Table 8. Percent of weeks individuals were employed, unemployed, or not in the labor force from age 18 through age 36 in 1998-2021 by partner status, educational attainment, sex, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity
Table 8. Percent of weeks individuals were employed, unemployed, or not in the labor force from age 18 through age 36 in 1998-2021 by
partner status, educational attainment, sex, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity
Percent total weeks while ages 18 to 34 in 1998-2021
Characteristic
Single Married Cohabiting
Unem- Not in Unem- Not in Unem- Not in
Employed ployed labor Employed ployed labor Employed ployed labor
force force force
Total, ages 18 to 34 in 1998-2021 ....... 70.9 7.8 21.3 79.0 3.8 17.2 75.4 6.2 18.3
Less than a high school diploma ........ 47.6 11.7 40.7 60.9 9.3 29.9 57.2 9.9 32.9
High school graduates, no college (1) .. 68.4 9.3 22.3 76.7 5.0 18.2 74.6 7.1 18.3
Some college or associate degree ....... 79.0 5.6 15.4 80.2 3.7 16.1 79.7 4.9 15.4
Bachelor's degree and higher (2) ....... 81.3 4.0 14.7 82.8 2.1 15.2 83.7 3.1 13.2
Men ..................................... 71.4 8.4 20.2 84.9 4.1 11.0 78.6 6.8 14.6
Less than a high school diploma ........ 52.9 12.6 34.5 75.7 9.8 14.5 71.6 12.0 16.4
High school graduates, no college (1) .. 69.9 9.6 20.5 84.9 5.4 9.7 77.6 7.4 14.9
Some college or associate degree ....... 81.8 5.4 12.8 87.7 3.6 8.7 83.8 4.6 11.6
Bachelor's degree and higher (2) ....... 79.6 4.2 16.2 85.5 1.9 12.6 82.6 3.6 13.7
Women ................................... 70.3 7.2 22.6 73.3 3.5 23.2 71.6 5.5 22.8
Less than a high school diploma ........ 41.2 10.6 48.2 39.6 8.5 51.9 42.3 7.7 50.0
High school graduates, no college (1) .. 66.3 8.9 24.8 66.9 4.6 28.5 70.2 6.6 23.2
Some college or associate degree ....... 76.3 5.8 18.0 74.6 3.9 21.6 76.4 5.2 18.4
Bachelor's degree and higher (2) ....... 82.6 3.8 13.5 80.6 2.2 17.2 84.8 2.7 12.6
White, non-Hispanic ..................... 73.8 6.3 19.8 80.0 3.3 16.8 77.5 5.5 16.9
Less than a high school diploma ........ 51.1 9.8 39.1 65.0 8.7 26.3 57.0 9.4 33.7
High school graduates, no college (1) .. 71.5 7.8 20.7 77.5 4.4 18.2 77.3 6.3 16.4
Some college or associate degree ....... 79.0 4.8 16.2 81.0 3.4 15.6 80.9 4.3 14.8
Bachelor's degree and higher (2) ....... 82.2 3.2 14.6 83.0 1.9 15.1 84.4 2.9 12.7
Black, non-Hispanic ..................... 64.2 10.9 24.9 73.2 8.0 18.8 68.0 10.6 21.5
Less than a high school diploma ........ 37.6 15.0 47.4 43.8 13.0 43.2 53.4 19.4 27.2
High school graduates, no college (1) .. 62.8 12.0 25.2 71.3 10.0 18.7 65.6 0.9 23.5
Some college or associate degree ....... 77.0 7.8 15.2 75.1 7.1 17.9 70.2 10.4 19.3
Bachelor's degree and higher (2) ....... 79.7 5.9 14.4 83.8 3.3 12.9 83.0 5.3 11.7
Hispanic or Latino ...................... 71.3 8.0 20.7 77.8 4.1 18.1 74.0 6.0 20.0
Less than a high school diploma ........ 58.8 10.6 30.7 62.4 8.0 29.6 62.1 7.0 30.8
High school graduates, no college (1) .. 70.0 8.6 21.3 77.1 4.4 18.5 74.7 6.4 18.9
Some college or associate degree ....... 80.3 5.0 14.7 79.9 4.1 16.0 77.3 4.1 18.7
Bachelor's degree and higher (2) ....... 78.8 5.7 15.5 82.8 2.3 14.9 84.0 3.8 12.2
(1) Includes individuals with a high school diploma or equivalent (General Education Development (GED)) credential.
(2) Includes individuals with bachelor's, master's, doctoral, and professional degrees.
NOTE: This table excludes individuals who had not yet turned age 37 when interviewed in 2021-2022. The National Longitudinal
Survey of Youth 1997 consists of young men and women who were ages 12 to 16 on December 31, 1996. 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. Educational attainment and partner status are determined during the month of the respondent's 37th birthday.
Last Modified Date: April 02, 2024
United States Department of Labor
