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Labor force participation rate for veterans was 46.8 percent in October 2021

November 10, 2021

In October 2021, there were 18.0 million veterans in the United States, 8.4 million of whom were in the civilian labor force. Veterans had a labor force participation rate of 46.8 percent, while nonveterans had a labor force participation rate of 64.3 percent.

Labor force participation rate for veterans and nonveterans, January 2000 to October 2021
Date Total veterans Veteran males Veteran females Nonveterans Nonveteran males Nonveterans females

Jan 2000

59.7% 59.4% 62.7% 69.1% 81.2% 60.7%

Feb 2000

59.6 59.2 65.4 69.4 81.6 60.8

Mar 2000

59.1 58.7 64.8 69.6 81.6 61.0

Apr 2000

58.4 58.0 64.6 69.5 81.7 60.9

May 2000

58.7 58.3 65.4 69.4 81.7 60.6

Jun 2000

58.7 58.2 65.5 69.8 82.6 60.7

Jul 2000

59.0 58.6 65.9 69.5 82.5 60.3

Aug 2000

59.3 58.6 69.6 69.2 82.3 59.9

Sep 2000

58.8 58.2 68.3 68.9 81.3 60.2

Oct 2000

59.0 58.2 69.8 69.2 81.5 60.4

Nov 2000

58.7 58.2 66.9 69.2 81.4 60.5

Dec 2000

59.1 58.3 70.0 69.2 81.4 60.6

Jan 2001

58.9 58.4 67.5 69.2 81.2 60.6

Feb 2001

58.5 58.0 65.6 69.3 81.1 60.8

Mar 2001

58.9 58.4 65.8 69.5 81.2 61.2

Apr 2001

58.5 58.1 65.3 69.1 81.2 60.5

May 2001

58.5 57.8 67.9 69.0 81.1 60.3

Jun 2001

58.4 57.8 67.5 69.3 81.8 60.3

Jul 2001

58.7 58.3 64.5 69.3 82.0 60.2

Aug 2001

58.5 58.0 65.9 69.0 81.5 60.0

Sep 2001

58.6 57.9 67.8 68.9 81.0 60.2

Oct 2001

58.4 57.7 68.6 69.1 81.2 60.4

Nov 2001

59.2 58.2 73.0 69.0 81.0 60.4

Dec 2001

59.3 58.4 71.6 69.0 80.9 60.4

Jan 2002

59.3 58.2 74.2 68.6 80.5 60.1

Feb 2002

59.6 58.7 72.2 69.1 80.7 60.7

Mar 2002

59.7 58.5 76.1 69.0 80.8 60.4

Apr 2002

59.4 58.3 74.1 68.9 80.7 60.3

May 2002

59.6 58.7 72.0 68.9 81.0 60.2

Jun 2002

56.9 56.6 61.1 69.5 82.1 60.4

Jul 2002

56.8 56.7 59.2 69.4 82.2 60.2

Aug 2002

57.0 56.7 61.8 69.3 81.8 60.2

Sep 2002

56.9 56.6 61.4 69.2 81.3 60.4

Oct 2002

56.5 56.3 60.6 69.3 81.3 60.6

Nov 2002

56.9 56.6 61.7 68.9 80.6 60.5

Dec 2002

57.0 56.7 62.2 68.8 80.4 60.5

Jan 2003

56.6 56.3 62.7 68.9 80.3 60.6

Feb 2003

57.2 56.7 63.9 68.9 80.5 60.6

Mar 2003

57.2 56.7 65.1 69.0 80.3 60.7

Apr 2003

57.2 56.6 66.5 68.9 80.5 60.5

May 2003

56.9 56.4 65.1 68.9 80.4 60.5

Jun 2003

56.7 56.4 62.8 69.5 81.3 60.8

Jul 2003

56.5 56.0 63.7 69.2 81.4 60.3

