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The number of unemployed and the unemployment rate both declined during 2016, continuing their downward trends. In the fourth quarter of 2016, 7.6 million people were unemployed and the unemployment rate was 4.7 percent, 0.3 percentage point lower than a year earlier. Employment, as measured by the Current Population Survey (CPS; see accompanying box), expanded by 2.5 million in 2016, about in line with the gains in the previous year. After rising between the fourth quarter of 2015 and the first quarter of 2016, the employment–population ratio held fairly steady, ending the year at 59.7 percent in the fourth quarter. The civilian labor force—the sum of the employed and the unemployed―grew by 2.1 million, to 159.6 million. The labor force participation rate, at 62.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2016, was little changed from a year earlier.1
This article examines the behavior of key labor market indicators from the CPS in 2016 and takes a detailed look at these indicators by various demographic characteristics, including age, gender, and race and ethnicity. In addition, the article explores changes in usual weekly earnings, duration of unemployment, and labor force flows and reviews the employment situation of veterans, people with a disability, and the foreign born.
Both the number of unemployed people and the unemployment rate were down over the year. Total unemployment declined by 353,000, to 7.6 million, in 2016. The unemployment rate declined to 4.7 percent in the fourth quarter, down by 0.3 percentage point over the year. Most of the improvement in the unemployment measures occurred in the fourth quarter of 2016. Unemployment has been declining since the first quarter of 2010, although the rate of decline in these measures has tapered off in recent years. (See table 1 and figure 1.)
Characteristic | 2015 | 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fourth quarter | First quarter | Second quarter | Third quarter | Fourth quarter | ||
Total, 16 years and older | ||||||
Civilian labor force | 157,480 | 158,842 | 158,779 | 159,544 | 159,580 | 2,100 |
Participation rate | 62.6 | 62.9 | 62.7 | 62.8 | 62.7 | 0.1 |
Employed | 149,568 | 150,959 | 151,059 | 151,709 | 152,020 | 2,452 |
Employment–population ratio | 59.4 | 59.8 | 59.7 | 59.8 | 59.7 | 0.3 |
Unemployed | 7,912 | 7,883 | 7,720 | 7,836 | 7,559 | -353 |
Unemployment rate | 5.0 | 5.0 | 4.9 | 4.9 | 4.7 | -0.3 |
Men, 20 years and older | ||||||
Civilian labor force | 80,766 | 81,600 | 81,648 | 81,880 | 81,922 | 1,156 |
Participation rate | 71.4 | 71.9 | 71.7 | 71.7 | 71.5 | 0.1 |
Employed | 76,986 | 77,904 | 78,006 | 78,125 | 78,314 | 1,328 |
Employment–population ratio | 68 | 68.6 | 68.5 | 68.4 | 68.4 | 0.4 |
Unemployed | 3,780 | 3,696 | 3,642 | 3,755 | 3,609 | -171 |
Unemployment rate | 4.7 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.6 | 4.4 | -0.3 |
Women, 20 years and older | ||||||
Civilian labor force | 71,022 | 71,370 | 71,284 | 71,706 | 71,784 | 762 |
Participation rate | 58.2 | 58.3 | 58.1 | 58.3 | 58.2 | 0 |
Employed | 67,794 | 68,111 | 68,144 | 68,563 | 68,723 | 929 |
Employment–population ratio | 55.6 | 55.7 | 55.6 | 55.8 | 55.7 | 0.1 |
Unemployed | 3,228 | 3,259 | 3,140 | 3,143 | 3,060 | -168 |
Unemployment rate | 4.5 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 4.3 | -0.2 |
Total, 16 to 19 years | ||||||
Civilian labor force | 5,693 | 5,872 | 5,847 | 5,958 | 5,874 | 181 |
Participation rate | 34.3 | 35.2 | 35 | 35.6 | 35.1 | 0.8 |
Employed | 4,789 | 4,944 | 4,909 | 5,021 | 4,983 | 194 |
Employment–population ratio | 28.8 | 29.7 | 29.4 | 30.0 | 29.8 | 1.0 |
Unemployed | 904 | 928 | 938 | 937 | 890 | -14 |
Unemployment rate | 15.9 | 15.8 | 16.0 | 15.7 | 15.2 | -0.7 |
White | ||||||
Civilian labor force | 123,646 | 124,732 | 124,519 | 124,777 | 124,632 | 986 |
Participation rate | 62.6 | 63.1 | 62.9 | 62.9 | 62.7 | 0.1 |
Employed | 118,222 | 119,385 | 119,220 | 119,357 | 119,314 | 1,092 |
Employment–population ratio | 59.9 | 60.4 | 60.2 | 60.2 | 60 | 0.1 |
Unemployed | 5,424 | 5,347 | 5,300 | 5,419 | 5,317 | -107 |
Unemployment rate | 4.4 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.3 | -0.1 |
Black or African American | ||||||
Civilian labor force | 19,414 | 19,519 | 19,466 | 19,714 | 19,834 | 420 |
Participation rate | 61.5 | 61.5 | 61.2 | 61.7 | 61.9 | 0.4 |
Employed | 17,668 | 17,799 | 17,811 | 18,089 | 18,219 | 551 |
Employment–population ratio | 56.0 | 56.1 | 56.0 | 56.6 | 56.8 | 0.8 |
Unemployed | 1,746 | 1,720 | 1,655 | 1,625 | 1,614 | -132 |
Unemployment rate | 9.0 | 8.8 | 8.5 | 8.2 | 8.1 | -0.9 |
Asian (1) | ||||||
Civilian labor force | 9,093 | 9,366 | 9,471 | 9,706 | 9,703 | 610 |
Participation rate | 62.8 | 62.9 | 63.4 | 63.5 | 63.1 | 0.3 |
Employed | 8,747 | 9,009 | 9,113 | 9,321 | 9,409 | 662 |
Employment–population ratio | 60.4 | 60.5 | 61.0 | 61.0 | 61.2 | 0.8 |
Unemployed | 347 | 357 | 358 | 385 | 294 | -53 |
Unemployment rate | 3.8 | 3.8 | 3.8 | 4.0 | 3.0 | -0.8 |
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity | ||||||
Civilian labor force | 26,230 | 26,623 | 26,613 | 26,951 | 27,000 | 770 |
Participation rate | 65.6 | 66.1 | 65.6 | 66.0 | 65.7 | 0.1 |
Employed | 24,580 | 25,123 | 25,053 | 25,379 | 25,441 | 861 |
Employment–population ratio | 61.4 | 62.3 | 61.8 | 62.2 | 61.9 | 0.5 |
Unemployed | 1,650 | 1,500 | 1,560 | 1,572 | 1,559 | -91 |
Unemployment rate | 6.3 | 5.6 | 5.9 | 5.8 | 5.8 | -0.5 |
Notes: (1) Data for Asians are not seasonally adjusted. Note: Race and Hispanic ethnicity totals do not sum to overall total for people 16 years and older because data are not presented for all races and because people of Hispanic ethnicity may be of any race and are also included in the race groups. Updated population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
Year and quarter | Unemployment rate |
---|---|
1969 Q1 | 3.4 |
1969 Q2 | 3.4 |
1969 Q3 | 3.6 |
1969 Q4 | 3.6 |
1970 Q1 | 4.2 |
1970 Q2 | 4.8 |
1970 Q3 | 5.2 |
1970 Q4 | 5.8 |
1971 Q1 | 5.9 |
1971 Q2 | 5.9 |
1971 Q3 | 6.0 |
1971 Q4 | 6.0 |
1972 Q1 | 5.8 |
1972 Q2 | 5.7 |
1972 Q3 | 5.6 |
1972 Q4 | 5.3 |
1973 Q1 | 5.0 |
1973 Q2 | 4.9 |
1973 Q3 | 4.8 |
1973 Q4 | 4.8 |
1974 Q1 | 5.1 |
1974 Q2 | 5.2 |
1974 Q3 | 5.6 |
1974 Q4 | 6.6 |
1975 Q1 | 8.2 |
1975 Q2 | 8.9 |
1975 Q3 | 8.5 |
1975 Q4 | 8.3 |
1976 Q1 | 7.7 |
1976 Q2 | 7.6 |
1976 Q3 | 7.7 |
1976 Q4 | 7.8 |
1977 Q1 | 7.5 |
1977 Q2 | 7.1 |
1977 Q3 | 6.9 |
1977 Q4 | 6.6 |
1978 Q1 | 6.3 |
1978 Q2 | 6.0 |
1978 Q3 | 6.0 |
1978 Q4 | 5.9 |
1979 Q1 | 5.9 |
1979 Q2 | 5.7 |
1979 Q3 | 5.9 |
1979 Q4 | 5.9 |
1980 Q1 | 6.3 |
1980 Q2 | 7.3 |
1980 Q3 | 7.7 |
1980 Q4 | 7.4 |
1981 Q1 | 7.4 |
1981 Q2 | 7.4 |
1981 Q3 | 7.4 |
1981 Q4 | 8.2 |
1982 Q1 | 8.8 |
1982 Q2 | 9.4 |
1982 Q3 | 9.9 |
1982 Q4 | 10.7 |
1983 Q1 | 10.4 |
1983 Q2 | 10.1 |
1983 Q3 | 9.4 |
1983 Q4 | 8.5 |
1984 Q1 | 7.9 |
1984 Q2 | 7.5 |
1984 Q3 | 7.4 |
1984 Q4 | 7.3 |
1985 Q1 | 7.3 |
1985 Q2 | 7.3 |
1985 Q3 | 7.2 |
1985 Q4 | 7.0 |
1986 Q1 | 7.0 |
1986 Q2 | 7.2 |
1986 Q3 | 7.0 |
1986 Q4 | 6.8 |
1987 Q1 | 6.6 |
1987 Q2 | 6.3 |
1987 Q3 | 6.0 |
1987 Q4 | 5.9 |
1988 Q1 | 5.7 |
1988 Q2 | 5.5 |
1988 Q3 | 5.5 |
1988 Q4 | 5.3 |
1989 Q1 | 5.2 |
1989 Q2 | 5.2 |
1989 Q3 | 5.3 |
1989 Q4 | 5.4 |
1990 Q1 | 5.3 |
1990 Q2 | 5.3 |
1990 Q3 | 5.7 |
1990 Q4 | 6.1 |
1991 Q1 | 6.6 |
1991 Q2 | 6.8 |
1991 Q3 | 6.9 |
1991 Q4 | 7.1 |
1992 Q1 | 7.4 |
1992 Q2 | 7.6 |
1992 Q3 | 7.6 |
1992 Q4 | 7.4 |
1993 Q1 | 7.2 |
1993 Q2 | 7.1 |
1993 Q3 | 6.8 |
1993 Q4 | 6.6 |
1994 Q1 | 6.6 |
1994 Q2 | 6.2 |
1994 Q3 | 6.0 |
1994 Q4 | 5.6 |
1995 Q1 | 5.5 |
1995 Q2 | 5.7 |
1995 Q3 | 5.7 |
1995 Q4 | 5.6 |
1996 Q1 | 5.5 |
1996 Q2 | 5.5 |
1996 Q3 | 5.3 |
1996 Q4 | 5.3 |
1997 Q1 | 5.2 |
1997 Q2 | 5.0 |
1997 Q3 | 4.9 |
1997 Q4 | 4.7 |
1998 Q1 | 4.6 |
1998 Q2 | 4.4 |
1998 Q3 | 4.5 |
1998 Q4 | 4.4 |
1999 Q1 | 4.3 |
1999 Q2 | 4.3 |
1999 Q3 | 4.2 |
1999 Q4 | 4.1 |
2000 Q1 | 4.0 |
2000 Q2 | 3.9 |
2000 Q3 | 4.0 |
2000 Q4 | 3.9 |
2001 Q1 | 4.2 |
2001 Q2 | 4.4 |
2001 Q3 | 4.8 |
2001 Q4 | 5.5 |
2002 Q1 | 5.7 |
2002 Q2 | 5.8 |
2002 Q3 | 5.7 |
2002 Q4 | 5.8 |
2003 Q1 | 5.9 |
2003 Q2 | 6.2 |
2003 Q3 | 6.1 |
2003 Q4 | 5.8 |
2004 Q1 | 5.7 |
2004 Q2 | 5.6 |
2004 Q3 | 5.4 |
2004 Q4 | 5.4 |
2005 Q1 | 5.3 |
2005 Q2 | 5.1 |
2005 Q3 | 5.0 |
2005 Q4 | 5.0 |
2006 Q1 | 4.7 |
2006 Q2 | 4.7 |
2006 Q3 | 4.6 |
2006 Q4 | 4.5 |
2007 Q1 | 4.5 |
2007 Q2 | 4.5 |
2007 Q3 | 4.7 |
2007 Q4 | 4.8 |
2008 Q1 | 5.0 |
2008 Q2 | 5.3 |
2008 Q3 | 6.0 |
2008 Q4 | 6.9 |
2009 Q1 | 8.3 |
2009 Q2 | 9.3 |
2009 Q3 | 9.6 |
2009 Q4 | 9.9 |
2010 Q1 | 9.8 |
2010 Q2 | 9.7 |
2010 Q3 | 9.5 |
2010 Q4 | 9.5 |
2011 Q1 | 9.0 |
2011 Q2 | 9.1 |
2011 Q3 | 9.0 |
2011 Q4 | 8.7 |
2012 Q1 | 8.3 |
2012 Q2 | 8.2 |
2012 Q3 | 8.0 |
2012 Q4 | 7.8 |
2013 Q1 | 7.7 |
2013 Q2 | 7.5 |
2013 Q3 | 7.3 |
2013 Q4 | 7.0 |
2014 Q1 | 6.6 |
2014 Q2 | 6.2 |
2014 Q3 | 6.1 |
2014 Q4 | 5.7 |
2015 Q1 | 5.6 |
2015 Q2 | 5.4 |
2015 Q3 | 5.1 |
2015 Q4 | 5.0 |
2016 Q1 | 5.0 |
2016 Q2 | 4.9 |
2016 Q3 | 4.9 |
2016 Q4 | 4.7 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
Changes in the unemployment rate in 2016 varied across demographic groups. In the fourth quarter of 2016, the jobless rates for adult men (4.4 percent) and adult women (4.3 percent) were both down over the year, while the rate for teenagers (16 to 19 years of age) was little changed, at 15.2 percent. Among the major race and ethnicity groups, the unemployment rate for Blacks was much higher than the rates for other major race and ethnicity groups. Over the year, the unemployment rate for Blacks declined by 0.9 percentage point, to 8.1 percent, the lowest rate since the third quarter of 2007. The rate for Asians declined by 0.8 percentage point, to 3.0 percent in the fourth quarter, and the jobless rate for Hispanics fell by 0.5 percentage point, to 5.8 percent.2 In contrast, the unemployment rate for Whites, at 4.3 percent, was little changed from a year earlier. (See figure 2.)
