Technical information: (202) 691-6378 USDL 02-673 http://www.bls.gov/cps/ For release: 10:00 A.M. EST Media contact: 691-5902 Tuesday, December 10, 2002 WORK EXPERIENCE OF THE POPULATION IN 2001 A total of 150.3 million persons worked at some point during 2001, some- what fewer than in the previous year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. The number of individuals who ex- perienced unemployment during the year rose to 15.8 million in 2001, an in- crease of 2.8 million from 2000. These data are from the annual work experience supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS is a monthly survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Additional information about the CPS and this annual supplement, including concepts and definitions, is provided in the Technical Note. Highlights from the 2001 data include: --The proportion of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 years old and over that worked at some point during the year was 69.3 percent, down from 70.4 percent in 2000. --The proportion of workers employed full time, year round fell by 0.4 per- centage point from 2000 to 66.3 percent in 2001, but remained high by historical standards. --The "work-experience unemployment rate"--unemployment as a proportion of the persons who worked or looked for work during the year--rose by 1.8 percentage points to 10.4 percent. The rate rose for all of the major demographic groups. Persons with Employment From 2000 to 2001, the proportion of the civilian noninstitutional popu- lation 16 years and over that worked at some point during the year fell from 70.4 percent to 69.3 percent. Among those with work experience during 2001, 75.6 percent were employed year round (either full or part time), down from 76.0 percent in 2000. The percentage of men employed year round fell to ----------------------------------------------------------------------- | | | Changes in Work Experience Estimates | | | | Estimates shown in this release for calendar years 2000 and 2001 | | are based on Census 2000 population controls and an expanded sample. | | For these reasons, the estimates for 2000 appearing in this release | | may differ from those published earlier, which were based on popula- | | tion controls derived from the 1990 census and a smaller sample. Es- | | timates for 2000 and 2001 are not strictly comparable with estimates | | for earlier years. For further information on these changes, see the | | Technical Note. | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- - 2 - 78.6 percent in 2001 from 79.7 percent in 2000. Continuing a long-term growth trend, full-year employment among women increased to 72.3 percent from 71.8 percent in 2000. Overall, about 4 out of 5 of those who were employed at some time during the year worked full time, the same as in the prior year. There also was little or no change in the proportions of men or women with work experience who worked full time. (See table 1.) Persons with Unemployment Overall, 152.3 million persons worked or looked for work at some time in 2001. Of these, 15.8 million experienced some unemployment during the year, 2.8 million more than the year before. Men accounted for about three- fifths of the rise. The "work-experience unemployment rate" in 2001 was 10.4 percent, 1.8 per- centage points higher than in 2000. The rate for blacks, 15.4 percent, was higher than the rate for either Hispanics (12.7 percent) or whites (9.6 per- cent). As in 2000, men continued to have higher rates than women, both over- all and in each of the three groups. (See tables 3 and 4.) Among those who were unemployed in 2001, the median number of weeks unem- ployed (time spent looking for work) was 13.7, up from 12.4 weeks the year before. About 2 million of those who had looked for a job in 2001 did not work at all during the year. Of the 13.8 million persons who had worked dur- ing the year and also had experienced unemployment, 24.7 percent had two or more spells of joblessness. - 3 - Technical Note The data presented in this release were collected through the Current Population Survey (CPS) in an annual supplement on work experience. The CPS is a monthly sample survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Data from the CPS are used to obtain the monthly estimates of the nation's employment and unemployment levels. Beginning in 2001, the annual work experience supplement has been asked of part of the CPS samples for February and April and the entire sample for March. Previously, the supplement was asked of the March sample only. The supplement includes questions about work activity during the prior calendar year. For instance, data collected in 2002 refer to the 2001 calendar year. Because the reference period is a full year, the number of persons with some employment or unemployment greatly exceeds the average levels for any given month, which are based on a 1-week reference period, and the corresponding annual average of the monthly estimates. In addition, estimates from the supplement differ from those obtained in the basic CPS because the questions