Table 4. Families with own children: Employment status of parents by age of youngest child and family type, 2024-2025 annual averages

Table 4. Families with own children: Employment status of parents by age of youngest child and family type, 2024-2025 annual averages [Numbers in thousands]
Characteristic	Number		Percent distribution
Characteristic	2024	2025	2024	2025
WITH OWN CHILDREN UNDER 18 YEARS
Total families	32,695	32,895	100.0	100.0
Parent(s) employed	29,888	30,124	91.4	91.6
No parent employed	2,807	2,771	8.6	8.4
Total married-couple families
Total	22,531	22,708	100.0	100.0
Parent(s) employed	21,975	22,125	97.5	97.4
Both parents employed	14,991	15,048	66.5	66.3
Only one parent employed	6,985	7,077	31.0	31.2
Neither parent employed	556	583	2.5	2.6
Opposite-sex married couple families
Total	22,411	22,555	100.0	100.0
Parent(s) employed	21,856	21,974	97.5	97.4
Mother employed	16,002	16,029	71.4	71.1
Both parents employed	14,900	14,941	66.5	66.2
Mother employed, not father	1,102	1,089	4.9	4.8
Father employed, not mother	5,854	5,945	26.1	26.4
Neither parent employed	555	581	2.5	2.6
Families maintained by mother(1)
Total	7,491	7,479	100.0	100.0
Mother employed	5,645	5,656	75.4	75.6
Mother not employed	1,846	1,824	24.6	24.4
Families maintained by father(1)
Total	2,672	2,708	100.0	100.0
Father employed	2,268	2,344	84.8	86.6
Father not employed	405	364	15.2	13.4

WITH OWN CHILDREN 6 TO 17 YEARS, NONE YOUNGER
Total families	19,358	19,473	100.0	100.0
Parent(s) employed	17,756	17,884	91.7	91.8
No parent employed	1,603	1,589	8.3	8.2
Total married-couple families
Total	12,908	12,992	100.0	100.0
Parent(s) employed	12,547	12,624	97.2	97.2
Both parents employed	8,964	9,008	69.4	69.3
Only one parent employed	3,583	3,616	27.8	27.8
Neither parent employed	361	368	2.8	2.8
Opposite-sex married couple families
Total	12,832	12,913	100.0	100.0
Parent(s) employed	12,472	12,547	97.2	97.2
Mother employed	9,634	9,680	75.1	75.0
Both parents employed	8,904	8,952	69.4	69.3
Mother employed, not father	730	728	5.7	5.6
Father employed, not mother	2,838	2,866	22.1	22.2
Neither parent employed	360	367	2.8	2.8
Families maintained by mother(1)
Total	4,805	4,817	100.0	100.0
Mother employed	3,817	3,841	79.4	79.7
Mother not employed	988	975	20.6	20.3
Families maintained by father(1)
Total	1,645	1,664	100.0	100.0
Father employed	1,392	1,419	84.6	85.3
Father not employed	254	245	15.4	14.7

WITH OWN CHILDREN UNDER 6 YEARS
Total families	13,337	13,422	100.0	100.0
Parent(s) employed	12,132	12,240	91.0	91.2
No parent employed	1,204	1,182	9.0	8.8
Total married-couple families
Total	9,623	9,716	100.0	100.0
Parent(s) employed	9,428	9,501	98.0	97.8
Both parents employed	6,026	6,040	62.6	62.2
Only one parent employed	3,402	3,461	35.3	35.6
Neither parent employed	195	215	2.0	2.2
Opposite-sex married couple families
Total	9,578	9,642	100.0	100.0
Parent(s) employed	9,384	9,427	98.0	97.8
Mother employed	6,368	6,349	66.5	65.8
Both parents employed	5,996	5,988	62.6	62.1
Mother employed, not father	372	361	3.9	3.7
Father employed, not mother	3,016	3,078	31.5	31.9
Neither parent employed	195	215	2.0	2.2
Families maintained by mother(1)
Total	2,686	2,663	100.0	100.0
Mother employed	1,828	1,814	68.1	68.1
Mother not employed	858	848	31.9	31.9
Families maintained by father(1)
Total	1,027	1,044	100.0	100.0
Father employed	876	925	85.3	88.6
Father not employed	151	119	14.7	11.4
Footnotes (1) Includes families with no spouse present.
NOTE: Own children include biological, step-, and adopted children living in the household who are under age 18. Not included are nieces, nephews, grandchildren, and other related and unrelated children. Detail may not sum to totals due to rounding. 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.

Table of Contents

Last Modified Date: April 23, 2026