Year and quarter | Whites | Blacks | Asians | Hispanics |
---|---|---|---|---|
1990 Q1 | 4.6 | 11.0 | – | 7.4 |
1990 Q2 | 4.6 | 10.6 | – | 8.0 |
1990 Q3 | 4.9 | 11.7 | – | 8.2 |
1990 Q4 | 5.3 | 12.3 | – | 9.1 |
1991 Q1 | 5.8 | 12.2 | – | 9.3 |
1991 Q2 | 6.1 | 12.7 | – | 10.0 |
1991 Q3 | 6.2 | 12.2 | – | 10.3 |
1991 Q4 | 6.3 | 12.9 | – | 10.5 |
1992 Q1 | 6.5 | 14.0 | – | 11.2 |
1992 Q2 | 6.7 | 14.4 | – | 11.6 |
1992 Q3 | 6.7 | 14.2 | – | 11.7 |
1992 Q4 | 6.5 | 14.2 | – | 11.7 |
1993 Q1 | 6.2 | 13.8 | – | 11.4 |
1993 Q2 | 6.2 | 13.5 | – | 10.5 |
1993 Q3 | 6.0 | 12.5 | – | 10.2 |
1993 Q4 | 5.9 | 12.1 | – | 10.9 |
1994 Q1 | 5.7 | 12.8 | – | 10.2 |
1994 Q2 | 5.4 | 11.6 | – | 10.3 |
1994 Q3 | 5.2 | 10.9 | – | 10.0 |
1994 Q4 | 4.9 | 10.7 | – | 9.2 |
1995 Q1 | 4.8 | 10.0 | – | 9.4 |
1995 Q2 | 5.0 | 10.5 | – | 9.3 |
1995 Q3 | 4.9 | 11.0 | – | 9.2 |
1995 Q4 | 4.9 | 9.9 | – | 9.4 |
1996 Q1 | 4.8 | 10.4 | – | 9.6 |
1996 Q2 | 4.8 | 10.5 | – | 9.3 |
1996 Q3 | 4.5 | 10.6 | – | 8.6 |
1996 Q4 | 4.6 | 10.6 | – | 8.0 |
1997 Q1 | 4.5 | 10.7 | – | 8.3 |
1997 Q2 | 4.2 | 10.4 | – | 7.8 |
1997 Q3 | 4.2 | 9.5 | – | 7.5 |
1997 Q4 | 4.0 | 9.7 | – | 7.3 |
1998 Q1 | 4.0 | 9.3 | – | 7.0 |
1998 Q2 | 3.8 | 8.9 | – | 7.0 |
1998 Q3 | 3.9 | 9.1 | – | 7.3 |
1998 Q4 | 3.9 | 8.3 | – | 7.3 |
1999 Q1 | 3.7 | 8.0 | – | 6.4 |
1999 Q2 | 3.8 | 7.6 | – | 6.8 |
1999 Q3 | 3.7 | 8.3 | – | 6.6 |
1999 Q4 | 3.5 | 8.1 | – | 6.1 |
2000 Q1 | 3.5 | 7.9 | 3.8 | 5.8 |
2000 Q2 | 3.4 | 7.5 | 3.8 | 5.7 |
2000 Q3 | 3.5 | 7.6 | 3.7 | 5.9 |
2000 Q4 | 3.4 | 7.3 | 3.1 | 5.6 |
2001 Q1 | 3.7 | 8.1 | 3.4 | 6.0 |
2001 Q2 | 3.9 | 8.1 | 3.9 | 6.4 |
2001 Q3 | 4.2 | 8.7 | 5.2 | 6.5 |
2001 Q4 | 4.9 | 9.8 | 5.3 | 7.4 |
2002 Q1 | 5.0 | 10.1 | 5.6 | 7.4 |
2002 Q2 | 5.1 | 10.5 | 6.2 | 7.5 |
2002 Q3 | 5.1 | 9.8 | 6.0 | 7.4 |
2002 Q4 | 5.1 | 10.6 | 5.7 | 7.9 |
2003 Q1 | 5.1 | 10.5 | 6.0 | 7.8 |
2003 Q2 | 5.4 | 11.1 | 6.2 | 8.0 |
2003 Q3 | 5.4 | 11.0 | 6.1 | 7.7 |
2003 Q4 | 5.1 | 10.6 | 5.6 | 7.1 |
2004 Q1 | 5.0 | 10.1 | 4.7 | 7.4 |
2004 Q2 | 5.0 | 10.0 | 4.5 | 6.9 |
2004 Q3 | 4.7 | 10.6 | 4.1 | 6.8 |
2004 Q4 | 4.6 | 10.7 | 4.4 | 6.6 |
2005 Q1 | 4.5 | 10.6 | 4.2 | 6.1 |
2005 Q2 | 4.4 | 10.2 | 3.9 | 6.0 |
2005 Q3 | 4.3 | 9.4 | 4.3 | 5.9 |
2005 Q4 | 4.3 | 9.7 | 3.5 | 6.0 |
2006 Q1 | 4.1 | 9.3 | 3.3 | 5.5 |
2006 Q2 | 4.1 | 9.0 | 3.4 | 5.1 |
2006 Q3 | 4.0 | 9.1 | 2.8 | 5.4 |
2006 Q4 | 3.9 | 8.4 | 2.8 | 4.9 |
2007 Q1 | 4.0 | 8.1 | 3.0 | 5.4 |
2007 Q2 | 4.0 | 8.3 | 3.1 | 5.6 |
2007 Q3 | 4.2 | 7.9 | 3.2 | 5.8 |
2007 Q4 | 4.3 | 8.7 | 3.7 | 5.9 |
2008 Q1 | 4.4 | 8.9 | 3.3 | 6.6 |
2008 Q2 | 4.7 | 9.2 | 3.9 | 7.2 |
2008 Q3 | 5.3 | 10.6 | 4.1 | 7.9 |
2008 Q4 | 6.3 | 11.7 | 4.6 | 8.9 |
2009 Q1 | 7.6 | 13.4 | 6.5 | 11.0 |
2009 Q2 | 8.5 | 14.9 | 7.2 | 12.1 |
2009 Q3 | 8.8 | 15.0 | 7.7 | 12.8 |
2009 Q4 | 9.1 | 15.9 | 7.7 | 12.7 |
2010 Q1 | 8.9 | 16.5 | 8.0 | 12.8 |
2010 Q2 | 8.8 | 15.8 | 7.4 | 12.3 |
2010 Q3 | 8.6 | 15.9 | 7.3 | 12.2 |
2010 Q4 | 8.7 | 15.8 | 7.3 | 12.7 |
2011 Q1 | 8.1 | 15.7 | 6.9 | 11.9 |
2011 Q2 | 8.0 | 16.3 | 6.8 | 11.7 |
2011 Q3 | 7.9 | 16.1 | 7.5 | 11.2 |
2011 Q4 | 7.7 | 15.2 | 6.9 | 11.2 |
2012 Q1 | 7.4 | 13.9 | 6.4 | 10.7 |
2012 Q2 | 7.4 | 13.8 | 5.6 | 10.7 |
2012 Q3 | 7.2 | 13.9 | 5.6 | 10.0 |
2012 Q4 | 6.9 | 13.8 | 6.0 | 9.8 |
2013 Q1 | 6.8 | 13.5 | 5.8 | 9.6 |
2013 Q2 | 6.7 | 13.5 | 4.8 | 9.0 |
2013 Q3 | 6.4 | 12.8 | 5.3 | 9.2 |
2013 Q4 | 6.1 | 12.4 | 4.9 | 8.7 |
2014 Q1 | 5.8 | 12.0 | 5.4 | 8.1 |
2014 Q2 | 5.3 | 11.3 | 5.4 | 7.5 |
2014 Q3 | 5.2 | 11.3 | 4.4 | 7.3 |
2014 Q4 | 4.9 | 10.7 | 4.7 | 6.6 |
2015 Q1 | 4.8 | 10.2 | 3.8 | 6.8 |
2015 Q2 | 4.7 | 9.8 | 4.1 | 6.8 |
2015 Q3 | 4.5 | 9.2 | 3.7 | 6.6 |
2015 Q4 | 4.4 | 9.0 | 3.8 | 6.3 |
2016 Q1 | 4.3 | 8.8 | 3.8 | 5.6 |
2016 Q2 | 4.3 | 8.5 | 3.8 | 5.9 |
2016 Q3 | 4.3 | 8.2 | 4.0 | 5.8 |
2016 Q4 | 4.3 | 8.1 | 3.0 | 5.8 |
Note: People of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity may be of any race. Data for Asians are not available before 2000 and are not seasonally adjusted before 2010. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
Unemployment rates in 2016 continued to be higher for workers with less education than for those with more education. Among people 25 years and older, the jobless rate for those with less than a high school diploma was over 3 times higher than the rate for those with a bachelor’s degree or higher. The unemployment rate for those with less than a high school diploma edged up 0.7 percentage point, to 7.7 percent by the end of the year. The unemployment rate for high school graduates was little changed, at 5.1 percent in the fourth quarter of 2016, as was the rate for those with at least a bachelor’s degree, at 2.4 percent. The jobless rate for those with some college fell by 0.4 percentage point, to 3.9 percent. (See table 2 and figure 3.)
Characteristic | 2015 | 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fourth quarter | First quarter | Second quarter | Third quarter | Fourth quarter | ||
Less than a high school diploma | ||||||
Civilian labor force | 10,831 | 10,809 | 10,598 | 10,741 | 10,576 | -255 |
Participation rate | 45.6 | 46.1 | 45.3 | 46.3 | 45.1 | -0.5 |
Employed | 10,073 | 10,016 | 9,813 | 9,948 | 9,762 | -311 |
Employment–population ratio | 42.4 | 42.7 | 42.0 | 42.9 | 41.6 | -0.8 |
Unemployed | 758 | 793 | 785 | 793 | 814 | 56 |
Unemployment rate | 7.0 | 7.3 | 7.4 | 7.4 | 7.7 | 0.7 |
High school graduate, no college | ||||||
Civilian labor force | 35,193 | 35,582 | 35,501 | 35,710 | 35,788 | 595 |
Participation rate | 57.2 | 57.6 | 57.3 | 57.2 | 57.7 | 0.5 |
Employed | 33,298 | 33,695 | 33,663 | 33,893 | 33,947 | 649 |
Employment–population ratio | 54.1 | 54.6 | 54.3 | 54.3 | 54.8 | 0.7 |
Unemployed | 1,895 | 1,887 | 1,838 | 1,817 | 1,842 | -53 |
Unemployment rate | 5.4 | 5.3 | 5.2 | 5.1 | 5.1 | -0.3 |
Some college or associate’s degree | ||||||
Civilian labor force | 37,559 | 37,954 | 37,821 | 37,809 | 38,184 | 625 |
Participation rate | 66.3 | 66.3 | 66.1 | 66.7 | 66.3 | 0.0 |
Employed | 35,936 | 36,359 | 36,290 | 36,218 | 36,714 | 778 |
Employment–population ratio | 63.4 | 63.5 | 63.4 | 63.9 | 63.8 | 0.4 |
Unemployed | 1,624 | 1,596 | 1,531 | 1,591 | 1,470 | -154 |
Unemployment rate | 4.3 | 4.2 | 4.0 | 4.2 | 3.9 | -0.4 |
Bachelor’s degree and higher | ||||||
Civilian labor force | 52,873 | 53,132 | 53,603 | 54,140 | 53,998 | 1,125 |
Participation rate | 74.1 | 74.1 | 74.3 | 74.0 | 73.8 | -0.3 |
Employed | 51,562 | 51,783 | 52,276 | 52,747 | 52,679 | 1,117 |
Employment–population ratio | 72.3 | 72.2 | 72.5 | 72.1 | 72.0 | -0.3 |
Unemployed | 1,311 | 1,349 | 1,327 | 1,393 | 1,319 | 8 |
Unemployment rate | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.6 | 2.4 | -0.1 |
Note: Updated population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
Educational attainment | Fourth quarter | Percentage-point change | |
---|---|---|---|
2015 | 2016 | ||
Total, 25 years and older | 4.1 | 3.9 | -0.2 |
Less than a high school diploma | 7.0 | 7.7 | 0.7 |
High school graduate, no college | 5.4 | 5.1 | -0.3 |
Some college or associate’s degree | 4.3 | 3.9 | -0.4 |
Bachelor’s degree and higher | 2.5 | 2.4 | -0.1 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
In 2016, jobless rates varied across the major occupation groups.3 The rate continued to be lowest in the management, professional, and related occupations, although it edged up to 2.3 percent from 2.1 percent in 2015. The jobless rate for service occupations decreased by 0.9 percentage point, to 5.7 percent, and the rate for sales and office occupations declined over the year, to 4.2 percent. The jobless rate was little changed over the year for natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations (6.3 percent) and for production, transportation, and material moving occupations (5.6 percent). (See table 3.)
Occupational group | Total | Men | Women | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fourth quarter 2015 | Fourth quarter 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | Fourth quarter 2015 | Fourth quarter 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | Fourth quarter 2015 | Fourth quarter 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | |
Management, professional, and related occupations | 2.1 | 2.3 | 0.2 | 2.0 | 2.4 | 0.4 | 2.2 | 2.3 | 0.1 |
Management, business, and financial operations occupations | 2.1 | 2.4 | 0.3 | 1.8 | 2.2 | 0.4 | 2.4 | 2.6 | 0.2 |
Professional and related occupations | 2.1 | 2.3 | 0.2 | 2.1 | 2.5 | 0.4 | 2.2 | 2.1 | -0.1 |
Service occupations | 6.6 | 5.7 | -0.9 | 6.7 | 5.9 | -0.8 | 6.5 | 5.5 | -1.0 |
Health care support occupations | 5.4 | 5.1 | -0.3 | 2.5 | 5.3 | 2.8 | 5.7 | 5.1 | -0.6 |
Protective service occupations | 4.4 | 3.2 | -1.2 | 4.2 | 2.8 | -1.4 | 5.1 | 4.7 | -0.4 |
Food preparation and serving related occupations | 7.3 | 6.6 | -0.7 | 7.5 | 7.2 | -0.3 | 7.1 | 6.1 | -1.0 |
Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations | 8.1 | 6.6 | -1.5 | 8.0 | 7.3 | -0.7 | 8.3 | 5.7 | -2.6 |
Personal care and service occupations | 5.7 | 5.0 | -0.7 | 6.6 | 4.4 | -2.2 | 5.5 | 5.2 | -0.3 |
Sales and office occupations | 4.6 | 4.2 | -0.4 | 4.6 | 4.1 | -0.5 | 4.6 | 4.3 | -0.3 |
Sales and related occupations | 5.1 | 4.6 | -0.5 | 4.2 | 3.5 | -0.7 | 5.9 | 5.6 | -0.3 |
Office and administrative support occupations | 4.2 | 3.9 | -0.3 | 5.2 | 4.9 | -0.3 | 3.8 | 3.5 | -0.3 |
Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations | 6.7 | 6.3 | -0.4 | 6.4 | 6.0 | -0.4 | 12.6 | 11.4 | -1.2 |
Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations | 13.1 | 11.6 | -1.5 | 11.2 | 9.3 | -1.9 | 19.0 | 19.7 | 0.7 |
Construction and extraction occupations | 7.8 | 7.3 | -0.5 | 7.7 | 7.2 | -0.5 | 13.2 | 9.7 | -3.5 |
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations | 3.3 | 3.4 | 0.1 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 0.0 | 3.2 | 3.3 | 0.1 |
Production, transportation, and material moving occupations | 5.8 | 5.6 | -0.2 | 5.5 | 5.4 | -0.1 | 7.1 | 6.3 | -0.8 |
Production occupations | 5.0 | 5.4 | 0.4 | 4.6 | 5.2 | 0.6 | 6.0 | 5.8 | -0.2 |
Transportation and material moving occupations | 6.6 | 5.9 | -0.7 | 6.2 | 5.6 | -0.6 | 8.8 | 7.1 | -1.7 |
Note: Updated population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
Despite some relief in recent years, the proportion of people unemployed for long periods of time remained high by historical standards. In the fourth quarter of 2016, 1.9 million people were long-term unemployed (defined as those who were jobless for 27 weeks or longer); this number was down 211,000 from a year earlier.4 The long-term unemployed made up about 25 percent of the total unemployed in the fourth quarter of 2016. Although much lower than the historical high of 45.1 percent in the second quarter of 2010, the proportion of long-term unemployed was still notably higher than the prerecession figure of 17.8 percent in the third quarter of 2007.5 (See table 4 and figure 4.)