used to classify workers as either employed or unemployed are different. More important, perhaps, is that fewer questions by which to categorize respondents are asked in the supple- ment. In regard to unemployment in particular, the supplement has no ques- tions on the type of job search activity or on the respondent's availability to work. Also, individuals can be counted as both employed and unemployed in the work experience data, whereas, for a specific reference week, each person is only counted in one category and employment activity takes precedence over job search activity. The estimates for calendar years 2000 and 2001 shown in this release incorporate two major changes. As a consequence, the estimates for 2000 shown here may differ from those previously published, and the estimates for 2000 and 2001 are not strictly comparable with estimates for earlier years. First, the estimates for 2000 and 2001 are based on an expanded sample. Beginning in 2001 (with the collection of data for 2000), the sample for the work experience supplement to the CPS was expanded to 78,000 households from its original 50,000 households. The additional 28,000 households were added in order to improve estimates of children's health insurance coverage by state. Work experience estimates previously published for calendar year 2000 were based on the 50,000-household sample. The additional 28,000 sample households were not used until their effect on the estimates had been fully assessed. The second change was the use of Census 2000-based population controls in the estimation process for both calendar years 2000 and 2001. Sample results from the CPS are weighted up to independent estimates of the popu- lation by sex, age, race, and Hispanic/non-Hispanic origin. The weights, or population controls, are developed using counts of the civilian noninstitu- tional population derived from the decennial census and are updated using in- formation from administrative records. Previously published estimates of work experience in 2000 were based on population controls from the 1990 census. Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; TDD message referral phone: 1-800-877-8339. - 4 - Reliability of the estimates 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 on 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 in- formation on estimating standard errors, see the "Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error" section of Employment and Earnings. Concepts and definitions Persons who worked. In the March 2002 supplement, persons are considered to have worked if they responded "yes" to either the question "Did you work at a job or business at any time during 2001?" or "Did you do any temporary, part-time, or seasonal work even for a few days during 2001?" Unemployed persons. Persons who worked during the year but not in every week are counted as unemployed if they also reported looking for work or being on layoff from a job during the year. Those who reported no work activity dur- ing the year are considered unemployed if they responded "yes" to the ques- tion "Even though you did not work in 2001, did you spend any time trying to find a job or on layoff?" Labor force participants. Persons who either worked or were unemployed during the year. Usual full- and part-time employment. These data refer to the number of hours a worker typically works during most weeks of the year. Workers are classified as full time if they usually worked 35 hours or more in a week; part-time employment refers to workers whose typical workweek was between 1 and 34 hours. Year-round and part-year employment. Workers are classified as year round if they worked 50 to 52 weeks. Part-year employment refers to workers who worked fewer than 50 weeks. Table 1. Work experience of the population during the year by sex and extent of employment, 2000-01 Total Men Women Extent of employment 2000r 2001 2000r 2001 2000r 2001 Numbers (in thousands) Civilian noninstitutional population............................ 214,292 216,788 102,853 104,162 111,440 112,626 Total who worked or looked for work........................... 152,417 152,300 80,287 80,304 72,130 71,996 Percent of the population................................... 71.1 70.3 78.1 77.1 64.7 63.9 Total who worked during the year(1)........................... 150,787 150,286 79,446 79,300 71,341 70,986 Percent of the population................................... 70.4 69.3 77.2 76.1 64.0 63.0 Full time(2)................................................ 121,427 121,182 69,443 69,414 51,984 51,768 50 to 52 weeks............................................ 100,586 99,644 58,934 58,076 41,652 41,568 48 to 49 weeks............................................ 2,243 2,323 1,278 1,373 965 950 40 to 47 weeks............................................ 5,647 5,827 2,838 3,067 2,810 2,759 27 to 39 weeks............................................ 4,549 5,002 2,224 2,631 2,325 2,370 14 to 26 weeks............................................ 4,891 4,850 2,363 2,488 2,528 2,362 1 to 13 weeks............................................. 