian
youth in July 2009, at 49.3 percent, was little different from July 2008.
(See table 2.)
Employment
In July 2009, 19.3 million 16- to 24-year-olds were employed. This
summer's increase in youth employment was lower than last year's (1.6
million vs. 1.9 million). The employment-population ratio for youth--
the proportion of the 16- to 24-year-old civilian noninstitutional pop-
ulation that was employed--was 51.4 percent in July, down 4.6 percent-
age points from July 2008. The ratio has fallen by nearly 18 percent-
age points since its peak in July 1989. The steep decline from July
2008 to July 2009 reflects, in part, continued weak labor market condi-
tions due to the recession that began in December 2007. (See table 2.)
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The employment-population ratio for young men was 52.2 percent in
July 2009, down from 57.9 percent in July 2008. The employment-pop-
ulation ratios for women (50.5 percent), whites (55.2 percent), blacks
(36.4 percent), Asians (41.3 percent), and Hispanics (46.5 percent) in
July 2009 also were lower than a year earlier.
In July 2009, 25 percent of employed youth worked in the leisure
and hospitality industry (which includes food services). Another 20
percent worked in the retail trade industry. (See table 3.)
Unemployment
In July 2009, 4.4 million youth were unemployed, up by nearly 1.0
million from July 2008. The youth unemployment rate was 18.5 percent
in July 2009, the highest July rate on record for the series, which
began in 1948. As with the decline in employment, the increase in
youth unemployment in the summer of 2009 reflected a weak job market.
The July 2009 unemployment rates for young men (19.7 percent), women
(17.3 percent), whites (16.4 percent), blacks (31.2 percent), Asians
(16.3 percent), and Hispanics (21.7 percent) increased from a year
earlier. (See table 2.)
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Technical Note
The estimates in this release were obtained from the Current Population
Survey (CPS), a national sample survey of 60,000 households conducted month-
ly for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) by the U.S. Census Bureau. The
data in this release relate to the employment status of youth (16- to 24-year-
olds) during the months of April-July. This period was selected as being the
most representative time frame in which to measure the full summertime tran-
sition from school to work. July is the peak summer month of youth employment.
Beginning in January 2009, data reflect revised population controls
used in the CPS. For a discussion of the introduction of the revised
population controls and the impact that their introduction had on the CPS
data, see "Adjustments to Household Survey Population Estimates in January
2009" available at http://www.bls.gov/cps/cps09adj.pdf on the BLS Web site.
Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired
individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Ser-
vice: (800) 877-8339.
Reliability
Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both sampling and nonsampling
error. When a sample, rather than the entire population, is surveyed, there
is a chance that the sample estimates may differ from the "true" population
values they represent. The exact difference, or sampling error, varies de-
pending upon the particular sample selected, and this variability is measured
by the standard error of the estimate. There is about a 90-percent chance,
or level of confidence, that an estimate based on a sample will differ by no
more than 1.6 standard errors from the "true" population value because of
sampling error. BLS analyses are generally conducted at the 90-percent level
of confidence.
The CPS data also are affected by nonsampling error. Nonsampling error
can occur for many reasons, including the failure to sample a segment of
the population, inability to obtain information for all respondents in the
sample, inability or unwillingness of respondents to provide correct infor-
mation, and errors made in the collection or processing of the data.
For a full discussion of the reliability of data from the CPS and infor-
mation on estimating standard errors, see "Reliability of estimates from the
CPS" available on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/cps/documentation.htm#
reliability.
Definitions
The principal definitions used in this release are described briefly
below.
Employed persons are (a) all those who, during the survey reference
week, did any work at all as paid employees; worked in their own business,
profession, or on their own farm; or who worked 15 hours or more as unpaid
workers in a family-operated enterprise; and (b) all those who did not work
but had jobs or businesses from which they were temporarily absent due to
illness, bad weather, vacation, child-care problems, labor disputes or per-
sonal reasons, whether or not they were paid by their employers for the
time off and whether or not they were seeking other jobs.
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Unemployed persons are all persons who had no employment during the ref-
erence week, were available for work, except for temporary illness, and
had made specific efforts to find employment sometime during the 4 weeks
preceding the survey. Persons who were waiting to be recalled to a job
from which they had been laid off need not have been looking for work to
be classified as unemployed.
Civilian labor force comprises all persons classified as employed or
unemployed.
Unemployment rate represents the number of unemployed persons as a
percent of the civilian labor force.
Not in the labor force includes all persons who are not classified as
employed or unemployed.