Aug 2003

56.8 56.4 62.9 68.8 80.6 60.2

Sep 2003

56.4 56.0 63.1 68.7 80.5 60.0

Oct 2003

56.5 56.0 63.4 68.9 80.6 60.4

Nov 2003

56.9 56.5 62.6 68.9 80.6 60.3

Dec 2003

56.4 56.0 62.8 68.7 80.4 60.1

Jan 2004

56.8 56.3 63.4 68.5 80.3 59.9

Feb 2004

56.8 56.2 65.0 68.5 79.9 60.2

Mar 2004

56.7 56.2 64.1 68.7 80.1 60.3

Apr 2004

56.2 55.7 63.5 68.5 79.9 60.1

May 2004

56.7 56.1 64.9 68.5 79.9 60.1

Jun 2004

56.4 56.0 62.9 69.1 81.1 60.2

Jul 2004

56.5 55.9 64.5 69.2 81.4 60.1

Aug 2004

57.0 56.6 63.7 68.7 80.7 59.8

Sep 2004

56.2 55.9 59.4 68.5 79.9 60.0

Oct 2004

56.8 56.5 61.2 68.7 80.2 60.2

Nov 2004

56.7 56.3 61.6 68.8 80.3 60.3

Dec 2004

55.7 55.4 60.2 68.7 80.2 60.2

Jan 2005

55.6 55.0 63.3 68.3 79.7 59.9

Feb 2005

56.3 55.6 65.5 68.4 79.7 60.0

Mar 2005

56.3 55.7 63.5 68.3 79.9 59.7

Apr 2005

56.5 56.0 62.9 68.5 80.0 60.0

May 2005

56.2 55.7 64.0 68.7 80.3 60.1

Jun 2005

56.0 55.4 63.7 69.0 81.1 60.0

Jul 2005

56.3 55.7 63.4 69.2 81.3 60.2

Aug 2005

56.0 55.6 61.8 69.0 81.1 60.0

Sep 2005

56.0 55.5 62.2 68.9 80.2 60.5

Oct 2005

55.9 55.6 60.1 69.1 80.4 60.7

Nov 2005

55.6 55.0 62.9 69.0 80.3 60.6

Dec 2005

55.5 55.1 60.7 68.9 80.1 60.4

Jan 2006

55.3 54.7 63.6 68.5 79.8 59.9

Feb 2006

55.3 54.6 64.3 68.7 80.1 60.1

Mar 2006

56.0 55.3 64.7 68.7 80.2 60.0

Apr 2006

56.2 55.7 63.3 68.6 80.1 60.0

May 2006

56.0 55.4 63.0 68.8 80.3 60.1

Jun 2006

55.5 54.9 63.0 69.2 80.9 60.4

Jul 2006

55.0 54.3 64.3 69.4 81.2 60.6

Aug 2006

55.0 54.2 65.3 69.2 81.1 60.3

Sep 2006

55.2 54.5 64.8 69.0 80.5 60.3

Oct 2006

55.4 54.8 63.5 69.3 80.7 60.7

Nov 2006

55.2 54.6 62.8 69.3 80.5 60.8

Dec 2006

55.6 55.0 64.3 69.2 80.4 60.7

Jan 2007

54.4 53.7 64.3 69.0 80.2 60.4

Feb 2007

55.1 54.5 63.2 68.8 79.9 60.4

Mar 2007

55.8 55.4 60.7 68.8 79.8 60.5

Apr 2007

55.8 55.3 61.9 68.6 79.8 60.0

May 2007

56.0 55.4 64.1 68.7 80.0 60.1

Jun 2007

55.5 54.5 68.0 69.2 80.8 60.3

Jul 2007

55.1 54.0 67.8 69.4 81.2 60.4

Aug 2007

54.9 54.0 66.6 68.9 80.4 60.1

Sep 2007

54.7 54.0 63.4 69.0 80.0 60.6

Oct 2007

55.1 54.3 64.8 68.9 79.8 60.5

Nov 2007

55.0 54.4 63.1 69.1 80.1 60.7

Dec 2007

55.4 54.5 65.8 68.8 79.6 60.5

Jan 2008

54.8 54.0 64.4 68.7 79.6 60.4

Feb 2008

55.5 54.6 66.8 68.4 79.2 60.2

Mar 2008

55.7 54.9 66.4 68.7 79.4 60.4

Apr 2008

55.4 54.6 65.0 68.6 79.5 60.4

May 2008

55.5 54.9 62.7 68.8 79.7 60.5