Reason and duration | 2015 | 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fourth quarter | First quarter | Second quarter | Third quarter | Fourth quarter | ||
Reason for unemployment | ||||||
Job losers and people who completed temporary jobs | 3,894 | 3,769 | 3,736 | 3,806 | 3,643 | -251 |
On temporary layoff | 945 | 938 | 927 | 1,023 | 974 | 29 |
Not on temporary layoff | 2,949 | 2,831 | 2,810 | 2,783 | 2,669 | -280 |
Permanent job losers | 2,101 | 1,987 | 1,987 | 1,985 | 1,904 | -197 |
People who completed temporary jobs | 848 | 844 | 823 | 798 | 765 | -83 |
Job leavers | 795 | 789 | 835 | 877 | 928 | 133 |
Reentrants | 2,450 | 2,463 | 2,276 | 2,303 | 2,275 | -175 |
New entrants | 844 | 817 | 868 | 825 | 767 | -77 |
Percent distribution | ||||||
Job losers and persons who completed temporary jobs | 48.8 | 48.1 | 48.4 | 48.7 | 47.9 | -0.9 |
On temporary layoff | 11.8 | 12.0 | 12.0 | 13.1 | 12.8 | 1.0 |
Not on temporary layoff | 36.9 | 36.1 | 36.4 | 35.6 | 35.1 | -1.8 |
Job leavers | 10.0 | 10.1 | 10.8 | 11.2 | 12.2 | 2.2 |
Reentrants | 30.7 | 31.4 | 29.5 | 29.5 | 29.9 | -0.8 |
New entrants | 10.6 | 10.4 | 11.2 | 10.6 | 10.1 | -0.5 |
Duration of unemployment | ||||||
Less than 5 weeks | 2,384 | 2,329 | 2,396 | 2,350 | 2,396 | 12 |
5 to 14 weeks | 2,254 | 2,245 | 2,188 | 2,267 | 2,188 | -66 |
15 weeks or longer | 3,334 | 3,304 | 3,178 | 3,126 | 3,030 | -304 |
15 to 26 weeks | 1,239 | 1,149 | 1,198 | 1,134 | 1,146 | -93 |
27 weeks or longer | 2,095 | 2,155 | 1,979 | 1,992 | 1,884 | -211 |
Average (mean) duration, in weeks | 28.0 | 28.7 | 27.4 | 27.6 | 26.4 | -1.6 |
Median duration, in weeks | 11.0 | 11.3 | 10.7 | 10.9 | 10.2 | -0.8 |
Percent distribution | ||||||
Less than 5 weeks | 29.9 | 29.6 | 30.9 | 30.3 | 31.5 | 1.6 |
5 to 14 weeks | 28.3 | 28.5 | 28.2 | 29.3 | 28.7 | 0.4 |
15 weeks or longer | 41.8 | 41.9 | 40.9 | 40.4 | 39.8 | -2.0 |
15 to 26 weeks | 15.5 | 14.6 | 15.4 | 14.6 | 15.1 | -0.4 |
27 weeks or longer | 26.3 | 27.4 | 25.5 | 25.7 | 24.7 | -1.6 |
Note: Updated population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
Year and quarter | Percentage of total unemployed | ||
---|---|---|---|
Unemployed 27 weeks or longer | Unemployed 52 weeks or longer | Unemployed 99 weeks or longer | |
1994 Q1 | 20.7 | 12.4 | 4.0 |
1994 Q2 | 20.9 | 12.8 | 4.5 |
1994 Q3 | 19.7 | 12.3 | 4.4 |
1994 Q4 | 19.8 | 11.4 | 3.7 |
1995 Q1 | 18.1 | 10.2 | 3.5 |
1995 Q2 | 17.7 | 9.9 | 3.5 |
1995 Q3 | 16.6 | 9.0 | 3.3 |
1995 Q4 | 16.5 | 9.6 | 3.0 |
1996 Q1 | 16.9 | 9.1 | 3.3 |
1996 Q2 | 18.6 | 10.0 | 3.5 |
1996 Q3 | 18.0 | 9.7 | 3.5 |
1996 Q4 | 16.2 | 9.0 | 3.3 |
1997 Q1 | 15.8 | 8.3 | 2.8 |
1997 Q2 | 15.9 | 8.3 | 2.3 |
1997 Q3 | 16.2 | 8.9 | 3.3 |
1997 Q4 | 15.4 | 9.6 | 3.3 |
1998 Q1 | 15.0 | 8.1 | 3.2 |
1998 Q2 | 13.7 | 7.9 | 3.2 |
1998 Q3 | 13.7 | 7.6 | 2.6 |
1998 Q4 | 13.8 | 8.4 | 2.9 |
1999 Q1 | 12.5 | 6.8 | 2.0 |
1999 Q2 | 12.5 | 7.1 | 2.4 |
1999 Q3 | 12.2 | 6.7 | 2.4 |
1999 Q4 | 12.1 | 6.6 | 2.4 |
2000 Q1 | 11.5 | 6.2 | 2.1 |
2000 Q2 | 11.0 | 5.4 | 2.2 |
2000 Q3 | 12.0 | 6.5 | 2.2 |
2000 Q4 | 11.1 | 5.9 | 2.1 |
2001 Q1 | 11.4 | 6.4 | 1.6 |
2001 Q2 | 10.7 | 5.6 | 1.6 |
2001 Q3 | 11.5 | 5.9 | 1.7 |
2001 Q4 | 13.1 | 6.4 | 2.1 |
2002 Q1 | 15.1 | 6.5 | 1.8 |
2002 Q2 | 18.4 | 8.3 | 2.2 |
2002 Q3 | 19.0 | 8.7 | 2.0 |
2002 Q4 | 20.8 | 10.7 | 2.7 |
2003 Q1 | 21.1 | 10.6 | 2.7 |
2003 Q2 | 22.1 | 12.4 | 3.6 |
2003 Q3 | 22.2 | 11.7 | 3.2 |
2003 Q4 | 22.9 | 12.6 | 3.4 |
2004 Q1 | 23.1 | 11.8 | 4.0 |
2004 Q2 | 22.2 | 13.6 | 4.6 |
2004 Q3 | 20.8 | 12.2 | 3.9 |
2004 Q4 | 21.2 | 13.2 | 4.6 |
2005 Q1 | 21.1 | 12.3 | 4.5 |
2005 Q2 | 19.9 | 12.2 | 4.5 |
2005 Q3 | 18.9 | 11.1 | 4.0 |
2005 Q4 | 18.5 | 11.3 | 3.8 |
2006 Q1 | 18.0 | 10.0 | 3.3 |
2006 Q2 | 18.0 | 10.1 | 3.0 |
2006 Q3 | 18.2 | 10.2 | 3.9 |
2006 Q4 | 16.2 | 9.7 | 3.1 |
2007 Q1 | 17.6 | 9.9 | 3.2 |
2007 Q2 | 16.8 | 9.5 | 3.3 |
2007 Q3 | 17.8 | 9.9 | 3.3 |
2007 Q4 | 18.0 | 10.4 | 3.1 |
2008 Q1 | 17.7 | 9.5 | 2.9 |
2008 Q2 | 18.1 | 9.8 | 2.8 |
2008 Q3 | 20.0 | 10.2 | 3.0 |
2008 Q4 | 22.2 | 12.7 | 3.5 |
2009 Q1 | 23.4 | 11.8 | 3.5 |
2009 Q2 | 27.7 | 14.2 | 3.8 |
2009 Q3 | 35.0 | 16.8 | 4.5 |
2009 Q4 | 38.7 | 21.9 | 5.8 |
2010 Q1 | 41.8 | 24.7 | 6.5 |
2010 Q2 | 45.1 | 30.9 | 9.5 |
2010 Q3 | 43.3 | 29.8 | 9.6 |
2010 Q4 | 43.2 | 31.0 | 10.7 |
2011 Q1 | 43.7 | 30.4 | 12.6 |
2011 Q2 | 44.1 | 31.9 | 14.3 |
2011 Q3 | 44.6 | 31.8 | 14.5 |
2011 Q4 | 42.8 | 31.4 | 15.1 |
2012 Q1 | 41.7 | 29.5 | 14.4 |
2012 Q2 | 42.0 | 30.1 | 14.7 |
2012 Q3 | 40.7 | 28.3 | 14.3 |
2012 Q4 | 39.9 | 29.2 | 14.7 |
2013 Q1 | 38.5 | 25.4 | 12.0 |
2013 Q2 | 37.4 | 26.5 | 12.9 |
2013 Q3 | 37.7 | 25.7 | 12.5 |
2013 Q4 | 36.9 | 26.2 | 12.8 |
2014 Q1 | 35.6 | 24.3 | 11.8 |
2014 Q2 | 34.2 | 23.6 | 12.2 |
2014 Q3 | 32.2 | 21.5 | 10.3 |
2014 Q4 | 31.6 | 22.6 | 11.1 |
2015 Q1 | 30.5 | 19.9 | 9.7 |
2015 Q2 | 27.8 | 19.5 | 9.8 |
2015 Q3 | 27.2 | 16.5 | 8.1 |
2015 Q4 | 26.3 | 18.5 | 8.9 |
2016 Q1 | 27.4 | 17.9 | 8.8 |
2016 Q2 | 25.5 | 17.2 | 8.3 |
2016 Q3 | 25.7 | 16.4 | 8.0 |
2016 Q4 | 24.7 | 16.8 | 7.8 |
Note: Data for 27 weeks or longer are seasonally adjusted. Data for 52 weeks or longer and 99 weeks or longer are not seasonally adjusted. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
The number of people unemployed for a year or longer (1.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2016, not seasonally adjusted) edged down in 2016. This number represents 16.8 percent of the total unemployed in the fourth quarter of 2016, the lowest proportion since the second quarter of 2009 (14.2 percent). The number of people who were jobless for 99 weeks or longer, or about 2 years, was 565,000 in the fourth quarter of 2016. Despite declines in recent years, about 8 percent of unemployed people had been jobless for about 2 years or longer at the end of 2016—still well above prerecession levels.6
The CPS categorizes the unemployed by reason for unemployment. The four groups are (1) job losers and people who complete temporary jobs, (2) job leavers, (3) reentrants, and (4) new entrants. The number of people unemployed because they lost their job continued to decline in 2016, reaching a level of 3.6 million by the end of the year. Job losers accounted for the largest share of the unemployed―47.9 percent in the fourth quarter of 2016. Job losers are divided into two categories: people on temporary layoff who expect to be recalled to their jobs and people not on temporary layoff. Those in the latter category do not expect to be recalled; they are further categorized as either permanent job losers or people who have completed temporary jobs. (See table 4 and figure 5.)
Year and quarter | Job losers | Job leavers | Reentrants | New entrants |
---|---|---|---|---|
1990 Q1 | 3,101 | 1,070 | 1,843 | 713 |
1990 Q2 | 3,173 | 1,027 | 1,859 | 660 |
1990 Q3 | 3,467 | 1,034 | 1,968 | 674 |
1990 Q4 | 3,864 | 1,031 | 2,062 | 704 |
1991 Q1 | 4,461 | 1,038 | 2,069 | 729 |
1991 Q2 | 4,667 | 1,006 | 2,169 | 789 |
1991 Q3 | 4,787 | 986 | 2,116 | 803 |
1991 Q4 | 4,893 | 988 | 2,214 | 845 |
1992 Q1 | 5,270 | 979 | 2,272 | 871 |
1992 Q2 | 5,552 | 1,003 | 2,235 | 953 |
1992 Q3 | 5,467 | 1,056 | 2,332 | 1,003 |
1992 Q4 | 5,275 | 975 | 2,304 | 927 |
1993 Q1 | 4,950 | 1,005 | 2,275 | 966 |
1993 Q2 | 4,954 | 973 | 2,248 | 950 |
1993 Q3 | 4,862 | 939 | 2,136 | 893 |
1993 Q4 | 4,590 | 989 | 2,130 | 872 |
1994 Q1 | 4,195 | 840 | 2,928 | 627 |
1994 Q2 | 3,717 | 804 | 2,939 | 603 |
1994 Q3 | 3,723 | 797 | 2,706 | 611 |
1994 Q4 | 3,535 | 721 | 2,574 | 582 |
1995 Q1 | 3,431 | 767 | 2,465 | 572 |
1995 Q2 | 3,494 | 855 | 2,597 | 584 |
1995 Q3 | 3,469 | 845 | 2,564 | 592 |
1995 Q4 | 3,519 | 833 | 2,485 | 573 |
1996 Q1 | 3,531 | 787 | 2,465 | 586 |
1996 Q2 | 3,506 | 705 | 2,564 | 571 |
1996 Q3 | 3,191 | 758 | 2,506 | 580 |
1996 Q4 | 3,211 | 846 | 2,524 | 583 |
1997 Q1 | 3,189 | 814 | 2,502 | 607 |
1997 Q2 | 3,050 | 795 | 2,380 | 570 |
1997 Q3 | 2,934 | 847 | 2,253 | 563 |
1997 Q4 | 2,941 | 714 | 2,212 | 534 |
1998 Q1 | 2,883 | 773 | 2,201 | 536 |
1998 Q2 | 2,770 | 699 | 2,081 | 528 |
1998 Q3 | 2,823 | 754 | 2,143 | 488 |
1998 Q4 | 2,811 | 708 | 2,105 | 523 |
1999 Q1 | 2,687 | 746 | 2,031 | 497 |
1999 Q2 | 2,663 | 807 | 2,010 | 440 |
1999 Q3 | 2,623 | 785 | 1,991 | 477 |
1999 Q4 | 2,495 | 799 | 1,989 | 468 |
2000 Q1 | 2,568 | 785 | 2,006 | 414 |
2000 Q2 | 2,400 | 766 | 2,005 | 433 |
2000 Q3 | 2,547 | 795 | 1,917 | 449 |
2000 Q4 | 2,531 | 771 | 1,907 | 437 |
2001 Q1 | 2,920 | 823 | 1,935 | 406 |
2001 Q2 | 3,185 | 794 | 1,884 | 464 |
2001 Q3 | 3,491 | 843 | 2,094 | 469 |
2001 Q4 | 4,420 | 880 | 2,240 | 497 |
2002 Q1 | 4,460 | 887 | 2,350 | 510 |
2002 Q2 | 4,638 | 906 | 2,392 | 524 |
2002 Q3 | 4,581 | 826 | 2,329 | 564 |
2002 Q4 | 4,739 | 851 | 2,399 | 535 |
2003 Q1 | 4,752 | 809 | 2,405 | 604 |
2003 Q2 | 4,964 | 823 | 2,588 | 642 |
2003 Q3 | 4,969 | 804 | 2,476 | 669 |
2003 Q4 | 4,669 | 837 | 2,415 | 641 |
2004 Q1 | 4,407 | 834 | 2,466 | 657 |
2004 Q2 | 4,210 | 864 | 2,454 | 673 |
2004 Q3 | 4,081 | 862 | 2,351 | 701 |
2004 Q4 | 4,051 | 875 | 2,339 | 712 |
2005 Q1 | 3,900 | 883 | 2,378 | 695 |
2005 Q2 | 3,630 | 899 | 2,376 | 708 |
2005 Q3 | 3,594 | 836 | 2,396 | 621 |
2005 Q4 | 3,512 | 871 | 2,383 | 648 |
2006 Q1 | 3,371 | 842 | 2,251 | 655 |
2006 Q2 | 3,449 | 848 | 2,157 | 585 |
2006 Q3 | 3,276 | 831 | 2,311 | 632 |
2006 Q4 | 3,214 | 784 | 2,221 | 583 |
2007 Q1 | 3,323 | 800 | 2,146 | 612 |
2007 Q2 | 3,366 | 773 | 2,143 | 596 |
2007 Q3 | 3,630 | 819 | 2,090 | 619 |
2007 Q4 | 3,753 | 777 | 2,195 | 684 |
2008 Q1 | 3,955 | 805 | 2,151 | 679 |
2008 Q2 | 4,236 | 858 | 2,381 | 736 |
2008 Q3 | 4,912 | 965 | 2,639 | 824 |
2008 Q4 | 6,196 | 949 | 2,714 | 795 |
2009 Q1 | 8,023 | 873 | 2,924 | 882 |
2009 Q2 | 9,303 | 864 | 3,213 | 956 |
2009 Q3 | 9,687 | 871 | 3,268 | 1,081 |
2009 Q4 | 9,758 | 921 | 3,339 | 1,224 |
2010 Q1 | 9,504 | 894 | 3,570 | 1,178 |
2010 Q2 | 9,230 | 930 | 3,486 | 1,188 |
2010 Q3 | 9,089 | 859 | 3,383 | 1,235 |
2010 Q4 | 9,069 | 878 | 3,435 | 1,286 |
2011 Q1 | 8,389 | 897 | 3,341 | 1,306 |
2011 Q2 | 8,238 | 945 | 3,436 | 1,258 |
2011 Q3 | 8,050 | 964 | 3,458 | 1,304 |
2011 Q4 | 7,699 | 1,016 | 3,362 | 1,282 |
2012 Q1 | 7,145 | 1,025 | 3,291 | 1,338 |
2012 Q2 | 6,979 | 945 | 3,357 | 1,353 |
2012 Q3 | 6,825 | 920 | 3,342 | 1,273 |
2012 Q4 | 6,511 | 981 | 3,403 | 1,309 |
2013 Q1 | 6,469 | 976 | 3,299 | 1,281 |
2013 Q2 | 6,182 | 950 | 3,286 | 1,272 |
2013 Q3 | 5,848 | 940 | 3,187 | 1,247 |
2013 Q4 | 5,809 | 862 | 3,043 | 1,188 |
2014 Q1 | 5,425 | 809 | 2,924 | 1,190 |
2014 Q2 | 4,975 | 843 | 2,751 | 1,059 |
2014 Q3 | 4,669 | 842 | 2,871 | 1,079 |
2014 Q4 | 4,397 | 800 | 2,764 | 1,026 |
2015 Q1 | 4,221 | 872 | 2,673 | 936 |
2015 Q2 | 4,168 | 810 | 2,597 | 912 |
2015 Q3 | 3,954 | 802 | 2,423 | 835 |
2015 Q4 | 3,894 | 795 | 2,450 | 844 |
2016 Q1 | 3,769 | 789 | 2,463 | 817 |
2016 Q2 | 3,736 | 835 | 2,276 | 868 |
2016 Q3 | 3,806 | 877 | 2,303 | 825 |
2016 Q4 | 3,643 | 928 | 2,275 | 767 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
The number of unemployed reentrants into the labor force continued to decline, falling by 175,000 over the year and reaching 2.3 million in the fourth quarter. Reentrants are people who had previously worked but were not in the labor force before actively seeking work again. Reentrants accounted for about 3 in 10 of the unemployed at the end of 2016. The number of unemployed job leavers (people who voluntarily left their jobs) rose by 133,000, reaching 928,000 in the fourth quarter of 2016. The number of new entrants to the labor force (job seekers who have never worked before), at 767,000 in the fourth quarter, showed little movement over the year.
