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Economic News Release
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Table A-15. Alternative measures of labor underutilization

HOUSEHOLD DATA
Table A-15. Alternative measures of labor underutilization [Percent]
Measure Not seasonally adjusted Seasonally adjusted
Nov.
2024		 Oct.
2025		 Nov.
2025		 Nov.
2024		 July
2025		 Aug.
2025		 Sept.
2025		 Oct.
2025		 Nov.
2025

U-1 People unemployed 15 weeks or longer, as a percent of the civilian labor force

 1.6 - 1.7 1.7 1.8 1.7 1.8 - 1.8

U-2 Job losers and people who completed temporary jobs, as a percent of the civilian labor force

 1.9 - 1.9 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.1 - 2.1

U-3 Total unemployed, as a percent of the civilian labor force (official unemployment rate)

 4.0 - 4.3 4.2 4.2 4.3 4.4 - 4.6

U-4 Total unemployed plus discouraged workers, as a percent of the civilian labor force plus discouraged workers

 4.2 - 4.7 4.5 4.5 4.6 4.7 - 4.9

U-5 Total unemployed, plus discouraged workers, plus all other people marginally attached to the labor force, as a percent of the civilian labor force plus all people marginally attached to the labor force

 4.9 - 5.4 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 - 5.6

U-6 Total unemployed, plus all people marginally attached to the labor force, plus total employed part time for economic reasons, as a percent of the civilian labor force plus all people marginally attached to the labor force

 7.4 - 8.4 7.7 7.9 8.1 8.0 - 8.7

NOTE: People marginally attached to the labor force are those who currently are neither working nor looking for work but indicate that they want and are available for a job and have looked for work sometime in the past 12 months. Discouraged workers, a subset of the marginally attached, have given a job-market related reason for not currently looking for work. People employed part time for economic reasons are those who want and are available for full-time work but have had to settle for a part-time schedule. Updated population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data. Data for October 2025 were not collected due to the federal government shutdown.
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Last Modified Date: December 16, 2025