Jun 2008

55.1 54.4 63.7 69.3 80.5 60.7

Jul 2008

54.5 54.0 60.4 69.5 81.1 60.7

Aug 2008

54.7 54.0 64.3 69.3 80.4 60.7

Sep 2008

54.4 53.6 64.5 69.0 79.9 60.6

Oct 2008

55.0 54.0 67.2 69.1 79.8 60.9

Nov 2008

55.6 54.7 65.6 68.9 79.3 60.8

Dec 2008

55.5 54.5 67.9 68.7 79.0 60.7

Jan 2009

55.5 54.5 68.4 68.4 78.7 60.4

Feb 2009

55.2 54.3 66.2 68.4 78.8 60.4

Mar 2009

55.0 54.2 64.6 68.4 78.6 60.5

Apr 2009

54.2 53.4 63.5 68.5 78.8 60.6

May 2009

55.2 54.7 62.0 68.4 78.8 60.5

Jun 2009

54.8 54.1 63.7 68.9 79.3 60.8

Jul 2009

54.6 53.6 65.6 68.9 79.5 60.8

Aug 2009

54.5 53.6 65.2 68.4 78.8 60.3

Sep 2009

54.2 53.2 65.7 68.0 78.1 60.2

Oct 2009

53.9 52.8 65.4 68.0 78.2 60.1

Nov 2009

53.8 53.1 61.9 67.9 77.9 60.2

Dec 2009

53.8 53.1 62.2 67.5 77.4 59.8

Jan 2010

53.5 52.7 62.2 67.7 77.6 60.1

Feb 2010

53.6 53.0 60.1 67.8 77.7 60.1

Mar 2010

53.4 52.7 61.3 67.9 78.2 60.0

Apr 2010

53.1 52.4 62.2 68.0 78.2 60.1

May 2010

53.8 53.0 62.1 67.8 78.0 60.0

Jun 2010

53.5 52.5 63.9 68.0 78.4 59.9

Jul 2010

53.9 53.1 62.6 68.0 78.4 59.9

Aug 2010

54.2 53.4 63.0 67.8 78.1 59.8

Sep 2010

53.3 52.6 61.0 67.7 77.5 60.0

Oct 2010

53.0 52.3 61.0 67.5 77.3 59.8

Nov 2010

52.9 52.2 61.6 67.5 77.3 59.9

Dec 2010

52.8 51.8 63.8 67.2 77.1 59.5

Jan 2011

52.4 51.1 66.9 67.0 76.8 59.5

Feb 2011

52.5 51.3 65.5 67.1 76.9 59.3

Mar 2011

51.9 50.9 63.3 67.2 77.1 59.5

Apr 2011

52.2 51.2 62.7 67.1 76.8 59.4

May 2011

52.7 51.9 61.4 67.1 77.0 59.3

Jun 2011

52.9 52.3 59.5 67.3 77.4 59.3

Jul 2011

52.7 52.2 59.0 67.3 77.4 59.3

Aug 2011

52.7 52.1 60.1 67.1 77.2 59.2

Sep 2011

52.5 51.7 61.5 67.1 76.8 59.5

Oct 2011

52.1 51.2 62.5 67.2 77.0 59.4

Nov 2011

52.1 51.2 62.3 67.0 76.9 59.2

Dec 2011

51.7 51.0 58.8 66.8 76.7 59.0

Jan 2012

51.1 50.1 62.5 66.5 76.3 58.8

Feb 2012

52.1 51.1 63.0 66.6 76.3 59.1

Mar 2012

52.4 51.4 63.9 66.6 76.4 59.0

Apr 2012

52.3 51.4 61.8 66.3 76.0 58.8

May 2012

52.9 51.9 63.6 66.7 76.6 58.9

Jun 2012

51.7 50.8 60.9 67.0 77.3 59.0

Jul 2012

51.6 50.9 59.5 66.9 77.4 58.8

Aug 2012

51.8 50.9 61.3 66.5 76.6 58.6

Sep 2012

52.3 51.6 60.6 66.5 76.3 58.9

Oct 2012

52.0 51.2 60.4 66.8 76.6 59.1

Nov 2012

51.9 50.8 63.6 66.4 76.3 58.7

Dec 2012

51.3 50.4 60.6 66.4 76.2 58.8

Jan 2013

51.2 49.9 63.0 66.3 76.2 58.5

Feb 2013

51.6 50.4 62.6 66.2 76.0 58.5

Mar 2013