In a given month, millions of people move between the three labor force states: employment, unemployment, and not in the labor force.7 Labor force status flows measure this labor market “churn” and capture the underlying movement between the monthly stock (or point-in-time) estimates. In 2016, 16.2 million people, or 6.4 percent of the population 16 years and older, changed their labor force status in an average month. This represented the lowest rate of labor market churn since flows data became available in 1990. The series peaked at 7.5 percent of the population in 2010, in the aftermath of the most recent recession (2007–09).
One can better understand unemployment by using flows data to analyze the current employment status of people who were unemployed in the previous month. Figure 6 shows the proportions of the unemployed who found a job, remained unemployed, or stopped looking for work and left the labor force over the month. These proportions are calculated as 3-month moving averages. The likelihood of an unemployed person finding a job was 25.7 percent in December 2016, little changed from a year earlier. Before the start of the last recession, the rate was 26.9 percent. The year 2016 was the second consecutive year in which unemployed people were about as likely to become employed as they were to leave the labor force. From 2009 to 2014, a higher proportion of the unemployed stopped looking for work than found a job. These measures have been moving toward, but have not quite returned to, their prerecession patterns. (See figure 6.)
Month and year | Found employment | Left the labor force | Remained unemployed |
---|---|---|---|
Apr 1990 | 29.6 | 21.1 | 49.3 |
May 1990 | 28.4 | 20.8 | 50.7 |
Jun 1990 | 28.2 | 20.4 | 51.4 |
Jul 1990 | 28.3 | 20.4 | 51.3 |
Aug 1990 | 28.2 | 20.4 | 51.4 |
Sep 1990 | 26.7 | 19.9 | 53.4 |
Oct 1990 | 26.7 | 19.3 | 54.0 |
Nov 1990 | 26.2 | 19.3 | 54.5 |
Dec 1990 | 26.4 | 19.3 | 54.3 |
Jan 1991 | 25.7 | 19.6 | 54.7 |
Feb 1991 | 25.4 | 19.4 | 55.1 |
Mar 1991 | 25.4 | 19.1 | 55.5 |
Apr 1991 | 26.0 | 18.2 | 55.7 |
May 1991 | 25.3 | 18.3 | 56.4 |
Jun 1991 | 25.3 | 18.3 | 56.4 |
Jul 1991 | 24.1 | 18.9 | 57.0 |
Aug 1991 | 24.6 | 18.8 | 56.6 |
Sep 1991 | 24.9 | 18.7 | 56.4 |
Oct 1991 | 25.0 | 18.8 | 56.2 |
Nov 1991 | 24.7 | 18.5 | 56.8 |
Dec 1991 | 23.3 | 18.7 | 58.0 |
Jan 1992 | 24.0 | 18.1 | 57.8 |
Feb 1992 | 23.4 | 17.6 | 59.0 |
Mar 1992 | 23.6 | 17.1 | 59.3 |
Apr 1992 | 22.5 | 17.4 | 60.1 |
May 1992 | 22.8 | 17.6 | 59.6 |
Jun 1992 | 22.9 | 17.5 | 59.6 |
Jul 1992 | 22.9 | 17.5 | 59.6 |
Aug 1992 | 22.6 | 17.5 | 59.8 |
Sep 1992 | 22.7 | 18.1 | 59.2 |
Oct 1992 | 22.8 | 18.5 | 58.8 |
Nov 1992 | 23.3 | 18.4 | 58.3 |
Dec 1992 | 23.5 | 18.5 | 57.9 |
Jan 1993 | 23.4 | 18.1 | 58.4 |
Feb 1993 | 23.0 | 19.0 | 58.0 |
Mar 1993 | 23.0 | 19.0 | 58.0 |
Apr 1993 | 23.3 | 19.0 | 57.7 |
May 1993 | 23.9 | 18.0 | 58.1 |
Jun 1993 | 23.7 | 17.4 | 58.9 |
Jul 1993 | 24.0 | 17.7 | 58.3 |
Aug 1993 | 23.8 | 18.4 | 57.8 |
Sep 1993 | 23.8 | 19.1 | 57.1 |
Oct 1993 | 23.7 | 19.1 | 57.3 |
Nov 1993 | 24.0 | 19.2 | 56.8 |
Dec 1993 | 25.0 | 19.2 | 55.8 |
Jan 1994 | 25.4 | 19.5 | 55.0 |
Feb 1994 | 25.7 | 20.0 | 54.3 |
Mar 1994 | 25.6 | 20.8 | 53.5 |
Apr 1994 | 25.7 | 21.8 | 52.5 |
May 1994 | 26.2 | 22.5 | 51.3 |
Jun 1994 | 26.2 | 23.3 | 50.4 |
Jul 1994 | 26.6 | 23.5 | 49.8 |
Aug 1994 | 26.9 | 23.4 | 49.7 |
Sep 1994 | 27.4 | 22.6 | 50.0 |
Oct 1994 | 27.1 | 22.3 | 50.6 |
Nov 1994 | 27.0 | 22.8 | 50.2 |
Dec 1994 | 28.0 | 23.1 | 48.9 |
Jan 1995 | 28.8 | 23.4 | 47.7 |
Feb 1995 | 29.0 | 23.1 | 47.8 |
Mar 1995 | 28.4 | 22.7 | 48.9 |
Apr 1995 | 28.3 | 22.1 | 49.6 |
May 1995 | 27.7 | 22.5 | 49.8 |
Jun 1995 | 27.5 | 22.8 | 49.7 |
Jul 1995 | 27.4 | 23.1 | 49.5 |
Aug 1995 | 28.2 | 22.6 | 49.2 |
Sep 1995 | 28.1 | 22.9 | 49.0 |
Oct 1995 | 28.5 | 23.5 | 48.0 |
Nov 1995 | 27.8 | 23.7 | 48.5 |
Dec 1995 | 27.1 | 23.5 | 49.4 |
Jan 1996 | 26.6 | 23.0 | 50.4 |
Feb 1996 | 26.8 | 23.1 | 50.1 |
Mar 1996 | 27.4 | 23.1 | 49.5 |
Apr 1996 | 27.3 | 23.0 | 49.7 |
May 1996 | 27.1 | 23.1 | 49.8 |
Jun 1996 | 27.1 | 23.6 | 49.3 |
Jul 1996 | 27.5 | 23.7 | 48.8 |
Aug 1996 | 28.2 | 23.4 | 48.4 |
Sep 1996 | 28.6 | 23.0 | 48.3 |
Oct 1996 | 28.9 | 22.5 | 48.5 |
Nov 1996 | 28.5 | 22.6 | 48.9 |
Dec 1996 | 27.8 | 22.0 | 50.1 |
Jan 1997 | 28.2 | 22.6 | 49.2 |
Feb 1997 | 28.6 | 22.4 | 49.0 |
Mar 1997 | 29.4 | 22.4 | 48.2 |
Apr 1997 | 28.7 | 22.7 | 48.6 |
May 1997 | 29.0 | 22.9 | 48.1 |
Jun 1997 | 29.3 | 23.3 | 47.4 |
Jul 1997 | 30.2 | 23.0 | 46.8 |
Aug 1997 | 29.3 | 23.6 | 47.0 |
Sep 1997 | 28.6 | 23.7 | 47.7 |
Oct 1997 | 28.1 | 24.1 | 47.8 |
Nov 1997 | 28.9 | 23.5 | 47.6 |
Dec 1997 | 30.1 | 23.6 | 46.3 |
Jan 1998 | 30.1 | 23.6 | 46.3 |
Feb 1998 | 30.5 | 24.2 | 45.2 |
Mar 1998 | 29.9 | 24.8 | 45.3 |
Apr 1998 | 30.8 | 25.0 | 44.1 |
May 1998 | 30.5 | 24.6 | 44.8 |
Jun 1998 | 31.0 | 23.6 | 45.4 |
Jul 1998 | 30.4 | 23.3 | 46.3 |
Aug 1998 | 30.9 | 23.0 | 46.1 |
Sep 1998 | 30.9 | 23.5 | 45.6 |
Oct 1998 | 31.0 | 23.6 | 45.4 |
Nov 1998 | 30.9 | 24.3 | 44.8 |
Dec 1998 | 30.7 | 25.1 | 44.2 |
Jan 1999 | 30.9 | 25.3 | 43.8 |
Feb 1999 | 31.0 | 24.9 | 44.0 |
Mar 1999 | 31.9 | 24.3 | 43.8 |
Apr 1999 | 31.2 | 24.3 | 44.4 |
May 1999 | 31.1 | 24.8 | 44.1 |
Jun 1999 | 30.4 | 24.4 | 45.2 |
Jul 1999 | 31.2 | 23.7 | 45.1 |
Aug 1999 | 31.6 | 23.0 | 45.4 |
Sep 1999 | 31.8 | 22.8 | 45.4 |
Oct 1999 | 31.7 | 23.4 | 44.8 |
Nov 1999 | 32.5 | 23.7 | 43.8 |
Dec 1999 | 33.1 | 24.5 | 42.4 |
Jan 2000 | 34.7 | 23.7 | 41.6 |
Feb 2000 | 33.6 | 23.7 | 42.7 |
Mar 2000 | 33.0 | 23.8 | 43.2 |
Apr 2000 | 32.5 | 24.5 | 43.0 |
May 2000 | 32.2 | 24.8 | 43.0 |
Jun 2000 | 32.1 | 25.1 | 42.7 |
Jul 2000 | 32.0 | 24.6 | 43.4 |
Aug 2000 | 32.5 | 24.5 | 43.0 |
Sep 2000 | 32.4 | 24.4 | 43.2 |
Oct 2000 | 32.5 | 24.3 | 43.2 |
Nov 2000 | 32.1 | 23.6 | 44.2 |
Dec 2000 | 31.5 | 22.7 | 45.8 |
Jan 2001 | 30.9 | 22.6 | 46.5 |
Feb 2001 | 30.7 | 23.1 | 46.2 |
Mar 2001 | 31.0 | 23.5 | 45.4 |
Apr 2001 | 30.6 | 24.4 | 45.0 |
May 2001 | 31.3 | 24.2 | 44.5 |
Jun 2001 | 31.1 | 23.8 | 45.0 |
Jul 2001 | 31.1 | 22.9 | 45.9 |
Aug 2001 | 30.0 | 22.5 | 47.5 |
Sep 2001 | 29.4 | 22.2 | 48.4 |
Oct 2001 | 28.4 | 22.0 | 49.6 |
Nov 2001 | 27.9 | 21.6 | 50.5 |
Dec 2001 | 27.0 | 21.3 | 51.7 |
Jan 2002 | 26.5 | 21.3 | 52.2 |
Feb 2002 | 26.8 | 20.8 | 52.4 |
Mar 2002 | 26.9 | 20.5 | 52.5 |
Apr 2002 | 26.8 | 19.9 | 53.3 |
May 2002 | 25.5 | 20.4 | 54.1 |
Jun 2002 | 24.6 | 20.8 | 54.7 |
Jul 2002 | 24.2 | 22.0 | 53.8 |
Aug 2002 | 24.6 | 21.7 | 53.6 |
Sep 2002 | 25.4 | 21.5 | 53.0 |
Oct 2002 | 25.7 | 20.9 | 53.4 |
Nov 2002 | 24.8 | 21.4 | 53.8 |
Dec 2002 | 23.8 | 21.4 | 54.7 |
Jan 2003 | 24.0 | 21.9 | 54.1 |
Feb 2003 | 23.8 | 21.7 | 54.5 |
Mar 2003 | 23.8 | 22.5 | 53.7 |
Apr 2003 | 23.5 | 21.7 | 54.7 |
May 2003 | 23.5 | 21.8 | 54.6 |
Jun 2003 | 23.7 | 20.9 | 55.4 |
Jul 2003 | 23.2 | 21.2 | 55.6 |
Aug 2003 | 23.4 | 21.5 | 55.1 |
Sep 2003 | 23.2 | 21.8 | 54.9 |
Oct 2003 | 23.3 | 22.1 | 54.6 |
Nov 2003 | 23.5 | 21.7 | 54.8 |
Dec 2003 | 24.5 | 21.9 | 53.6 |
Jan 2004 | 25.1 | 21.1 | 53.8 |
Feb 2004 | 24.9 | 21.8 | 53.2 |
Mar 2004 | 24.0 | 22.0 | 53.9 |
Apr 2004 | 24.2 | 22.8 | 53.0 |
May 2004 | 24.8 | 22.2 | 53.0 |
Jun 2004 | 25.2 | 21.9 | 52.9 |
Jul 2004 | 25.4 | 21.9 | 52.6 |
Aug 2004 | 25.1 | 22.8 | 52.1 |
Sep 2004 | 25.7 | 23.4 | 50.9 |
Oct 2004 | 26.1 | 23.3 | 50.7 |
Nov 2004 | 26.8 | 22.5 | 50.6 |
Dec 2004 | 26.6 | 22.2 | 51.1 |
Jan 2005 | 26.2 | 22.2 | 51.6 |
Feb 2005 | 26.1 | 21.9 | 52.0 |
Mar 2005 | 26.0 | 22.1 | 51.9 |
Apr 2005 | 26.3 | 22.2 | 51.5 |
May 2005 | 26.1 | 22.9 | 51.0 |
Jun 2005 | 26.1 | 23.0 | 50.8 |
Jul 2005 | 25.8 | 23.7 | 50.5 |
Aug 2005 | 26.8 | 23.7 | 49.5 |
Sep 2005 | 26.6 | 23.9 | 49.6 |
Oct 2005 | 26.6 | 23.8 | 49.6 |
Nov 2005 | 26.2 | 23.8 | 50.0 |
Dec 2005 | 26.5 | 24.5 | 49.0 |
Jan 2006 | 27.1 | 24.7 | 48.1 |
Feb 2006 | 26.6 | 25.0 | 48.4 |
Mar 2006 | 27.0 | 24.2 | 48.7 |
Apr 2006 | 27.0 | 24.2 | 48.8 |
May 2006 | 27.7 | 24.4 | 47.8 |
Jun 2006 | 28.3 | 24.6 | 47.0 |
Jul 2006 | 28.6 | 24.6 | 46.8 |
Aug 2006 | 28.9 | 24.5 | 46.6 |
Sep 2006 | 29.0 | 24.1 | 46.8 |
Oct 2006 | 28.6 | 24.4 | 46.9 |
Nov 2006 | 28.5 | 23.8 | 47.7 |
Dec 2006 | 28.8 | 23.6 | 47.6 |
Jan 2007 | 29.2 | 22.7 | 48.0 |
Feb 2007 | 29.6 | 23.5 | 46.8 |
Mar 2007 | 29.6 | 23.6 | 46.8 |
Apr 2007 | 29.2 | 23.5 | 47.3 |
May 2007 | 28.9 | 22.9 | 48.2 |
Jun 2007 | 27.4 | 22.9 | 49.6 |
Jul 2007 | 27.4 | 23.0 | 49.6 |
Aug 2007 | 26.9 | 22.8 | 50.2 |
Sep 2007 | 27.3 | 22.6 | 50.1 |
Oct 2007 | 27.1 | 22.6 | 50.3 |
Nov 2007 | 26.9 | 23.0 | 50.1 |
Dec 2007 | 26.9 | 22.3 | 50.8 |
Jan 2008 | 26.9 | 21.5 | 51.5 |
Feb 2008 | 26.4 | 21.9 | 51.6 |
Mar 2008 | 26.3 | 22.6 | 51.0 |
Apr 2008 | 26.4 | 23.9 | 49.7 |
May 2008 | 26.2 | 23.0 | 50.8 |
Jun 2008 | 25.3 | 22.6 | 52.1 |
Jul 2008 | 24.3 | 21.2 | 54.5 |
Aug 2008 | 23.8 | 21.1 | 55.1 |
Sep 2008 | 23.9 | 21.3 | 54.8 |
Oct 2008 | 23.4 | 21.6 | 55.0 |
Nov 2008 | 22.5 | 21.3 | 56.2 |
Dec 2008 | 21.0 | 21.0 | 58.0 |
Jan 2009 | 20.1 | 20.6 | 59.2 |