3,512 3,536 1,807 1,779 1,705 1,757 Part time(3)................................................ 29,360 29,103 10,003 9,885 19,357 19,218 50 to 52 weeks............................................ 13,974 14,025 4,397 4,298 9,578 9,727 48 to 49 weeks............................................ 876 828 303 262 573 566 40 to 47 weeks............................................ 2,677 2,562 843 801 1,833 1,761 27 to 39 weeks............................................ 2,723 2,747 894 924 1,829 1,823 14 to 26 weeks............................................ 4,364 4,188 1,693 1,672 2,671 2,516 1 to 13 weeks............................................. 4,746 4,753 1,873 1,928 2,873 2,825 Percent distribution Total who worked during the year(1)............................. 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 Full time(2).................................................. 80.5 80.6 87.4 87.5 72.9 72.9 50 to 52 weeks.............................................. 66.7 66.3 74.2 73.2 58.4 58.6 48 to 49 weeks.............................................. 1.5 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.4 1.3 40 to 47 weeks.............................................. 3.7 3.9 3.6 3.9 3.9 3.9 27 to 39 weeks.............................................. 3.0 3.3 2.8 3.3 3.3 3.3 14 to 26 weeks.............................................. 3.2 3.2 3.0 3.1 3.5 3.3 1 to 13 weeks............................................... 2.3 2.4 2.3 2.2 2.4 2.5 Part time(3).................................................. 19.5 19.4 12.6 12.5 27.1 27.1 50 to 52 weeks.............................................. 9.3 9.3 5.5 5.4 13.4 13.7 48 to 49 weeks.............................................. .6 .6 .4 .3 .8 .8 40 to 47 weeks.............................................. 1.8 1.7 1.1 1.0 2.6 2.5 27 to 39 weeks.............................................. 1.8 1.8 1.1 1.2 2.6 2.6 14 to 26 weeks.............................................. 2.9 2.8 2.1 2.1 3.7 3.5 1 to 13 weeks............................................... 3.1 3.2 2.4 2.4 4.0 4.0 1 Time worked includes paid vacation and sick leave. 2 Usually worked 35 hours or more per week. 3 Usually worked 1 to 34 hours per week. r = revised. Estimates for 2000 have been revised to reflect the use of Census 2000-based population controls and the inclusion of data collected from an expanded sample. Estimates for 2000 and 2001 are not strictly comparable with estimates for earlier years. See the Technical Note for additional information. NOTE: Data refer to persons 16 years and over. Table 2. Work experience of the population during the year by race, Hispanic origin, and sex, 2000-01 (Numbers in thousands) Total Men Women Extent of employment, race, and Hispanic origin 2000r 2001 2000r 2001 2000r 2001 WHITE Civilian noninstitutional population.......................... 177,468 179,293 86,053 87,105 91,415 92,188 Total who worked or looked for work......................... 126,554 126,353 67,776 67,703 58,778 58,650 Percent of the population................................. 71.3 70.5 78.8 77.7 64.3 63.6 Total who worked during the year(1)......................... 125,540 125,097 67,253 67,076 58,287 58,021 Percent of the population................................. 70.7 69.8 78.2 77.0 63.8 62.9 Percent who worked during the year(1)....................... 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 Full time(2).............................................. 80.0 80.2 87.5 87.8 71.3 71.5 50 to 52 weeks.......................................... 66.4 66.3 74.6 73.8 57.0 57.5 27 to 49 weeks.......................................... 8.2 8.6 7.9 8.9 8.6 8.4 1 to 26 weeks........................................... 5.3 5.3 5.0 5.1 5.7 5.6 Part time(3).............................................. 20.0 19.8 12.5 12.2 28.7 28.5 50 to 52 weeks.......................................... 9.7 9.7 5.6 5.4 14.4 14.7 27 to 49 weeks.......................................... 4.3 4.2 2.6 2.5 6.3 6.2 1 to 26 weeks........................................... 6.0 5.8 4.3 4.3 8.0 7.6 BLACK Civilian noninstitutional population.......................... 24,997 25,445 11,100 11,325 13,897 14,119 Total who worked or looked for work......................... 17,473 17,493 8,008 8,097 9,466 9,397 Percent of the population................................. 69.9 68.8 72.1 71.5 68.1 66.6 Total who worked during the year(1)......................... 16,986 16,876 7,764 7,787 9,222 9,089 Percent of the population................................. 68.0 66.3 69.9 68.8 66.4 64.4 Percent who worked during the year(1)....................... 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 Full time(2).............................................. 83.5 83.0 86.5 86.0 81.0 80.4 50 to 52 weeks.......................................... 68.0 66.6 70.2 69.5 66.1 64.2 27 to 49 weeks.......................................... 8.5 9.2 9.1 9.2 8.0 9.3 1 to 26 weeks........................................... 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 6.8 6.9 Part time(3).............................................. 