51.2 50.0 62.4 66.1 76.0 58.3

Apr 2013

52.1 50.7 63.9 66.0 75.8 58.3

May 2013

52.3 50.8 64.6 66.3 76.2 58.5

Jun 2013

51.1 49.7 63.8 66.7 76.9 58.6

Jul 2013

51.1 49.7 62.7 66.6 76.9 58.4

Aug 2013

50.6 49.4 61.3 66.3 76.4 58.3

Sep 2013

51.3 49.7 64.3 66.1 75.9 58.3

Oct 2013

51.3 49.7 64.8 65.7 75.4 58.1

Nov 2013

50.9 49.5 62.8 65.8 75.5 58.1

Dec 2013

50.8 49.1 64.6 65.5 75.0 57.9

Jan 2014

50.4 48.9 64.0 65.5 74.9 58.0

Feb 2014

50.9 49.3 64.4 65.7 75.0 58.4

Mar 2014

51.1 49.7 63.0 65.9 75.4 58.3

Apr 2014

50.5 49.2 61.8 65.6 75.0 58.1

May 2014

50.3 49.0 60.8 65.9 75.5 58.3

Jun 2014

50.1 48.8 61.2 66.1 76.3 58.0

Jul 2014

50.1 48.7 61.4 66.2 76.4 58.0

Aug 2014

50.5 49.3 60.7 65.8 75.8 57.8

Sep 2014

51.4 49.7 65.7 65.6 75.3 57.9

Oct 2014

50.9 49.5 62.9 65.8 75.3 58.3

Nov 2014

50.6 49.3 63.8 65.7 75.1 58.3

Dec 2014

50.5 49.0 64.2 65.3 75.0 57.6

Jan 2015

50.6 49.1 65.0 65.3 74.9 57.8

Feb 2015

51.1 49.5 66.6 65.3 75.0 57.7

Mar 2015

51.0 49.8 63.2 65.3 75.0 57.6

Apr 2015

50.7 49.5 62.4 65.4 75.1 57.7

May 2015

50.7 49.4 62.8 65.8 75.6 58.0

Jun 2015

49.7 48.9 56.8 65.9 75.9 58.0

Jul 2015

50.3 49.4 58.9 65.8 76.0 57.7

Aug 2015

50.5 49.3 61.7 65.4 75.3 57.5

Sep 2015

51.0 49.9 62.0 65.0 74.6 57.5

Oct 2015

51.0 49.9 61.8 65.3 74.8 57.8

Nov 2015

51.0 49.8 62.6 65.3 74.4 58.1

Dec 2015

51.0 49.9 61.7 65.2 74.4 57.8

Jan 2016

50.9 49.7 62.0 65.1 74.2 57.8

Feb 2016

50.7 49.5 62.0 65.5 74.8 58.0

Mar 2016

50.4 49.0 62.9 65.7 75.2 58.1

Apr 2016

50.4 49.3 61.1 65.5 75.0 57.9

May 2016

50.4 49.3 61.3 65.5 75.0 57.9

Jun 2016

50.3 49.3 59.3 65.8 75.9 57.7

Jul 2016

50.9 49.9 60.2 65.8 76.0 57.7

Aug 2016

50.4 49.2 61.9 65.6 75.4 57.7

Sep 2016

51.1 49.8 63.6 65.5 75.0 57.9

Oct 2016

51.3 49.8 65.2 65.5 75.0 58.0

Nov 2016

50.5 49.1 63.1 65.5 74.7 58.1

Dec 2016

50.3 49.2 60.5 65.2 74.5 57.8

Jan 2017

49.6 48.7 58.3 65.3 74.6 57.9

Feb 2017

50.5 49.6 58.4 65.5 74.6 58.3

Mar 2017

49.8 48.7 59.4 65.6 74.8 58.3

Apr 2017

50.2 49.2 58.8 65.5 74.7 58.2

May 2017

48.7 47.8 57.6 65.6 75.1 58.1

Jun 2017

49.3 48.3 57.6 65.8 75.5 58.1

Jul 2017

48.9 47.8 58.8 66.1 75.9 58.2

Aug 2017

49.7 48.4 61.5 65.6 75.3 57.9

Sep 2017

50.6 49.2 63.3 65.7 75.1 58.2

Oct 2017

49.7 48.5 60.2 65.6 75.0 58.1

Nov 2017

49.9 48.8 60.9 65.4 74.3 58.2

Dec 2017

49.1 47.9 60.1 65.2 74.4 57.8

Jan 2018