Feb 2009 | 19.5 | 20.0 | 60.4 |
Mar 2009 | 18.6 | 19.4 | 61.9 |
Apr 2009 | 18.2 | 18.8 | 62.9 |
May 2009 | 17.3 | 18.7 | 64.0 |
Jun 2009 | 17.6 | 18.2 | 64.2 |
Jul 2009 | 17.3 | 18.4 | 64.3 |
Aug 2009 | 17.3 | 18.7 | 63.9 |
Sep 2009 | 17.1 | 18.8 | 64.0 |
Oct 2009 | 16.4 | 18.7 | 64.9 |
Nov 2009 | 16.6 | 18.2 | 65.2 |
Dec 2009 | 15.9 | 18.6 | 65.4 |
Jan 2010 | 16.3 | 18.7 | 64.9 |
Feb 2010 | 16.2 | 18.9 | 64.9 |
Mar 2010 | 16.8 | 18.7 | 64.4 |
Apr 2010 | 17.3 | 18.5 | 64.2 |
May 2010 | 17.6 | 18.9 | 63.5 |
Jun 2010 | 17.2 | 19.5 | 63.3 |
Jul 2010 | 16.9 | 20.0 | 63.0 |
Aug 2010 | 16.7 | 20.0 | 63.2 |
Sep 2010 | 16.8 | 19.9 | 63.3 |
Oct 2010 | 16.6 | 19.9 | 63.5 |
Nov 2010 | 16.6 | 19.7 | 63.7 |
Dec 2010 | 17.0 | 19.9 | 63.0 |
Jan 2011 | 16.9 | 20.3 | 62.4 |
Feb 2011 | 16.7 | 20.8 | 62.1 |
Mar 2011 | 16.7 | 20.6 | 62.4 |
Apr 2011 | 16.7 | 20.5 | 62.8 |
May 2011 | 16.8 | 20.4 | 62.8 |
Jun 2011 | 16.9 | 20.5 | 62.6 |
Jul 2011 | 17.1 | 20.6 | 62.3 |
Aug 2011 | 17.2 | 20.4 | 62.4 |
Sep 2011 | 17.2 | 20.8 | 62.0 |
Oct 2011 | 17.5 | 20.2 | 62.3 |
Nov 2011 | 17.9 | 20.3 | 61.8 |
Dec 2011 | 18.3 | 19.9 | 61.8 |
Jan 2012 | 18.4 | 20.7 | 60.9 |
Feb 2012 | 18.4 | 21.0 | 60.6 |
Mar 2012 | 18.3 | 21.2 | 60.4 |
Apr 2012 | 18.1 | 21.1 | 60.8 |
May 2012 | 18.0 | 21.2 | 60.8 |
Jun 2012 | 17.8 | 21.2 | 61.0 |
Jul 2012 | 17.9 | 21.2 | 60.9 |
Aug 2012 | 17.8 | 21.7 | 60.5 |
Sep 2012 | 18.1 | 22.2 | 59.6 |
Oct 2012 | 18.6 | 22.6 | 58.7 |
Nov 2012 | 18.8 | 22.8 | 58.4 |
Dec 2012 | 18.4 | 22.7 | 58.9 |
Jan 2013 | 18.1 | 22.0 | 59.8 |
Feb 2013 | 18.4 | 21.8 | 59.8 |
Mar 2013 | 18.5 | 21.8 | 59.7 |
Apr 2013 | 18.6 | 21.9 | 59.5 |
May 2013 | 18.7 | 21.4 | 59.9 |
Jun 2013 | 19.2 | 20.9 | 59.8 |
Jul 2013 | 19.7 | 21.4 | 58.9 |
Aug 2013 | 19.6 | 22.0 | 58.4 |
Sep 2013 | 19.2 | 22.3 | 58.5 |
Oct 2013 | 18.6 | 23.0 | 58.5 |
Nov 2013 | 18.7 | 22.5 | 58.8 |
Dec 2013 | 19.3 | 22.9 | 57.8 |
Jan 2014 | 20.3 | 22.7 | 57.0 |
Feb 2014 | 21.3 | 22.5 | 56.2 |
Mar 2014 | 22.0 | 22.0 | 56.0 |
Apr 2014 | 22.0 | 22.2 | 55.8 |
May 2014 | 21.5 | 23.2 | 55.2 |
Jun 2014 | 21.5 | 23.9 | 54.6 |
Jul 2014 | 21.3 | 23.7 | 55.0 |
Aug 2014 | 21.7 | 23.6 | 54.7 |
Sep 2014 | 21.9 | 23.4 | 54.7 |
Oct 2014 | 22.8 | 23.5 | 53.7 |
Nov 2014 | 23.0 | 23.8 | 53.2 |
Dec 2014 | 23.3 | 24.2 | 52.4 |
Jan 2015 | 22.8 | 24.1 | 53.1 |
Feb 2015 | 23.0 | 24.4 | 52.6 |
Mar 2015 | 23.0 | 24.7 | 52.3 |
Apr 2015 | 23.5 | 25.0 | 51.4 |
May 2015 | 23.5 | 24.4 | 52.1 |
Jun 2015 | 23.7 | 24.2 | 52.0 |
Jul 2015 | 23.2 | 24.7 | 52.1 |
Aug 2015 | 23.8 | 25.0 | 51.0 |
Sep 2015 | 23.9 | 25.3 | 50.7 |
Oct 2015 | 24.5 | 24.8 | 50.6 |
Nov 2015 | 24.4 | 24.3 | 51.3 |
Dec 2015 | 25.1 | 23.3 | 51.6 |
Jan 2016 | 25.5 | 23.0 | 51.5 |
Feb 2016 | 24.8 | 23.7 | 51.5 |
Mar 2016 | 24.0 | 23.7 | 52.2 |
Apr 2016 | 23.0 | 24.1 | 52.8 |
May 2016 | 23.4 | 24.6 | 51.9 |
Jun 2016 | 23.5 | 24.7 | 51.7 |
Jul 2016 | 24.5 | 23.8 | 51.7 |
Aug 2016 | 24.2 | 22.7 | 53.1 |
Sep 2016 | 24.6 | 22.4 | 52.9 |
Oct 2016 | 24.9 | 23.2 | 51.9 |
Nov 2016 | 25.7 | 24.1 | 50.1 |
Dec 2016 | 25.7 | 25.1 | 49.2 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
In December 2016, the share of those who remained unemployed over the month was 49.2 percent, down 2.4 percentage points from December 2015. The likelihood of the unemployed remaining unemployed from one month to the next was the lowest since May 2007, when the rate was 48.2 percent.
Employment (as measured by the CPS, or household survey) grew at about the same pace in 2016 as it did in 2015. The number of employed people grew by 2.5 million in 2016, reaching 152 million in the fourth quarter. In contrast to 2015, when employment growth was more concentrated among adult women, 2016 saw larger employment employment gains for adult men. Over the year, the number of employed adult men rose by 1.3 million, to 78.3 million, and the number of employed adult women rose by 929,000, to 68.7 million. Employment among teenagers rose by 194,000 in 2016. (See table 1.)
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) produces two monthly employment series independently obtained: the estimate of total nonfarm jobs, derived from the Current Employment Statistics (CES) survey, also called the establishment or payroll survey; and the estimate of total civilian employment, based on the Current Population Survey (CPS), also called the household survey. The two surveys use different definitions of employment, as well as different survey and estimation methods. The CES survey is a survey of employers that provides a measure of the number of payroll jobs in nonfarm industries. The CPS is a survey of households that provides a measure of employed people age 16 and older in the civilian noninstitutional population. Employment estimates from the CPS give information about workers in both the agricultural and nonagricultural sectors and in all types of work arrangements: workers with wage and salary jobs (including employment in a private household), those who are self-employed, and those doing unpaid work for at least 15 hours a week in a business or farm operated by a family member. CES payroll employment estimates are restricted to nonagricultural wage and salary jobs and exclude private household workers. As a result, employment estimates from the CPS are higher than those from the CES survey. In the CPS, however, employed people are counted only once, regardless of whether they hold more than one job during the survey reference period. By contrast, in the CES survey, which counts jobs instead of people, each nonfarm job is counted once, even when two or more jobs are held by the same person.
The reference periods for the surveys also differ. In the CPS, the reference period is generally the calendar week that includes the 12th day of the month. In the CES survey, employers report the number of workers on their payrolls for the pay period that includes the 12th of the month. Because pay periods vary in length across employers and may be longer than 1 week, the CES employment estimates can reflect longer reference periods.
For purposes of comparison, however, some adjustments can be made to CPS employment estimates to make them more similar in definitional scope to CES employment figures. BLS routinely carries out these adjustments to evaluate how the two employment series are tracking. The long-term trends in the two surveys’ employment measures are quite similar. Nonetheless, throughout the history of the surveys, there have been periods when the short-term trends diverged or when growth in one series significantly outpaced growth in the other. For example, following the end of the 2001 recession, CPS employment began to trend upward while CES employment continued to decline for a number of months.
BLS publishes a monthly report with the latest trends and comparisons of employment as measured by the CES survey and the CPS. (See “Employment from the BLS household and payroll surveys: summary of recent trends” (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics), www.bls.gov/web/empsit/ces_cps_trends.htm.) This report includes a summary of possible causes of differences in the surveys’ employment trends as well as links to additional research on the topic.
Employment grew among all the major race and ethnicity groups over the year. The number of employed Hispanics rose by 861,000, to reach 25.4 million in the fourth quarter of 2016. Employment among Blacks rose by 551,000 over the year, to 18.2 million. Blacks made up 12.0 percent of total employment in 2016, but accounted for about 22 percent of the overall over-the-year increase in employment. Since 2012, Blacks have accounted for about one-fourth of total employment growth, while making up about one-tenth of total employment. Employment of Asians rose by 662,000, to 9.4 million, accounting for 27.0 percent of the overall over-the-year increase in employment, while only making up 6.2 percent of total employment in 2016. The number of employed Whites rose by 1.1 million over the year, to reach 119.3 million in the fourth quarter of 2016.
The employment–population ratio for all people age 16 and older held fairly steady in 2016, at 59.7 percent, after rising between the fourth quarter of 2015 and the first quarter of 2016. (See figure 7.) The employment–population ratio is the proportion of the civilian noninstitutional population that is employed. The ratio for adult men (68.4 percent) edged up over the year, whereas the ratio for adult women (55.7 percent) was little changed from a year earlier. Although the gap between the ratios for men and women has narrowed over the past several decades, the employment–population ratio for adult men was about 13 percentage points higher than the ratio for adult women in 2016. The ratio among teenagers edged up by 1.0 percentage point, to 29.8 percent in the fourth quarter. (See table 1.)