16.5 17.0 13.5 14.0 19.0 19.6 50 to 52 weeks.......................................... 6.6 6.9 4.8 5.1 8.1 8.4 27 to 49 weeks.......................................... 3.3 3.4 2.4 2.7 4.2 4.1 1 to 26 weeks........................................... 6.5 6.7 6.3 6.2 6.7 7.1 HISPANIC ORIGIN Civilian noninstitutional population.......................... 24,634 25,642 12,536 13,051 12,098 12,591 Total who worked or looked for work......................... 17,653 18,093 10,234 10,484 7,419 7,609 Percent of the population................................. 71.7 70.6 81.6 80.3 61.3 60.4 Total who worked during the year(1)......................... 17,385 17,799 10,087 10,356 7,297 7,443 Percent of the population................................. 70.6 69.4 80.5 79.3 60.3 59.1 Percent who worked during the year(1)....................... 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 Full time(2).............................................. 84.9 84.2 90.1 90.0 77.7 76.2 50 to 52 weeks.......................................... 67.7 67.1 74.5 73.3 58.4 58.5 27 to 49 weeks.......................................... 9.5 9.9 9.4 10.2 9.6 9.5 1 to 26 weeks........................................... 7.7 7.2 6.2 6.5 9.8 8.2 Part time(3).............................................. 15.1 15.8 9.9 10.0 22.3 23.8 50 to 52 weeks.......................................... 7.3 8.1 4.8 4.7 10.7 12.9 27 to 49 weeks.......................................... 2.9 2.8 1.6 1.8 4.7 4.1 1 to 26 weeks........................................... 4.9 4.9 3.4 3.5 6.8 6.8 1 Time worked includes paid vacation and sick leave. 2 Usually worked 35 hours or more per week. 3 Usually worked 1 to 34 hours per week. r = revised. Estimates for 2000 have been revised to reflect the use of Census 2000-based population controls and the inclusion of data collected from an expanded sample. Estimates for 2000 and 2001 are not strictly comparable with estimates for earlier years. See the Technical Note for additional information. NOTE: Detail for the above race and Hispanic origin groups will not sum to totals because data for the "other races" group are not presented and Hispanics are included in both the white and black population groups. Data refer to persons 16 years and over. Table 3. Extent of unemployment during the year by sex, 2000-01 Total Men Women Extent of unemployment 2000r 2001 2000r 2001 2000r 2001 Numbers (in thousands) Total who worked or looked for work............................. 152,417 152,300 80,287 80,304 72,130 71,996 Percent with unemployment..................................... 8.6 10.4 9.0 11.1 8.1 9.6 Total with unemployment....................................... 13,041 15,834 7,199 8,919 5,842 6,915 Did not work but looked for work............................ 1,630 2,014 841 1,004 789 1,010 1 to 14 weeks............................................. 732 939 340 419 392 520 15 weeks or more.......................................... 898 1,075 501 585 397 490 Worked during the year...................................... 11,411 13,820 6,358 7,915 5,053 5,905 Year-round workers(1) with 1 or 2 weeks of unemployment... 575 602 363 421 212 180 Part-year workers(2) with unemployment.................... 10,836 13,218 5,995 7,493 4,841 5,725 1 to 4 weeks............................................ 2,394 2,365 1,150 1,244 1,244 1,121 5 to 10 weeks........................................... 2,180 2,556 1,214 1,445 966 1,111 11 to 14 weeks.......................................... 1,575 2,038 920 1,207 655 831 15 to 26 weeks.......................................... 2,757 3,681 1,674 2,188 1,083 1,492 27 weeks or more........................................ 1,930 2,579 1,037 1,409 893 1,170 Median weeks of unemployment for all workers........ 12.4 13.7 13.0 13.8 11.6 13.6 With 2 spells or more of unemployment............... 3,157 3,420 1,890 2,099 1,267 1,321 2 spells.......................................... 1,412 1,642 810 1,001 602 641 3 spells or more.................................. 1,745 1,778 1,080 1,098 665 680 Percent distribution Did not work but looked for work................................ 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 1 to 14 weeks................................................. 44.9 46.6 40.4 41.7 49.7 51.5 15 weeks or more.............................................. 55.1 53.4 59.6 58.3 50.3 48.5 Worked during the year.......................................... 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 Year-round workers(1) with 1 or 2 weeks of unemployment....... 5.0 4.4 5.7 5.3 4.2 3.1 Part-year workers(2) with unemployment........................ 95.0 95.6 94.3 94.7 95.8 96.9 1 to 4 weeks................................................ 21.0 17.1 18.1 15.7 24.6 19.0 5 to 10 weeks............................................... 19.1 18.5 19.1 18.3 19.1 18.8 11 to 14 weeks.............................................. 13.8 14.7 14.5 15.2 13.0 14.1 15 to 26 weeks.............................................. 