48.6 47.7 57.8 65.1 74.4 57.6

Feb 2018

49.1 47.9 60.6 65.6 74.9 58.1

Mar 2018

49.8 48.6 60.9 65.5 74.7 58.1

Apr 2018

49.7 48.5 61.0 65.4 74.7 57.9

May 2018

48.8 47.7 58.9 65.6 75.1 57.9

Jun 2018

49.2 47.8 61.9 65.9 75.3 58.2

Jul 2018

49.1 47.9 60.8 65.9 75.3 58.3

Aug 2018

49.0 47.7 60.9 65.3 74.6 57.8

Sep 2018

49.6 48.2 62.5 65.3 74.3 58.1

Oct 2018

49.1 47.9 59.5 65.6 74.4 58.4

Nov 2018

49.6 48.3 62.0 65.5 74.2 58.4

Dec 2018

49.1 47.7 62.0 65.5 74.1 58.4

Jan 2019

49.3 48.0 61.1 65.5 74.3 58.4

Feb 2019

49.4 48.1 61.5 65.8 74.4 58.7

Mar 2019

49.4 48.1 60.9 65.7 74.6 58.5

Apr 2019

49.4 48.3 59.4 65.4 74.2 58.2

May 2019

49.1 48.4 55.5 65.5 74.6 58.1

Jun 2019

49.2 48.4 56.2 65.7 74.8 58.3

Jul 2019

49.4 48.5 57.1 66.0 75.4 58.3

Aug 2019

49.0 48.0 57.6 65.7 74.7 58.4

Sep 2019

49.2 48.2 58.4 65.8 74.4 58.7

Oct 2019

49.0 48.2 56.3 66.1 74.5 59.2

Nov 2019

48.8 47.8 57.7 65.9 74.5 58.9

Dec 2019

49.7 48.6 59.2 65.6 73.9 58.8

Jan 2020

49.3 48.0 60.7 65.6 74.2 58.6

Feb 2020

49.6 48.2 61.3 65.9 74.3 59.0

Mar 2020

48.8 47.8 57.8 65.2 73.7 58.2

Apr 2020

48.2 47.2 57.4 62.4 70.9 55.5

May 2020

48.2 47.3 56.4 63.2 71.7 56.2

Jun 2020

48.7 48.0 55.0 64.1 72.7 57.1

Jul 2020

48.0 47.4 53.3 64.3 73.0 57.2

Aug 2020

47.9 47.2 53.8 64.2 73.0 57.0

Sep 2020

47.9 46.7 58.1 63.9 72.6 56.7

Oct 2020

47.4 46.2 57.5 64.2 72.9 57.2

Nov 2020

47.9 46.5 59.2 64.0 72.4 57.1

Dec 2020

47.5 46.3 58.5 63.8 72.2 57.0

Jan 2021

48.0 47.0 57.2 63.6 72.3 56.5

Feb 2021

47.9 46.8 57.0 63.9 72.5 56.9

Mar 2021

47.6 46.3 58.5 64.0 72.4 57.1

Apr 2021

48.7 47.6 57.8 63.8 72.4 56.8

May 2021

48.5 47.3 59.1 63.9 72.6 56.8

Jun 2021

48.6 47.8 55.8 64.3 73.0 57.1

Jul 2021

47.8 47.0 54.8 64.5 73.5 57.1

Aug 2021

46.8 45.5 57.8 64.2 73.1 56.9

Sep 2021

47.1 45.6 59.4 64.1 72.8 57.0

Oct 2021

46.8 45.3 59.8 64.3 72.8 57.3

Of the 18.0 million veterans, most were men. Male veterans numbered 16.1 million, accounting for about 9 in 10 of all veterans. The labor force participation rate for male veterans was 45.3 percent in October 2021, while the labor force participation rate for female veterans was 59.8 percent.

Labor force participation rate for veterans by era of service, September 2008 to October 2021
Date Gulf War-era II Gulf War-era I World War II, Korean War, and Vietnam-era Other service periods