Year and quarter | Labor force participation rate | Employment–population ratio |
---|---|---|
2000 Q1 | 67.3 | 64.6 |
2000 Q2 | 67.2 | 64.5 |
2000 Q3 | 66.9 | 64.2 |
2000 Q4 | 66.9 | 64.3 |
2001 Q1 | 67.2 | 64.3 |
2001 Q2 | 66.8 | 63.8 |
2001 Q3 | 66.7 | 63.5 |
2001 Q4 | 66.7 | 63.0 |
2002 Q1 | 66.6 | 62.8 |
2002 Q2 | 66.7 | 62.8 |
2002 Q3 | 66.6 | 62.8 |
2002 Q4 | 66.4 | 62.5 |
2003 Q1 | 66.3 | 62.4 |
2003 Q2 | 66.4 | 62.4 |
2003 Q3 | 66.1 | 62.1 |
2003 Q4 | 66.1 | 62.2 |
2004 Q1 | 66.0 | 62.3 |
2004 Q2 | 66.0 | 62.3 |
2004 Q3 | 66.0 | 62.4 |
2004 Q4 | 66.0 | 62.4 |
2005 Q1 | 65.9 | 62.4 |
2005 Q2 | 66.1 | 62.7 |
2005 Q3 | 66.1 | 62.8 |
2005 Q4 | 66.0 | 62.8 |
2006 Q1 | 66.1 | 63.0 |
2006 Q2 | 66.1 | 63.1 |
2006 Q3 | 66.1 | 63.1 |
2006 Q4 | 66.3 | 63.3 |
2007 Q1 | 66.3 | 63.3 |
2007 Q2 | 66.0 | 63.0 |
2007 Q3 | 65.9 | 62.8 |
2007 Q4 | 66.0 | 62.8 |
2008 Q1 | 66.1 | 62.8 |
2008 Q2 | 66.0 | 62.5 |
2008 Q3 | 66.0 | 62.1 |
2008 Q4 | 65.9 | 61.4 |
2009 Q1 | 65.7 | 60.2 |
2009 Q2 | 65.7 | 59.6 |
2009 Q3 | 65.3 | 59.0 |
2009 Q4 | 64.9 | 58.4 |
2010 Q1 | 64.9 | 58.5 |
2010 Q2 | 64.9 | 58.6 |
2010 Q3 | 64.6 | 58.5 |
2010 Q4 | 64.4 | 58.3 |
2011 Q1 | 64.2 | 58.4 |
2011 Q2 | 64.1 | 58.3 |
2011 Q3 | 64.1 | 58.3 |
2011 Q4 | 64.0 | 58.5 |
2012 Q1 | 63.8 | 58.5 |
2012 Q2 | 63.7 | 58.5 |
2012 Q3 | 63.6 | 58.5 |
2012 Q4 | 63.7 | 58.7 |
2013 Q1 | 63.4 | 58.5 |
2013 Q2 | 63.4 | 58.6 |
2013 Q3 | 63.3 | 58.7 |
2013 Q4 | 62.9 | 58.5 |
2014 Q1 | 63.0 | 58.8 |
2014 Q2 | 62.8 | 58.9 |
2014 Q3 | 62.9 | 59.1 |
2014 Q4 | 62.8 | 59.2 |
2015 Q1 | 62.8 | 59.3 |
2015 Q2 | 62.7 | 59.4 |
2015 Q3 | 62.5 | 59.3 |
2015 Q4 | 62.6 | 59.4 |
2016 Q1 | 62.9 | 59.8 |
2016 Q2 | 62.7 | 59.7 |
2016 Q3 | 62.8 | 59.8 |
2016 Q4 | 62.7 | 59.7 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
The employment–population ratio varied across race and ethnicity groups. In 2016, the ratio for Blacks rose by 0.8 percentage point, to 56.8 percent, marking 3 straight years of growth. The employment–population ratios for Hispanics and Asians edged up over the year, to 61.9 percent and 61.2 percent, respectively. The ratio for Whites, at 60.0 percent, was little changed.
The number of workers holding more than one job edged up by 227,000 in 2016, to 7.7 million. Multiple jobholders accounted for 5.1 percent of the employed—little changed over the year. The percentage of multiple jobholders in the labor force has ranged between 4.7 percent and 5.1 percent over the past 5 years. Before the recession, the rate was slightly higher at 5.3 percent.
The total number of self-employed workers increased by 406,000 in 2016.8 In the fourth quarter, 15.4 million workers (not seasonally adjusted) were self-employed. The self-employment rate―the proportion of total employment made up of the self-employed―edged up from the previous year, to 10.1 percent in the fourth quarter. Of all self-employed people, 9.6 million, or about two-thirds, owned unincorporated businesses, while the remaining 5.8 million owned incorporated businesses.
The number of people employed part time for economic reasons declined to 5.7 million in 2016. Also referred to as involuntary part-time employment, this measure of underemployment ended the fourth quarter 266,000 lower than its year-earlier level but still remained high by historical standards.9 Slack work or unfavorable work conditions, as opposed to an inability to find full-time work, typically has been the primary reason for working part time involuntarily. Slack work accounted for about three-fifths of people employed part time for economic reasons in 2016. However, the over-the-year decline in the number of involuntary part-time workers was largely driven by a decline in the number of people who could not find a full-time job. (See figure 8.)
In 2016, employment rose in two out of five major occupation groups. Employment in service occupations increased by 963,000, to 26.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2016, after seeing little change in the prior year. Management, professional, and related occupations grew by 1.1 million over the year, to 59.8 million, with almost all of the gain occurring among adult men. Employment in these two broad groups accounted for nearly all of the job growth in 2016. (See table 5.)
Occupation group | Total | Men | Women | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fourth quarter 2015 | Fourth quarter 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | Fourth quarter 2015 | Fourth quarter 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | Fourth quarter 2015 | Fourth quarter 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | |
Total, 16 years and over | 149,728 | 152,173 | 2,445 | 79,293 | 80,699 | 1,406 | 70,435 | 71,474 | 1,039 |
Management, professional, and related occupations | 58,718 | 59,847 | 1,129 | 28,200 | 29,191 | 991 | 30,517 | 30,656 | 139 |
Management, business, and financial operations occupations | 24,344 | 25,063 | 719 | 13,632 | 14,326 | 694 | 10,712 | 10,737 | 25 |
Professional and related occupations | 34,374 | 34,784 | 410 | 14,568 | 14,865 | 297 | 19,806 | 19,919 | 113 |
Service occupations | 25,849 | 26,812 | 963 | 11,301 | 11,586 | 285 | 14,548 | 15,226 | 14,326 |
Health care support occupations | 3,464 | 3,408 | -56 | 426 | 403 | -23 | 3,039 | 3,005 | -34 |
Protective service occupations | 3,130 | 3,171 | 41 | 2,499 | 2,484 | -15 | 631 | 687 | 56 |
Food preparation and serving related occupations | 8,177 | 8,521 | 344 | 3,760 | 3,886 | 126 | 4,417 | 4,635 | 218 |
Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations | 5,885 | 5,776 | -109 | 3,461 | 3,451 | -10 | 2,424 | 2,325 | -99 |
Personal care and service occupations | 5,193 | 5,935 | 742 | 1,155 | 1,361 | 206 | 4,038 | 4,574 | 536 |
Sales and office occupations | 33,592 | 33,794 | 202 | 12,736 | 12,980 | 244 | 20,856 | 20,814 | -42 |
Sales and related occupations | 15,572 | 15,856 | 284 | 7,823 | 8,073 | 250 | 7,749 | 7,782 | 33 |
Office and administrative support occupations | 18,020 | 17,939 | -81 | 4,913 | 4,907 | -6 | 13,106 | 13,031 | -75 |
Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations | 13,872 | 13,930 | 58 | 13,189 | 13,242 | 53 | 684 | 689 | 5 |
Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations | 1,055 | 1,002 | -53 | 812 | 799 | -13 | 242 | 203 | -39 |
Construction and extraction occupations | 7,756 | 7,938 | 182 | 7,526 | 7,640 | 114 | 230 | 297 | 67 |
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations | 5,062 | 4,991 | -71 | 4,850 | 4,803 | -47 | 212 | 188 | -24 |
Production, transportation, and material moving occupations | 17,697 | 17,789 | 92 | 13,867 | 13,700 | -167 | 3,830 | 4,089 | 259 |
Production occupations | 8,358 | 8,328 | -30 | 5,966 | 5,877 | -89 | 2,392 | 2,451 | 59 |
Transportation and material moving occupations | 9,340 | 9,461 | 121 | 7,901 | 7,823 | -78 | 1,438 | 1,638 | 200 |
Note: Updated population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
The civilian labor force increased by 2.1 million, to 159.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2016, whereas the labor force participation rate, at 62.7 percent, was little changed. The labor force participation rate―the proportion of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 years and older that is working or looking for work―had previously been trending downward. The labor force participation rates for all of the major race and ethnicity groups also showed little change in 2016. (See table 1 and figure 7.)
People who are not in the labor force are neither employed nor unemployed. In the fourth quarter of 2016, 95.1 million people were not in the labor force (not seasonally adjusted), an increase of 692,000 from the previous year. This represents the smallest over-the-year increase since 2006. All of the net increase for people not in the labor force occurred among those who did not want a job.10 The number of people outside the labor force who indicated that they wanted a job was little changed over the year, at 5.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2016.11 (See table 6.) Of those not in the labor force, about 40 percent were 65 years and older.
Category | Fourth quarter 2012 | Fourth quarter 2013 | Fourth quarter 2014 | Fourth quarter 2015 | Fourth quarter 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Total not in the labor force | 88,957 | 91,774 | 92,698 | 94,442 | 95,134 | 692 |
People who do not currently want a job (1) | 82,567 | 86,090 | 86,511 | 88,864 | 89,605 | 741 |
People who currently want a job | 6,390 | 5,684 | 6,187 | 5,578 | 5,529 | -49 |
People marginally attached to the labor force (2) | 2,517 | 2,269 | 2,187 | 1,822 | 1,772 | -50 |
Discouraged workers (3) | 953 | 831 | 736 | 641 | 502 | -139 |
Other people marginally attached to the labor force (4) | 1,564 | 1,438 | 1,451 | 1,181 | 1,271 | 90 |
Notes: (1) Includes some people who were not asked if they want a job. (2) Refers to people who wanted a job, had searched for work during the prior 12 months, and were available to take a job during the reference week, but had not looked for work in the past 4 weeks. (3) Includes those who did not actively look for work in the prior 4 weeks for reasons such as thinks no work available, could not find work, lacks schooling or training, employer thinks too young or old, and other types of discrimination. (4) Includes those who did not actively look for work in the prior 4 weeks because of school or family responsibilities, ill health, transportation problems, or other reasons not identified separately in the survey. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
Among those not in the labor force who currently wanted a job, the number who were marginally attached to the labor force, 1.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2016, was essentially the same as that a year earlier. These individuals had searched for work sometime in the previous year and were available for work had a job been offered to them. These individuals were not counted as unemployed because they had not actively searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. Among the marginally attached, there were individuals currently not looking for work because (1) they felt that no jobs were available for them, (2) they could not find work, (3) they lacked schooling or training, (4) they were too old or too young, or (5) they faced other types of discrimination. The subset of the marginally attached who are not looking for work because of any of these five job-market reasons is defined as “discouraged workers.” In 2016, the number of discouraged workers declined by 139,000 and totaled 502,000 in the fourth quarter.
The remaining 1.3 million people marginally attached to the labor force in the fourth quarter of 2016 had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey because of school attendance, family responsibilities, health-related issues, transportation problems, and other reasons not identified separately in the CPS. The number of these individuals was little changed over the year.
BLS publishes a range of indicators that point to the extent to which labor resources are being utilized. Known as U–1, U–2, and U–4 through U–6 (U–3 is the official unemployment rate), these alternative measures of labor underutilization provide insight into a broad range of problems encountered by workers in today’s labor market.12 Similar to the official unemployment rate, the alternative measures are presented as a percentage of the labor force (adjusted as necessary). U–1 shows the number of individuals unemployed 15 weeks or longer as a percentage of the labor force, while U–2 presents job losers and people who completed temporary jobs as a percentage of the labor force. U–4 through U–6 are broader than U–1, U–2, and the official unemployment measure: in addition to the total unemployed, U–4 adds discouraged workers; U–5 adds all persons marginally attached to the labor force (including discouraged workers); and U–6 adds all people marginally attached to the labor force, plus people employed part time for economic reasons.
All five alternative measures declined over the year. By the end of 2016, U–1 and U–2 each had declined by 0.2 percentage point, to 1.9 percent and 2.3 percent, respectively. Among the remaining three alternative measures, U–4 declined to 5.0 percent, U–5 dropped to 5.8 percent, and U–6 fell to 9.3 percent. None of the measures, including U–3 (the official unemployment rate), returned to their prerecession low points, but all have shown a similar downward trend. (See figure 9.)
