Table 4. Percent of weeks individuals were employed, unemployed, or not in the labor force from ages 18 to 56 in 1978-2020 by age, sex, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity

Table 4. Percent of weeks individuals were employed, unemployed, or not in the labor
force from ages 18 through 56 in 1978-2020 by age, sex, race, and Hispanic or Latino  
ethnicity                                                                           
                                                                                    
                                                          Percent of total weeks    
 Age and characteristic                                                       Not in
                                                                               labor
                                                       Employed   Unemployed   force
                                                                                    
Total, ages 18 to 56 in 1978-2020 (1) ..............     77.8	     4.4	17.8
  Ages 18 to 24 in 1978-1988 (2) ...................     68.3	     7.9	23.8
  Ages 25 to 34 in 1982-1998 .......................     80.2	     4.0	15.8
  Ages 35 to 44 in 1992-2008 .......................     82.7	     3.1	14.2
  Ages 45 to 56 in 2002-2020 (3) ...................     77.9	     3.8	18.3

Men, ages 18 to 56 in 1978-2020 (1) ..............       83.4	     4.8	11.8
  Ages 18 to 24 in 1978-1988 (2) ...................     72.8	     8.8	18.3
  Ages 25 to 34 in 1982-1998 .......................     88.6	     4.4	 7.0
  Ages 35 to 44 in 1992-2008 .......................     88.9	     3.2	 7.9
  Ages 45 to 56 in 2002-2020 (3) ...................     82.5	     4.2	13.3

Women, ages 18 to 56 in 1978-2020 (1) ..............     72.0	     3.9	24.1
  Ages 18 to 24 in 1978-1988 (2) ...................     63.5	     6.9	29.6
  Ages 25 to 34 in 1982-1998 .......................     71.6	     3.5	24.8
  Ages 35 to 44 in 1992-2008 .......................     76.4	     3.0	20.6
  Ages 45 to 56 in 2002-2020 (3) ...................     73.1	     3.4	23.5
 	 	 	 
White non-Hispanic, ages 18 to 56 in 1978-2020 (1) .     79.8	     3.7	16.5
  Ages 18 to 24 in 1978-1988 (2) ...................     70.8	     6.9	22.3
  Ages 25 to 34 in 1982-1998 .......................     82.3	     3.2	14.5
  Ages 35 to 44 in 1992-2008 .......................     84.2	     2.5	13.2 
  Ages 45 to 56 in 2002-2020 (3) ...................     79.9	     3.2	16.9

Black non-Hispanic, ages 18 to 56 in 1978-2020 (1) .     68.8	     7.8	23.5
  Ages 18 to 24 in 1978-1988 (2) ...................     56.1	    13.2	30.7
  Ages 25 to 34 in 1982-1998 .......................     71.6	     8.0	20.4
  Ages 35 to 44 in 1992-2008 .......................     76.2	     5.9	17.9
  Ages 45 to 56 in 2002-2020 (3) ...................     68.4	     6.7	24.9

Hispanic or Latino, ages 18 to 56 in 1978-2020 (1) .     72.9	     5.3	21.8
  Ages 18 to 24 in 1978-1988 (2) ...................     63.9	     8.4	27.7
  Ages 25 to 34 in 1982-1998 .......................     73.8	     4.7	21.5
  Ages 35 to 44 in 1992-2008 .......................     78.6	     4.3	17.1
  Ages 45 to 56 in 2002-2020 (3) ...................     73.4	     4.7	21.8

   (1) This category excludes individuals who turned age 18 before January 1, 1978,
or who had not yet turned age 57 when interviewed in 2020-21.
   (2) This category excludes individuals who turned age 18 before January 1, 1978.
   (3) This category excludes individuals who had not yet turned age 57 when
interviewed in 2020-21.
Note: The National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 consists of men and women who were
born in the years 1957-64 and were ages 14 to 22 when first interviewed in 1979.
These individuals were ages 55 to 64 in 2020-21. Race and Hispanic or Latino
ethnicity groups are mutually exclusive but not exhaustive. Other race groups,
which are included in the overall totals, are not shown separately because their
representation in the survey sample is not sufficiently large to provide
statistically reliable estimates.