Industry and class of worker for the employed relate to the job held in
the survey reference week. Persons with two or more jobs are classified in
the job at which they worked the greatest number of hours. In terms of
class-of-worker categories, wage and salary workers are those who receive
wages, salaries, commissions, tips, or pay-in-kind from a private employer
or from a government unit; self-employed persons are those who work for
profit or fees in their own business, profession, or trade, or operate a
farm; and unpaid family workers are persons working without pay for 15
hours a week or more in an enterprise operated by a member of their family.
Table 1. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 to 24 years of age by sex, race, and
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, April-July 2009
(Numbers in thousands. Data are not seasonally adjusted.)
April-July changes (1)
Employment status, sex, race, and April May June July
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity
Number Percent
TOTAL
Civilian noninstitutional population............................. 37,536 37,549 37,566 37,586 50 0.1
Civilian labor force........................................... 21,060 21,439 23,379 23,691 2,631 12.5
Participation rate....................................... 56.1 57.1 62.2 63.0 6.9 12.3
Employed..................................................... 17,739 17,588 18,726 19,304 1,566 8.8
Employment-population ratio.............................. 47.3 46.8 49.8 51.4 4.1 8.7
Unemployed................................................... 3,321 3,851 4,653 4,387 1,066 32.1
Looking for full-time work............................... 2,449 2,975 3,676 3,430 981 40.1
Looking for part-time work............................... 872 876 977 957 85 9.7
Unemployment rate........................................ 15.8 18.0 19.9 18.5 2.7 17.4
Not in labor force............................................. 16,476 16,111 14,188 13,895 -2,582 -15.7
Men
Civilian noninstitutional population............................. 18,913 18,919 18,926 18,935 22 .1
Civilian labor force........................................... 10,972 11,228 12,154 12,298 1,326 12.1
Participation rate....................................... 58.0 59.4 64.2 64.9 6.9 12.0
Employed..................................................... 8,915 8,896 9,564 9,880 966 10.8
Employment-population ratio.............................. 47.1 47.0 50.5 52.2 5.0 10.7
Unemployed................................................... 2,057 2,333 2,590 2,418 360 17.5
Looking for full-time work............................... 1,584 1,869 2,121 1,973 389 24.6
Looking for part-time work............................... 473 464 469 444 -29 -6.1
Unemployment rate........................................ 18.8 20.8 21.3 19.7 .9 4.8
Not in labor force............................................. 7,941 7,690 6,772 6,637 -1,304 -16.4
Women
Civilian noninstitutional population............................. 18,623 18,631 18,640 18,650 27 .1
Civilian labor force........................................... 10,088 10,211 11,225 11,393 1,305 12.9
Participation rate....................................... 54.2 54.8 60.2 61.1 6.9 12.8
Employed..................................................... 8,824 8,692 9,162 9,424 600 6.8
Employment-population ratio.............................. 47.4 46.7 49.2 50.5 3.1 6.6
Unemployed................................................... 1,264 1,519 2,063 1,969 705 55.8
Looking for full-time work............................... 865 1,106 1,556 1,456 592 68.5
Looking for part-time work............................... 399 412 507 513 113 28.4
Unemployment rate........................................ 12.5 14.9 18.4 17.3 4.8 38.0
Not in labor force............................................. 8,536 8,420 7,415 7,257 -1,278 -15.0
White
Civilian noninstitutional population............................. 28,989 28,993 29,001 29,010 21 .1
Civilian labor force........................................... 16,966 17,434 18,914 19,147 2,181 12.9
Participation rate....................................... 58.5 60.1 65.2 66.0 7.5 12.8
Employed..................................................... 14,630 14,619 15,512 16,000 1,370 9.4
Employment-population ratio.............................. 50.5 50.4 53.5 55.2 4.7 9.3
Unemployed................................................... 2,336 2,815 3,403 3,147 811 34.7
Looking for full-time work............................... 1,669 2,152 2,644 2,403 734 44.0
Looking for part-time work............................... 667 663 758 744 77 11.5
Unemployment rate........................................ 13.8 16.1 18.0 16.4 2.7 19.4
Not in labor force............................................. 12,023 11,559 10,087 9,863 -2,160 -18.0
Black or African American
Civilian noninstitutional population............................. 5,645 5,650 5,656 5,662 18 .3
Civilian labor force........................................... 2,721 2,611 2,947 2,995 274 10.1
Participation rate....................................... 48.2 46.2 52.1 52.9 4.7 9.7
Employed..................................................... 1,991 1,848 2,034 2,060 69 3.5
Employment-population ratio.............................. 35.3 32.7 36.0 36.4 1.1 3.2
Unemployed................................................... 731 763 913 935 205 28.0
Looking for full-time work............................... 597 620 774 772 175 29.3
Looking for part-time work............................... 134 143 139 163 29 21.9
Unemployment rate........................................ 26.9 29.2 31.0 31.2 4.4 16.3