24.2 26.6 26.3 27.6 21.4 25.3 27 weeks or more............................................ 16.9 18.7 16.3 17.8 17.7 19.8 With 2 spells or more of unemployment............. 27.7 24.7 29.7 26.5 25.1 22.4 2 spells........................................ 12.4 11.9 12.7 12.6 11.9 10.9 3 spells or more................................ 15.3 12.9 17.0 13.9 13.2 11.5 1 Worked 50 or 51 weeks. 2 Worked less than 50 weeks. r = revised. Estimates for 2000 have been revised to reflect the use of Census 2000-based population controls and the inclusion of data collected from an expanded sample. Estimates for 2000 and 2001 are not strictly comparable with estimates for earlier years. See the Technical Note for additional information. NOTE: Data refer to persons 16 years and over. Table 4. Extent of unemployment during the year by race, Hispanic origin, and sex, 2000-01 (Numbers in thousands) Total Men Women Extent of unemployment, race, and Hispanic origin 2000r 2001 2000r 2001 2000r 2001 WHITE Total who worked or looked for work........................... 126,554 126,353 67,776 67,703 58,778 58,650 Percent with unemployment................................... 7.9 9.6 8.3 10.4 7.5 8.8 Total with unemployment..................................... 10,004 12,157 5,617 7,010 4,387 5,147 Did not work but looked for work.......................... 1,013 1,256 523 627 491 629 Worked during the year.................................... 8,991 10,900 5,094 6,383 3,896 4,517 Median weeks of unemployment for all workers............ 11.9 13.1 12.5 13.2 11.0 13.0 Percent who worked during the year(1)..................... 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 Year-round workers(2) with 1 or 2 weeks of unemployment. 5.4 4.8 6.1 5.9 4.5 3.2 Part-year workers(3) with unemployment.................. 94.6 95.2 93.9 94.1 95.5 96.8 1 to 4 weeks.......................................... 21.6 17.7 18.6 16.1 25.5 19.9 5 to 14 weeks......................................... 34.2 34.5 34.3 34.7 33.9 34.2 15 weeks or more...................................... 38.8 43.0 41.0 43.2 36.0 42.7 With 2 spells or more of unemployment........... 28.0 24.6 30.1 26.7 25.3 21.6 BLACK Total who worked or looked for work........................... 17,473 17,493 8,008 8,097 9,466 9,397 Percent with unemployment................................... 12.9 15.4 14.6 16.9 11.4 14.0 Total with unemployment..................................... 2,248 2,689 1,171 1,372 1,077 1,317 Did not work but looked for work.......................... 487 617 244 309 244 307 Worked during the year.................................... 1,761 2,072 928 1,062 833 1,010 Median weeks of unemployment for all workers............ 16.1 17.8 16.0 17.5 16.2 18.0 Percent who worked during the year(1)..................... 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 Year-round workers(2) with 1 or 2 weeks of unemployment. 3.6 2.2 4.3 2.5 2.9 1.8 Part-year workers(3) with unemployment.................. 96.4 97.8 95.7 97.5 97.1 98.2 1 to 4 weeks.......................................... 17.2 14.2 14.9 13.9 19.8 14.5 5 to 14 weeks......................................... 26.8 27.0 28.6 27.1 24.8 26.8 15 weeks or more...................................... 52.4 56.7 52.3 56.4 52.5 56.9 With 2 spells or more of unemployment........... 26.5 25.4 27.0 25.1 25.8 25.8 HISPANIC ORIGIN Total who worked or looked for work........................... 17,653 18,093 10,234 10,484 7,419 7,609 Percent with unemployment................................... 10.7 12.7 10.9 13.1 10.6 12.2 Total with unemployment..................................... 1,895 2,304 1,112 1,373 784 930 Did not work but looked for work.......................... 269 294 147 128 122 166 Worked during the year.................................... 1,627 2,010 965 1,245 662 764 Median weeks of unemployment for all workers............ 14.8 14.9 15.5 14.3 14.1 16.5 Percent who worked during the year(1)..................... 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 Year-round workers(2) with 1 or 2 weeks of unemployment. 3.1 3.9 3.4 4.3 2.6 3.3 Part-year workers(3) with unemployment.................. 96.9 96.1 96.6 95.7 97.4 96.7 1 to 4 weeks.......................................... 18.3 13.4 16.1 13.0 21.5 14.0 5 to 14 weeks......................................... 29.1 32.9 29.6 35.3 28.5 28.9 15 weeks or more...................................... 49.4 49.8 50.9 47.3 47.4 53.7 With 2 spells or more of unemployment........... 28.9 26.4 28.6 27.3 29.3 25.1 1 Time worked includes paid vacation and sick leave. 2 Worked 50 or 51 weeks. 3 Worked less than 50 weeks. r = revised. Estimates for 2000 have been revised to reflect the use of Census 2000-based population controls and the inclusion of data collected from an expanded sample. Estimates for 2000 and 2001 are not strictly comparable with estimates for earlier years. See the Technical Note for additional information. NOTE: Detail for the above race and Hispanic origin groups will not sum to totals because data for the "other races" group are not presented and Hispanics are included in both the white and black population groups. Data refer to persons 16 years and over.