Labor force participation rate of mothers, 1975-2007
January 08, 2009
From March 1975 to March 2000, the labor force participation rate of mothers with children under age 18 rose from 47 percent to a peak of 73 percent.
By 2004, the rate for these mothers had receded to 71 percent, where it remained through 2007.
In general, mothers with older children (6 to 17 years of age, none younger) are more likely to participate in the labor force than mothers with younger children (under 6 years of age).
These data are from the Current Population Survey and were collected in the March CPS. To find out more, see BLS Report 1011, Women in the Labor Force: A Databook (2008 Edition).
SUGGESTED CITATION
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, Labor force participation rate of mothers, 1975-2007 on the Internet at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2009/jan/wk1/art04.htm (visited November 18, 2018).
OF INTEREST
Recent editions of Spotlight on Statistics
- Labor force characteristics of people with a disability
Examines the labor force characteristics of people with a disability and compares them with the characteristics of people with no disability. - A Look at Contingent Workers
Examines people who do not expect their jobs to last or who report that their jobs are temporary. - Race, Economics, and Social Status
Examines Consumer Expenditure Survey data to explore social and economic factors by race and ethnicity. - African Americans in the U.S. Labor Force
A look at employment and unemployment trends of African Americans from 1972 to 2016 and projected to 2026.