Year and quarter | U–1 | U–2 | U–3 | U–4 | U–5 | U–6 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1994 Q1 | 2.4 | 3.2 | 6.6 | 6.9 | 7.9 | 11.5 |
1994 Q2 | 2.2 | 2.8 | 6.2 | 6.5 | 7.3 | 11.0 |
1994 Q3 | 2.1 | 2.8 | 6.0 | 6.3 | 7.2 | 10.5 |
1994 Q4 | 2.0 | 2.7 | 5.6 | 5.9 | 6.8 | 10.1 |
1995 Q1 | 1.8 | 2.6 | 5.5 | 5.7 | 6.7 | 10.0 |
1995 Q2 | 1.8 | 2.6 | 5.7 | 5.9 | 6.7 | 10.0 |
1995 Q3 | 1.8 | 2.6 | 5.7 | 5.9 | 6.7 | 10.1 |
1995 Q4 | 1.7 | 2.7 | 5.6 | 5.8 | 6.6 | 10.0 |
1996 Q1 | 1.8 | 2.7 | 5.5 | 5.8 | 6.7 | 9.9 |
1996 Q2 | 1.8 | 2.6 | 5.5 | 5.7 | 6.5 | 9.7 |
1996 Q3 | 1.7 | 2.4 | 5.3 | 5.5 | 6.2 | 9.5 |
1996 Q4 | 1.6 | 2.4 | 5.3 | 5.5 | 6.3 | 9.4 |
1997 Q1 | 1.6 | 2.4 | 5.2 | 5.4 | 6.2 | 9.3 |
1997 Q2 | 1.6 | 2.2 | 5.0 | 5.2 | 5.9 | 8.9 |
1997 Q3 | 1.5 | 2.1 | 4.9 | 5.0 | 5.7 | 8.6 |
1997 Q4 | 1.4 | 2.1 | 4.7 | 4.9 | 5.6 | 8.4 |
1998 Q1 | 1.3 | 2.1 | 4.6 | 4.8 | 5.6 | 8.4 |
1998 Q2 | 1.1 | 2.0 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 5.2 | 7.9 |
1998 Q3 | 1.2 | 2.0 | 4.5 | 4.7 | 5.4 | 8.0 |
1998 Q4 | 1.1 | 2.0 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 5.2 | 7.7 |
1999 Q1 | 1.1 | 1.9 | 4.3 | 4.5 | 5.2 | 7.7 |
1999 Q2 | 1.1 | 1.9 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 5.1 | 7.5 |
1999 Q3 | 1.1 | 1.9 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 5.0 | 7.4 |
1999 Q4 | 1.0 | 1.8 | 4.1 | 4.3 | 4.9 | 7.1 |
2000 Q1 | 0.9 | 1.8 | 4.0 | 4.2 | 4.9 | 7.1 |
2000 Q2 | 0.9 | 1.7 | 3.9 | 4.2 | 4.7 | 7.0 |
2000 Q3 | 0.9 | 1.8 | 4.0 | 4.2 | 4.8 | 7.0 |
2000 Q4 | 0.9 | 1.8 | 3.9 | 4.1 | 4.6 | 6.9 |
2001 Q1 | 1.0 | 2.0 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 5.1 | 7.3 |
2001 Q2 | 1.1 | 2.2 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 5.2 | 7.6 |
2001 Q3 | 1.3 | 2.4 | 4.8 | 5.0 | 5.7 | 8.2 |
2001 Q4 | 1.6 | 3.1 | 5.5 | 5.8 | 6.4 | 9.4 |
2002 Q1 | 1.8 | 3.1 | 5.7 | 5.9 | 6.6 | 9.5 |
2002 Q2 | 2.0 | 3.2 | 5.8 | 6.1 | 6.8 | 9.6 |
2002 Q3 | 2.0 | 3.2 | 5.7 | 6.0 | 6.7 | 9.6 |
2002 Q4 | 2.2 | 3.3 | 5.8 | 6.1 | 6.8 | 9.7 |
2003 Q1 | 2.2 | 3.3 | 5.9 | 6.2 | 6.9 | 10.1 |
2003 Q2 | 2.3 | 3.4 | 6.2 | 6.4 | 7.1 | 10.2 |
2003 Q3 | 2.4 | 3.4 | 6.1 | 6.4 | 7.1 | 10.3 |
2003 Q4 | 2.3 | 3.2 | 5.8 | 6.1 | 6.8 | 10.0 |
2004 Q1 | 2.3 | 3.0 | 5.7 | 6.0 | 6.7 | 9.9 |
2004 Q2 | 2.1 | 2.9 | 5.6 | 5.9 | 6.6 | 9.6 |
2004 Q3 | 2.0 | 2.8 | 5.4 | 5.7 | 6.4 | 9.4 |
2004 Q4 | 2.0 | 2.7 | 5.4 | 5.7 | 6.4 | 9.4 |
2005 Q1 | 1.9 | 2.6 | 5.3 | 5.6 | 6.3 | 9.2 |
2005 Q2 | 1.7 | 2.4 | 5.1 | 5.4 | 6.1 | 8.9 |
2005 Q3 | 1.7 | 2.4 | 5.0 | 5.2 | 5.9 | 8.9 |
2005 Q4 | 1.6 | 2.3 | 5.0 | 5.2 | 5.9 | 8.7 |
2006 Q1 | 1.6 | 2.2 | 4.7 | 5.0 | 5.7 | 8.4 |
2006 Q2 | 1.5 | 2.3 | 4.7 | 4.9 | 5.5 | 8.2 |
2006 Q3 | 1.5 | 2.2 | 4.6 | 4.9 | 5.6 | 8.3 |
2006 Q4 | 1.4 | 2.1 | 4.5 | 4.7 | 5.3 | 8.1 |
2007 Q1 | 1.4 | 2.2 | 4.5 | 4.8 | 5.4 | 8.2 |
2007 Q2 | 1.5 | 2.2 | 4.5 | 4.7 | 5.4 | 8.2 |
2007 Q3 | 1.5 | 2.4 | 4.7 | 4.9 | 5.5 | 8.4 |
2007 Q4 | 1.6 | 2.4 | 4.8 | 5.0 | 5.6 | 8.5 |
2008 Q1 | 1.6 | 2.6 | 5.0 | 5.2 | 5.9 | 9.1 |
2008 Q2 | 1.8 | 2.7 | 5.3 | 5.6 | 6.2 | 9.6 |
2008 Q3 | 2.2 | 3.2 | 6.0 | 6.3 | 7.0 | 10.8 |
2008 Q4 | 2.7 | 4.0 | 6.9 | 7.2 | 8.0 | 12.7 |
2009 Q1 | 3.5 | 5.2 | 8.3 | 8.7 | 9.5 | 15.1 |
2009 Q2 | 4.6 | 6.0 | 9.3 | 9.7 | 10.5 | 16.3 |
2009 Q3 | 5.2 | 6.3 | 9.6 | 10.0 | 10.9 | 16.6 |
2009 Q4 | 5.7 | 6.4 | 9.9 | 10.4 | 11.3 | 17.1 |
2010 Q1 | 5.8 | 6.2 | 9.8 | 10.5 | 11.2 | 16.9 |
2010 Q2 | 5.8 | 6.0 | 9.7 | 10.3 | 11.1 | 16.7 |
2010 Q3 | 5.5 | 5.9 | 9.5 | 10.2 | 10.9 | 16.6 |
2010 Q4 | 5.6 | 5.9 | 9.5 | 10.3 | 11.0 | 16.7 |
2011 Q1 | 5.4 | 5.5 | 9.0 | 9.6 | 10.6 | 16.1 |
2011 Q2 | 5.3 | 5.4 | 9.1 | 9.6 | 10.5 | 16.0 |
2011 Q3 | 5.4 | 5.2 | 9.0 | 9.6 | 10.5 | 16.1 |
2011 Q4 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 8.7 | 9.2 | 10.1 | 15.5 |
2012 Q1 | 4.7 | 4.6 | 8.3 | 8.8 | 9.8 | 14.9 |
2012 Q2 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 8.2 | 8.7 | 9.6 | 14.7 |
2012 Q3 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 8.0 | 8.5 | 9.5 | 14.7 |
2012 Q4 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 7.8 | 8.4 | 9.3 | 14.4 |
2013 Q1 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 7.7 | 8.2 | 9.2 | 14.2 |
2013 Q2 | 4.1 | 4.0 | 7.5 | 8.1 | 8.9 | 14.0 |
2013 Q3 | 3.9 | 3.8 | 7.3 | 7.8 | 8.6 | 13.7 |
2013 Q4 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 7.0 | 7.4 | 8.3 | 13.3 |
2014 Q1 | 3.4 | 3.5 | 6.6 | 7.1 | 8.0 | 12.7 |
2014 Q2 | 3.1 | 3.2 | 6.2 | 6.6 | 7.4 | 12.1 |
2014 Q3 | 2.9 | 3.0 | 6.1 | 6.5 | 7.4 | 12.0 |
2014 Q4 | 2.7 | 2.8 | 5.7 | 6.1 | 7.0 | 11.4 |
2015 Q1 | 2.5 | 2.7 | 5.6 | 6.0 | 6.8 | 11.1 |
2015 Q2 | 2.3 | 2.7 | 5.4 | 5.8 | 6.6 | 10.7 |
2015 Q3 | 2.2 | 2.5 | 5.1 | 5.5 | 6.2 | 10.2 |
2015 Q4 | 2.1 | 2.5 | 5.0 | 5.4 | 6.1 | 9.9 |
2016 Q1 | 2.1 | 2.4 | 5.0 | 5.3 | 6.1 | 9.8 |
2016 Q2 | 2.0 | 2.4 | 4.9 | 5.2 | 5.9 | 9.7 |
2016 Q3 | 2.0 | 2.4 | 4.9 | 5.3 | 6.0 | 9.7 |
2016 Q4 | 1.9 | 2.3 | 4.7 | 5.0 | 5.8 | 9.3 |
Note: Measures of labor underutlization are as follows: U–1 = people unemployed 15 weeks or longer, as a percentage of the civilian labor force; U–2 = job losers and people who completed temporary jobs, as a percentage of the civilian labor force; U–3 = total unemployed, as a percentage of the civilian labor force (official unemployment rate); U–4 = total unemployed plus discouraged workers, as a percentage of the civilian labor force plus discouraged workers; U–5 = total unemployed, plus discouraged workers, plus all other marginally attached workers, as a percentage of the civilian labor force plus all marginally attached workers; U–6 = total unemployed, plus all marginally attached workers, plus total employed part time for economic reasons, as a percentage of the civilian labor force plus all marginally attached workers. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
Median weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers rose by 2.8 percent in 2016, to $832, outpacing the over-the-year change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), which was 1.3 percent.13 (See table 7; the data in this section are annual averages.) The earnings comparisons in this section are on a broad level and do not control for many factors that can be significant in explaining differences in earnings, such as job skills and responsibilities, work experience, and specialization.
Characteristic | Current dollars | ||
---|---|---|---|
2015 | 2016 | Percent change, 2015–16 | |
Total, 16 years and older | $809 | $832 | 2.8 |
CPI-U (1982-1984 = 100) | 237.02 | 240.01 | 1.3 |
Men | $895 | $915 | 2.2 |
Women | 726 | 749 | 3.2 |
White | 835 | 862 | 3.2 |
Men | 920 | 942 | 2.4 |
Women | 743 | 766 | 3.1 |
Black or African American | 641 | 678 | 5.8 |
Men | 680 | 718 | 5.6 |
Women | 615 | 641 | 4.2 |
Asian | 993 | 1,021 | 2.8 |
Men | 1,129 | 1,151 | 1.9 |
Women | 877 | 902 | 2.9 |
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity | 604 | 624 | 3.3 |
Men | 631 | 663 | 5.1 |
Women | 566 | 586 | 3.5 |
Total, 25 years and older | 860 | 885 | 2.9 |
Less than a high school diploma | 493 | 504 | 2.2 |
High school graduate, no college | 678 | 692 | 2.1 |
Some college or associate’s degree | 762 | 779 | 2.2 |
Bachelor’s degree or higher | 1,230 | 1,259 | 2.4 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey and Consumer Price Index. |
In 2016, median weekly earnings for men increased by 2.2 percent, to $915, while women’s earnings increased by 3.2 percent, to $749. Adjusted for inflation, men’s earnings rose by 1.1 percent and women's earnings increased by 1.6 percent. Women’s earnings as a proportion of men’s earnings increased by 0.8 percentage point, to 81.9 percent in 2016, partially offsetting a 1.4-percentage-point decline in 2015. This proportion has been fluctuating in the 80-percent to 83-percent range since 2004. (See table 7 and figure 10.)
Year | Percent |
---|---|
2004 | 2.9 |
2005 | 2.0 |
2006 | 3.1 |
2007 | 3.6 |
2008 | 3.9 |
2009 | 2.4 |
2010 | 1.1 |
2011 | 1.2 |
2012 | 1.6 |
2013 | 1.0 |
2014 | 1.9 |
2015 | 2.3 |
2016 | 2.8 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
Among full-time wage and salary workers in the major race and ethnicity groups, the median usual weekly earnings of Asians ($1,021) and Whites ($862) continued to be higher than those of Blacks ($678) and Hispanics ($624). While the increases in earnings for all these groups outpaced inflation, Blacks saw the largest over-the-year increase in percentage terms—5.8 percent—after essentially no earnings growth in 2015. Earnings for Whites, Hispanics, and Asians rose at similar rates in 2016—by 3.2 percent, 3.3 percent, and 2.8 percent, respectively.
In 2016, among full-time workers age 25 and older, median weekly earnings growth in percentage terms was relatively consistent across levels of educational attainment. Earnings for workers with less than a high school diploma rose 2.2 percent over the year (to $504). Earnings of workers whose highest level of education was a high school diploma rose by 2.1 percent (to $692), while earnings for workers with some college or an associate’s degree increased by 2.2 percent (to $779). In 2016, median weekly earnings for workers with a bachelor’s degree or higher ($1,259) were up 2.4 percent from a year earlier.
In the fourth quarter of 2016, the unemployment rate for veterans―at 4.4 percent (not seasonally adjusted)―was little changed over the year, while the rate for nonveterans declined to 4.4 percent. (See table 8.) In the CPS, veterans are defined as men and women 18 years and older who have previously served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces and who were civilians at the time the survey was conducted.14 Veterans are categorized as having served in one of the following periods: Gulf War era II (September 2001 to the present); Gulf War era I (August 1990 to August 2001); World War II (December 1941 to December 1946), the Korean War (July 1950 to January 1955), and the Vietnam era (August 1964 to April 1975); and other service periods (all other periods).
Employment status, veteran status, and period of service | Total | Men | Women | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fourth quarter 2015 | Fourth quarter 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | Fourth quarter 2015 | Fourth quarter 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | Fourth quarter 2015 | Fourth quarter 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | |
Veterans, 18 years and older | |||||||||
Civilian labor force | 10,760 | 10,535 | -225 | 9,517 | 9,264 | -253 | 1,243 | 1,272 | 29 |
Participation rate | 51.0 | 50.7 | -0.3 | 49.9 | 49.4 | -0.5 | 62.0 | 62.9 | 0.9 |
Employed | 10,317 | 10,074 | -243 | 9,128 | 8,870 | -258 | 1,190 | 1,204 | 14 |
Employment–population ratio | 48.9 | 48.5 | -0.4 | 47.8 | 47.3 | -0.5 | 59.4 | 59.6 | 0.2 |
Unemployed | 442 | 461 | 19 | 389 | 393 | 4 | 53 | 68 | 15 |
Unemployment rate | 4.1 | 4.4 | 0.3 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 0.1 | 4.3 | 5.3 | 1.0 |
Gulf War–era II veterans | |||||||||
Civilian labor force | 3,067 | 3,312 | 245 | 2,552 | 2,793 | 241 | 515 | 519 | 4 |
Participation rate | 82.3 | 82.8 | 0.5 | 84.2 | 84.4 | 0.2 | 73.9 | 75.0 | 1.1 |
Employed | 2,918 | 3,126 | 208 | 2,436 | 2,640 | 204 | 482 | 487 | 5 |
Employment–population ratio | 78.3 | 78.1 | -0.2 | 80.4 | 79.8 | -0.6 | 69.2 | 70.3 | 1.1 |
Unemployed | 149 | 186 | 37 | 116 | 153 | 37 | 33 | 33 | 0 |
Unemployment rate | 4.9 | 5.6 | 0.7 | 4.5 | 5.5 | 1.0 | 6.4 | 6.3 | -0.1 |
Gulf War–era I veterans | |||||||||
Civilian labor force | 2,691 | 2,641 | -50 | 2,345 | 2,258 | -87 | 346 | 383 | 37 |
Participation rate | 79.4 | 79.4 | 0.0 | 80.6 | 80.4 | -0.2 | 72.1 | 73.9 | 1.8 |
Employed | 2,588 | 2,555 | -33 | 2,251 | 2,187 | -64 | 337 | 368 | 31 |
Employment–population ratio | 76.3 | 76.8 | 0.5 | 77.3 | 77.8 | 0.5 | 70.2 | 70.9 | 0.7 |
Unemployed | 104 | 86 | -18 | 94 | 71 | -23 | 9 | 16 | 7 |
Unemployment rate | 3.8 | 3.3 | -0.5 | 4.0 | 3.1 | -0.9 | 2.7 | 4.1 | 1.4 |
World War II, Korean War, and Vietnam-era veterans | |||||||||
Civilian labor force | 2,261 | 1,969 | -292 | 2,191 | 1,898 | -293 | 70 | 71 | 1 |
Participation rate | 25.9 | 23.6 | -2.3 | 26.0 | 23.6 | -2.4 | 22.5 | 23.9 | 1.4 |
Employed | 2,185 | 1,887 | -298 | 2,123 | 1,821 | -302 | 62 | 65 | 3 |
Employment–population ratio | 25.0 | 22.6 | -2.4 | 25.2 | 22.6 | -2.6 | 20.0 | 21.9 | 1.9 |
Unemployed | 76 | 83 | 7 | 68 | 77 | 9 | 8 | 6 | -2 |
Unemployment rate | 3.4 | 4.2 | 0.8 | 3.1 | 4.0 | 0.9 | 11.3 | 8.5 | -2.8 |
Veterans of other service periods | |||||||||
Civilian labor force | 2,741 | 2,612 | -129 | 2,429 | 2,314 | -115 | 312 | 298 | -14 |
Participation rate | 52.4 | 51.1 | -1.3 | 51.5 | 50.3 | -1.2 | 60.5 | 58.3 | -2.2 |
Employed | 2,627 | 2,506 | -121 | 2,318 | 2,222 | -96 | 308 | 284 | -24 |
Employment–population ratio | 50.2 | 49.0 | -1.2 | 49.2 | 48.3 | -0.9 | 59.9 | 55.7 | -4.2 |
Unemployed | 114 | 106 | -8 | 111 | 93 | -18 | 3 | 14 | 11 |
Unemployment rate | 4.2 | 4.1 | -0.1 | 4.6 | 4.0 | -0.6 | 1.1 | 4.6 | 3.5 |
Nonveterans, 18 years and older | |||||||||
Civilian labor force | 144,683 | 146,906 | 2,223 | 72,978 | 74,504 | 1,526 | 71,706 | 72,402 | 696 |
Participation rate | 65.2 | 65.4 | 0.2 | 74.5 | 74.7 | 0.2 | 57.9 | 57.9 | 0.0 |
Employed | 137,843 | 140,462 | 2,619 | 69,403 | 71,091 | 1,688 | 68,439 | 69,371 | 932 |
Employment–population ratio | 62.2 | 62.5 | 0.3 | 70.9 | 71.3 | 0.4 | 55.3 | 55.5 | 0.2 |
Unemployed | 6,841 | 6,444 | -397 | 3,574 | 3,413 | -161 | 3,266 | 3,031 | -235 |
Unemployment rate | 4.7 | 4.4 | -0.3 | 4.9 | 4.6 | -0.3 | 4.6 | 4.2 | -0.4 |
Note: Veterans served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces and were not on active duty at the time of the survey. Nonveterans never served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces. Veterans could have served anywhere in the world during these periods of service: Gulf War era II (September 2001–present), Gulf War era I (August 1990–August 2001), Vietnam era (August 1964–April 1975), Korean War (July 1950–January 1955), World War II (December 1941–December 1946), and other service periods. Veterans who served in more than one wartime period are classified as being only in the most recent one. Veterans who served during one of the selected wartime periods and another period are classified only in the wartime period. Updated population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
Of the 20.8 million veterans in the civilian noninstitutional population in the fourth quarter of 2016, those who served during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam era accounted for the largest share (8.3 million). Another 4.0 million veterans served during Gulf War era II, 3.3 million served during Gulf War era I, and 5.1 million served outside of these designated periods.