Sep 2008

83.2% 88.5% 38.6% 60.6%

Oct 2008

86.3 88.0 38.7 61.4

Nov 2008

85.1 88.2 40.1 61.2

Dec 2008

86.0 87.4 39.7 61.9

Jan 2009

84.6 87.5 40.0 61.3

Feb 2009

83.9 87.1 39.6 61.4

Mar 2009

83.8 87.2 39.1 61.2

Apr 2009

81.6 87.6 38.4 60.0

May 2009

83.5 88.9 39.3 60.5

Jun 2009

83.2 87.9 38.7 60.7

Jul 2009

84.3 89.0 37.9 59.6

Aug 2009

84.5 88.6 37.4 60.0

Sep 2009

83.9 87.4 37.5 59.1

Oct 2009

83.6 87.3 36.5 59.8

Nov 2009

82.3 86.8 37.5 58.6

Dec 2009

83.4 87.2 36.9 59.0

Jan 2010

80.8 87.1 36.9 58.8

Feb 2010

81.6 87.0 36.9 58.6

Mar 2010

81.4 87.0 36.1 58.9

Apr 2010

80.6 87.3 36.2 58.0

May 2010

81.4 87.3 36.3 59.8

Jun 2010

82.1 86.0 36.1 59.4

Jul 2010

84.4 85.4 36.3 59.9

Aug 2010

85.0 85.2 36.5 60.1

Sep 2010

83.3 84.8 36.5 57.1

Oct 2010

81.9 86.9 36.2 56.6

Nov 2010

83.5 87.5 35.5 56.5

Dec 2010

80.0 86.5 35.6 57.3

Jan 2011

80.3 85.0 35.4 56.5

Feb 2011

81.6 84.3 34.8 57.0

Mar 2011

79.6 84.0 34.1 56.2

Apr 2011

79.5 84.3 34.0 57.6

May 2011

80.3 83.3 34.4 59.1

Jun 2011

81.9 83.0 34.9 58.1

Jul 2011

80.3 83.3 34.7 58.4

Aug 2011

81.5 83.0 34.5 58.0

Sep 2011

82.3 83.0 33.7 57.9

Oct 2011

82.3 84.6 32.4 58.1

Nov 2011

83.1 83.7 32.5 57.7

Dec 2011

81.1 84.1 32.4 56.9

Jan 2012

80.2 83.6 31.3 56.2

Feb 2012

80.2 83.9 32.4 57.0

Mar 2012

80.5 84.7 32.9 56.3

Apr 2012

78.8 84.1 33.1 56.8

May 2012

79.2 84.8 33.9 57.0

Jun 2012

79.4 83.2 32.7 55.3

Jul 2012

79.3 82.3 32.6 55.7

Aug 2012

81.0 82.8 31.6 56.7

Sep 2012

82.1 83.3 32.1 57.1

Oct 2012

82.8 83.9 30.9 57.2

Nov 2012

82.4 83.2 30.7 57.6

Dec 2012

82.5 83.2 30.4 55.9

Jan 2013

81.0 83.4 30.6 55.7

Feb 2013

80.2 84.4 30.8 55.8

Mar 2013

79.1 83.9 31.0 53.5

Apr 2013

80.5 83.2 31.6 55.3

May 2013

82.5 83.0 31.2 55.9

Jun 2013

79.7 81.4 30.6 55.4

Jul 2013

79.0 82.4 29.9 56.2

Aug 2013

78.5 81.7 29.2 56.3

Sep 2013