Not in labor force............................................. 2,923 3,039 2,709 2,667 -256 -8.8
Asian
Civilian noninstitutional population............................. 1,506 1,507 1,508 1,500 -6 -.4
Civilian labor force........................................... 616 633 719 740 124 20.1
Participation rate....................................... 40.9 42.0 47.7 49.3 8.4 20.6
Employed..................................................... 537 526 585 619 82 15.2
Employment-population ratio.............................. 35.7 34.9 38.8 41.3 5.6 15.7
Unemployed................................................... 79 107 134 121 42 53.0
Looking for full-time work............................... 56 73 94 96 40 71.4
Looking for part-time work............................... 23 34 41 24 2 7.5
Unemployment rate........................................ 12.8 16.9 18.7 16.3 3.5 27.4
Not in labor force............................................. 889 875 789 760 -130 -14.6
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity
Civilian noninstitutional population............................. 6,707 6,722 6,737 6,752 45 .7
Civilian labor force........................................... 3,694 3,704 3,892 4,014 319 8.6
Participation rate....................................... 55.1 55.1 57.8 59.4 4.4 7.9
Employed..................................................... 3,060 2,942 3,096 3,143 83 2.7
Employment-population ratio.............................. 45.6 43.8 46.0 46.5 .9 2.0
Unemployed................................................... 634 763 796 871 237 37.3
Looking for full-time work............................... 485 585 639 693 208 43.0
Looking for part-time work............................... 150 178 156 178 28 19.0
Unemployment rate........................................ 17.2 20.6 20.5 21.7 4.5 26.4
Not in labor force............................................. 3,013 3,017 2,845 2,738 -275 -9.1
1 Changes are calculated using unrounded data.
NOTE: Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are
not presented for all races. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race and,
therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by race. Data reflect revised population controls introduced with January 2009
data.
Table 2. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 to 24 years of age by sex, race, and
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, July 2006-2009
(Numbers in thousands. Data are not seasonally adjusted.)
Employment status, sex, race, and 2006 (1) 2007 (1) 2008 (1) 2009 (1)
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity
TOTAL
Civilian noninstitutional population............................. 36,989 37,443 37,506 37,586
Civilian labor force........................................... 24,664 24,339 24,429 23,691
Participation rate....................................... 66.7 65.0 65.1 63.0
Employed..................................................... 21,914 21,717 21,021 19,304
Employment-population ratio.............................. 59.2 58.0 56.0 51.4
Unemployed................................................... 2,750 2,622 3,408 4,387
Looking for full-time work............................... 2,028 1,892 2,552 3,430
Looking for part-time work............................... 722 730 856 957
Unemployment rate........................................ 11.2 10.8 14.0 18.5
Not in labor force............................................. 12,324 13,104 13,076 13,895
Men
Civilian noninstitutional population............................. 18,675 18,926 18,919 18,935
Civilian labor force........................................... 13,024 12,845 12,882 12,298
Participation rate....................................... 69.7 67.9 68.1 64.9
Employed..................................................... 11,568 11,421 10,946 9,880
Employment-population ratio.............................. 61.9 60.3 57.9 52.2
Unemployed................................................... 1,456 1,424 1,935 2,418
Looking for full-time work............................... 1,152 1,059 1,483 1,973
Looking for part-time work............................... 303 365 453 444
Unemployment rate........................................ 11.2 11.1 15.0 19.7
Not in labor force............................................. 5,651 6,081 6,037 6,637
Women
Civilian noninstitutional population............................. 18,314 18,517 18,587 18,650
Civilian labor force........................................... 11,641 11,494 11,547 11,393
Participation rate....................................... 63.6 62.1 62.1 61.1
Employed..................................................... 10,346 10,296 10,075 9,424
Employment-population ratio.............................. 56.5 55.6 54.2 50.5
Unemployed................................................... 1,295 1,198 1,473 1,969
Looking for full-time work............................... 876 833 1,070 1,456
Looking for part-time work............................... 419 365 403 513
Unemployment rate........................................ 11.1 10.4 12.8 17.3
Not in labor force............................................. 6,673 7,023 7,039 7,257
White
Civilian noninstitutional population............................. 28,736 29,012 29,012 29,010
Civilian labor force........................................... 20,002 19,734 19,760 19,147
Participation rate....................................... 69.6 68.0 68.1 66.0
Employed..................................................... 18,193 17,899 17,323 16,000
Employment-population ratio.............................. 63.3 61.7 59.7 55.2
Unemployed................................................... 1,808 1,835 2,437 3,147
