U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Department of Labor Logo United States Department of Labor
Dot gov

The .gov means it's official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you're on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

June 1988

The labor market problems of today’s high school dropouts

James P. Markey

Of the 4 million young high school dropouts in 1986, 1 in 6 was unemployed; many were not in the labor force at all, and those who were, faced strong competition from high school graduates for limited job opportunities. However, regardless of the measure chosen, there is little conclusive evidence to suggest that there has been significant improvement in the dropout situation over the last two decades.

Download PDF »