Over the year, the unemployment rate for male veterans was little changed, at 4.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2016. The rate for female veterans was also little changed, at 5.3 percent.
Overall, 49.4 percent of male veterans were in the labor force in the fourth quarter of 2016, compared with 74.7 percent of their male nonveteran counterparts. This disparity is due in large part to the age distribution of male veterans relative to that of male nonveterans: the percentage of male veterans in older age brackets is greater, and older individuals tend to have lower labor force participation rates. In the fourth quarter, the participation rate for veterans of Gulf War era II―who tend to be younger than other veterans―was 84.4 percent for men and 75.0 percent for women.
In the fourth quarter of 2016, the unemployment rate for the foreign born was 4.3 percent (not seasonally adjusted), little changed from a year earlier, while the rate for the native born declined by 0.3 percentage point over the year, to 4.6 percent. (See table 9.) Foreign-born workers are those who reside in the United States but were born outside the country or one of its outlying areas (such as Puerto Rico or Guam) to parents neither of whom was a U.S. citizen. Included among the foreign born are legally admitted immigrants, refugees, temporary residents (such as students or temporary workers), and undocumented immigrants.
Employment status and nativity | Total | Men | Women | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fourth quarter 2015 | Fourth quarter 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | Fourth quarter 2015 | Fourth quarter 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | Fourth quarter 2015 | Fourth quarter 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | |
Foreign born, 16 years and older | |||||||||
Civilian labor force | 26,537 | 27,169 | 632 | 15,426 | 15,629 | 203 | 11,112 | 11,539 | 427 |
Participation rate | 65.7 | 65.0 | -0.7 | 78.2 | 77.3 | -0.9 | 53.8 | 53.5 | -0.3 |
Employed | 25,347 | 26,014 | 667 | 14,813 | 15,023 | 210 | 10,534 | 10,991 | 457 |
Employment–population ratio | 62.8 | 62.3 | -0.5 | 75.1 | 74.3 | -0.8 | 51.0 | 51.0 | 0.0 |
Unemployed | 1,191 | 1,155 | -36 | 613 | 606 | -7 | 578 | 549 | -29 |
Unemployment rate | 4.5 | 4.3 | -0.2 | 4.0 | 3.9 | -0.1 | 5.2 | 4.8 | -0.4 |
Native born, 16 years and older | |||||||||
Civilian labor force | 130,762 | 132,232 | 1,470 | 67,997 | 69,065 | 1,068 | 62,765 | 63,167 | 402 |
Participation rate | 61.9 | 62.1 | 0.2 | 66.8 | 67.2 | 0.4 | 57.3 | 57.4 | 0.1 |
Employed | 124,382 | 126,159 | 1,777 | 64,480 | 65,676 | 1,196 | 59,901 | 60,483 | 582 |
Employment–population ratio | 58.8 | 59.3 | 0.5 | 63.3 | 63.9 | 0.6 | 54.7 | 55.0 | 0.3 |
Unemployed | 6,380 | 6,073 | -307 | 3,517 | 3,389 | -128 | 2,864 | 2,684 | -180 |
Unemployment rate | 4.9 | 4.6 | -0.3 | 5.2 | 4.9 | -0.3 | 4.6 | 4.2 | -0.4 |
Note: The foreign born are those residing in the United States who were not U.S. citizens at birth. That is, they were born outside the United States or one of its outlying areas, such as Puerto Rico or Guam, to parents neither of whom was a U.S. citizen. The native born are people who were born in the United States or one of its outlying areas, such as Puerto Rico or Guam, or who were born abroad of at least one parent who was a U.S. citizen. Updated population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
In the fourth quarter of 2016, the foreign born accounted for 17.0 percent of the U.S. civilian labor force. The labor force participation rate for the foreign born edged down to 65.0 percent, while the rate for the native born ticked up to 62.1 percent. The labor force participation rate for native-born men increased by 0.4 percentage point, to 67.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2016, but continued to be lower than the rate for foreign-born men, which declined 0.9 percentage point, to 77.3 percent. The participation rate of native-born women (57.4 percent) continued to exceed that of foreign-born women (53.5 percent); both rates changed little over the year.
In 2016, there was a slight improvement in the employment situation of people with a disability. In the fourth quarter, their labor force participation rate was 20.0 percent and their employment–population ratio was 18.1 percent (not seasonally adjusted); while still relatively low compared with data for people with no disability, both measures increased over the year. (See table 10.) Among people with no disability, the labor force participation rate was 68.4 percent and the employment–population ratio was 65.4 percent. In the fourth quarter of 2016, the unemployment rate for people with a disability was 9.6 percent―a 1.4-percentage-point decline from a year earlier―but continued to be more than twice as high as the rate for people with no disability (4.3 percent).
Employment status, gender, and age | People with a disability | People with no disability | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fourth quarter 2015 | Fourth quarter 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | Fourth quarter 2015 | Fourth quarter 2016 | Change, fourth quarter 2015 to fourth quarter 2016 | |
Total, 16 years and older | ||||||
Civilian labor force | 5,715 | 6,043 | 328 | 151,585 | 153,358 | 1,773 |
Participation rate | 19.2 | 20.0 | 0.8 | 68.3 | 68.4 | 0.1 |
Employed | 5,087 | 5,462 | 375 | 144,642 | 146,711 | 2,069 |
Employment–population ratio | 17.1 | 18.1 | 1.0 | 65.1 | 65.4 | 0.3 |
Unemployed | 628 | 581 | -47 | 6,943 | 6,647 | -296 |
Unemployment rate | 11.0 | 9.6 | -1.4 | 4.6 | 4.3 | -0.3 |
Men, 16 to 64 years | ||||||
Civilian labor force | 2,438 | 2,645 | 207 | 76,081 | 76,924 | 843 |
Participation rate | 31.9 | 34.2 | 2.3 | 81.9 | 82.2 | 0.3 |
Employed | 2,133 | 2,379 | 246 | 72,424 | 73,395 | 971 |
Employment–population ratio | 27.9 | 30.8 | 2.9 | 78.0 | 78.5 | 0.5 |
Unemployed | 305 | 266 | -39 | 3,657 | 3,528 | -129 |
Unemployment rate | 12.5 | 10.0 | -2.5 | 4.8 | 4.6 | -0.2 |
Women, 16 to 64 years | ||||||
Civilian labor force | 2,275 | 2,308 | 33 | 67,570 | 68,208 | 638 |
Participation rate | 28.2 | 28.6 | 0.4 | 70.4 | 70.7 | 0.3 |
Employed | 2,004 | 2,065 | 61 | 64,536 | 65,374 | 838 |
Employment–population ratio | 24.9 | 25.6 | 0.7 | 67.2 | 67.7 | 0.5 |
Unemployed | 272 | 244 | -28 | 3,035 | 2,834 | -201 |
Unemployment rate | 11.9 | 10.5 | -1.4 | 4.5 | 4.2 | -0.3 |
Total, 65 years and over | ||||||
Civilian labor force | 1,002 | 1,089 | 87 | 7,933 | 8,226 | 293 |
Participation rate | 7.2 | 7.6 | 0.4 | 23.9 | 24.0 | 0.1 |
Employed | 950 | 1,018 | 68 | 7,682 | 7,941 | 259 |
Employment–population ratio | 6.8 | 7.1 | 0.3 | 23.2 | 23.2 | 0.0 |
Unemployed | 52 | 72 | 20 | 251 | 285 | 34 |
Unemployment rate | 5.2 | 6.6 | 1.4 | 3.2 | 3.5 | 0.3 |
Note: A person with a disability has at least one of the following conditions: is deaf or has serious difficulty hearing; is blind or has serious difficulty seeing even when wearing glasses; has serious difficulty concentrating, remembering, or making decisions, because of a physical, mental, or emotional condition; has serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs; has difficulty dressing or bathing; or has difficulty doing errands alone such as visiting a doctor’s office or shopping, because of a physical, mental, or emotional condition. Updated population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. |
The relatively low labor force participation rate among people with a disability is driven, in part, by a high concentration of people 65 years and older in the group. Independent of disability status, people 65 years and older tend to participate in the labor force at lower rates. However, even among those ages 16 to 64 years, people with a disability had much lower labor force participation rates than those with no disability. Over the year, the labor force participation rate for men ages 16 to 64 years with a disability increased by 2.3 percentage points, to 34.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2016, while the rate for women ages 16 to 64 years (28.6 percent) was little changed. Among those in the 16-to-64 age group with no disability, the labor force participation rates for men (82.2 percent) and women (70.7 percent) edged up over the year. Among those 65 years and older, the rates for people with a disability (7.6 percent) and without a disability (24.0 percent) were little changed in 2016.
CPS data indicate continued improvement in the U.S. labor market in 2016. Both the number of unemployed and the unemployment rate continued to decline, with much of the improvement occurring in the fourth quarter. The proportion of people unemployed for long periods of time continued to decline but remained high by historical standards. Employment, as measured by the CPS, expanded over the year by 2.5 million, about the same as in 2015. The employment–population ratio for all people 16 years and older increased between the fourth quarter of 2015 and the first quarter of 2016, but then held fairly steady through 2016. The labor force participation rate was little changed over the year. The rate of labor market “churn”―the proportion of people changing their labor force status―hit its lowest point since the series began in 1990.
Among the major demographic groups, Blacks, in line with a recent trend, continued their noteworthy employment growth, which was also reflected in an increase in the group’s employment–population ratio. Asian employment also rose in 2016, accounting for about one-fourth of total employment growth. Finally, the employment situation of people with a disability saw a slight improvement.
Vernon Brundage Jr., and Evan Cunningham, "Unemployment holds steady for much of 2016 but edges down in the fourth quarter," Monthly Labor Review, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, March 2017, https://doi.org/10.21916/mlr.2017.11
1 The data in this article are based on information collected in the Current Population Survey (CPS), also called the household survey, which is a monthly sample survey of about 60,000 households nationwide. The survey is conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau for the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Although the CPS is a monthly survey, the data analyzed in the article are seasonally adjusted quarterly averages, unless otherwise noted. All over-the-year changes are comparisons of fourth-quarter data from 2015 with fourth-quarter data from 2016, unless otherwise noted. Effective with the release of data for January 2016, updated population estimates were used in the household survey. Each year, the U.S. Census Bureau updates its population estimates to reflect new information and assumptions about the growth of the population during the decade. In accordance with usual practice, BLS did not revise the official household survey estimates for December 2015 and earlier months. For additional information on the population adjustments and their effect on national labor force estimates, see “Adjustments to household survey population estimates in January 2016” (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, February 2016), https://www.bls.gov/cps/population-control-adjustments-2016.pdf.
2 People whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. In the CPS, about 90 percent of people of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity identify themselves as White.
3 Unemployment rates by occupation are based on the most recent job an individual held. Excluded are unemployed people who have no previous work experience.
4 The duration of joblessness is the length of time (through the current reference week) that people classified as unemployed have been looking for work. This measure refers to the duration of the current spell of unemployment rather than to the duration of a completed spell.
5 The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) is the official arbiter of the beginning and ending dates of recessions in the United States. According to the NBER, the most recent recession began in December 2007 and ended in June 2009. Turning points are quarterly—fourth quarter 2007 and second quarter 2009—for this article.
6 For additional information, see Thomas Luke Spreen, “Ranks of those unemployed for a year or more up sharply,” Issues in Labor Statistics, Summary 10-10 (U.S. Bureau Labor Statistics, October 2010), https://www.bls.gov/opub/ils/pdf/opbils87.pdf.
7 For additional information and analysis of data, see Randy E. Ilg and Eleni Theodossiou, “Job search of the unemployed by duration of unemployment,” Monthly Labor Review, March 2012, pp. 41–49, https://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2012/03/art3full.pdf; Randy E. Ilg, “How long before the unemployed find jobs or quit looking?” Issues in Labor Statistics, Summary 11-1 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2011), https://www.bls.gov/opub/ils/pdf/opbils89.pdf; “Labor force flows in the most recent recession,” Issues in Labor Statistics, Summary 10-08 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, July 2010), https://www.bls.gov/opub/ils/pdf/opbils85.pdf; and Harley J. Frazis and Randy E. Ilg, “Trends in labor force flows during recent recessions,” Monthly Labor Review, April 2009, pp. 3–18, https://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2009/04/art1full.pdf.
8 The self-employed are those who work, as their main job, for profit or fees either in their own business, profession, or trade or on their own farm. In this article, data on the self-employed include both those whose businesses were incorporated and those whose businesses were not incorporated.
9 For additional information, see Emy Sok, “Involuntary part-time work on the rise,” Issues in Labor Statistics, Summary 08-08 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, December 2008), https://www.bls.gov/opub/ils/pdf/opbils71.pdf.
10 For additional information, see Steven F. Hipple, “People who are not in the labor force: why aren’t they working?” Beyond the Numbers, December 2015, https://www.bls.gov/opub/btn/volume-4/people-who-are-not-in-the-labor-force-why-arent-they-working.htm.
11 The number of people not in the labor force but who want a job is a measure derived from those who reported wanting a job without necessarily having looked for one; conceptually, this group includes all people who are not in the labor force but who currently want a job.
12 For further information, see Vernon Brundage, “Trends in unemployment and other labor market difficulties,” Beyond the Numbers (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, November 2014), https://www.bls.gov/opub/btn/volume-3/pdf/trends-in-unemployment-and-other-labor-market-difficulties.pdf; and Steven E. Haugen, “Measures of labor underutilization from the Current Population Survey,” Working Paper 424 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, March 2009), https://www.bls.gov/osmr/research-papers/2009/pdf/ec090020.pdf.
13 Data on earnings are collected from one-fourth of the CPS sample each month and are limited to the earnings of wage and salary workers. Earnings of self-employed workers, whether or not their businesses are incorporated, are excluded from CPS earnings estimates.
14 Veterans who served in more than one wartime period are classified in the most recent one.