Looking for full-time work............................... 1,289 1,304 1,759 2,403
Looking for part-time work............................... 520 531 678 744
Unemployment rate........................................ 9.0 9.3 12.3 16.4
Not in labor force............................................. 8,735 9,278 9,252 9,863
Black or African American
Civilian noninstitutional population............................. 5,426 5,539 5,595 5,662
Civilian labor force........................................... 3,133 2,998 3,062 2,995
Participation rate....................................... 57.7 54.1 54.7 52.9
Employed..................................................... 2,361 2,382 2,302 2,060
Employment-population ratio.............................. 43.5 43.0 41.2 36.4
Unemployed................................................... 772 616 760 935
Looking for full-time work............................... 617 488 647 772
Looking for part-time work............................... 155 128 112 163
Unemployment rate........................................ 24.7 20.5 24.8 31.2
Not in labor force............................................. 2,293 2,541 2,533 2,667
Asian
Civilian noninstitutional population............................. 1,474 1,511 1,516 1,500
Civilian labor force........................................... 687 747 767 740
Participation rate....................................... 46.6 49.4 50.6 49.3
Employed..................................................... 631 689 703 619
Employment-population ratio.............................. 42.8 45.6 46.4 41.3
Unemployed................................................... 56 58 64 121
Looking for full-time work............................... 33 32 38 96
Looking for part-time work............................... 23 26 26 24
Unemployment rate........................................ 8.2 7.7 8.4 16.3
Not in labor force............................................. 787 764 748 760
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity
Civilian noninstitutional population............................. 6,406 6,597 6,669 6,752
Civilian labor force........................................... 3,943 3,928 4,007 4,014
Participation rate....................................... 61.5 59.5 60.1 59.4
Employed..................................................... 3,534 3,465 3,367 3,143
Employment-population ratio.............................. 55.2 52.5 50.5 46.5
Unemployed................................................... 409 464 639 871
Looking for full-time work............................... 287 341 487 693
Looking for part-time work............................... 122 123 153 178
Unemployment rate........................................ 10.4 11.8 16.0 21.7
Not in labor force............................................. 2,463 2,669 2,662 2,738
1 Data not comparable with prior years due to revisions in the population controls.
NOTE: Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because
data are not presented for all races. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of
any race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by race.
Table 3. Employed persons 16 to 24 years of age by industry, class of worker, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity,
July 2008-2009
(Numbers in thousands. Data are not seasonally adjusted.)
Total White Black or African Asian Hispanic or
American Latino ethnicity
Industry and class of worker
2008(1) 2009(1) 2008(1) 2009(1) 2008(1) 2009(1) 2008(1) 2009(1) 2008(1) 2009(1)
Total employed.......................... 21,021 19,304 17,323 16,000 2,302 2,060 703 619 3,367 3,143
Agriculture and related industries.... 418 381 412 361 1 7 1 - 68 72
Nonagricultural industries............ 20,604 18,923 16,911 15,639 2,301 2,053 702 619 3,299 3,071
Private wage and salary workers..... 18,601 16,986 15,246 14,061 2,089 1,831 643 569 3,033 2,825
Mining............................ 107 44 95 44 4 - 3 - 3 3
Construction...................... 1,217 871 1,122 806 42 35 9 14 364 251
Manufacturing..................... 1,390 1,068 1,171 882 106 88 63 57 296 252
Durable goods................... 820 580 714 498 50 29 33 32 165 117
Nondurable goods................ 571 488 457 385 56 59 31 25 131 135
Wholesale trade................... 371 321 315 273 32 29 7 5 66 57
Retail trade...................... 3,880 3,851 3,119 3,061 495 513 148 172 566 577
Transportation and utilities...... 464 413 335 322 89 66 10 8 96 95
Information....................... 369 317 301 237 32 54 19 21 57 45
Financial activities.............. 979 823 806 702 106 74 50 31 179 140
Professional and business services 1,659 1,350 1,355 1,097 172 145 83 49 281 233
Education and health services..... 2,175 2,141 1,645 1,705 388 306 78 61 227 307
Leisure and hospitality........... 4,926 4,799 4,063 4,053 550 461 127 122 691 745
Other services.................... 1,064 988 918 879 74 62 46 30 206 119
Government.......................... 1,538 1,588 1,247 1,297 197 175 50 47 169 188
Federal........................... 182 201 148 133 20 35 2 12 25 28
State............................. 505 516 385 419 72 70 27 10 56 57
Local............................. 852 871 714 745 105 71 22 25 88 103
Self-employed and unpaid family
workers.............................. 464 350 418 282 15 46 9 4 96 58
1 Data not comparable with prior years due to revisions in the population controls.
- Dash represents or rounds to zero.
NOTE: Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are
not presented for all races. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race and,
therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by race.
United States Department of Labor