80.0 85.0 29.2 55.8

Oct 2013

81.5 83.9 29.0 55.5

Nov 2013

82.0 84.7 28.2 55.2

Dec 2013

82.6 84.8 27.9 54.5

Jan 2014

80.1 83.2 28.6 52.2

Feb 2014

81.1 81.7 29.5 52.4

Mar 2014

81.8 82.1 29.7 52.2

Apr 2014

79.6 80.8 29.1 52.7

May 2014

80.0 82.0 28.6 51.4

Jun 2014

80.6 82.8 27.9 51.0

Jul 2014

79.9 82.5 27.5 51.7

Aug 2014

78.8 83.2 28.4 51.8

Sep 2014

78.4 84.2 28.4 54.8

Oct 2014

78.7 83.7 28.0 53.7

Nov 2014

78.5 82.3 27.1 52.7

Dec 2014

78.5 81.2 26.9 52.6

Jan 2015

79.5 82.2 27.1 51.3

Feb 2015

82.6 81.7 26.7 52.2

Mar 2015

82.4 80.8 27.0 51.8

Apr 2015

81.1 79.7 26.9 51.8

May 2015

81.6 80.2 26.5 51.5

Jun 2015

78.2 79.6 26.3 50.2

Jul 2015

79.1 80.2 26.8 50.9

Aug 2015

80.4 81.4 25.9 51.0

Sep 2015

80.8 81.3 26.0 52.6

Oct 2015

81.3 80.4 26.0 52.4

Nov 2015

82.9 79.0 25.7 52.6

Dec 2015

82.7 78.8 25.9 52.2

Jan 2016

83.0 80.9 25.5 50.5

Feb 2016

81.6 81.2 25.5 50.3

Mar 2016

80.3 81.6 25.1 50.0

Apr 2016

79.1 80.6 25.6 50.8

May 2016

80.2 80.3 25.2 50.5

Jun 2016

80.1 80.4 24.9 50.1

Jul 2016

82.4 79.3 25.0 50.9

Aug 2016

82.0 79.9 24.9 49.1

Sep 2016

80.5 82.1 25.3 50.6

Oct 2016

82.9 79.9 25.0 51.3

Nov 2016

82.8 79.2 23.3 50.9

Dec 2016

82.7 79.0 22.6 51.1

Jan 2017

82.2 77.5 22.3 49.7

Feb 2017

82.3 79.6 23.2 49.9

Mar 2017

79.4 80.3 23.1 48.8

Apr 2017

79.8 79.7 24.2 48.5

May 2017

79.4 78.1 22.5 46.5

Jun 2017

80.0 79.4 21.9 47.9

Jul 2017

80.2 77.7 22.5 46.4

Aug 2017

80.7 79.3 22.6 47.7

Sep 2017

80.3 81.1 22.9 49.6

Oct 2017

79.7 77.8 22.3 49.4

Nov 2017

82.2 78.8 22.3 49.5

Dec 2017

81.2 76.6 20.9 50.3

Jan 2018

80.1 77.8 20.7 48.6

Feb 2018

80.2 80.4 20.9 48.4

Mar 2018

82.2 78.8 21.2 49.5

Apr 2018

82.5 77.9 21.1 49.5

May 2018

79.5 77.1 20.9 48.6

Jun 2018

80.2 79.4 20.4 48.9

Jul 2018

79.5 79.7 21.1 47.5

Aug 2018

80.4 79.0 20.5 47.3

Sep 2018

81.4 79.9 21.0 47.0

Oct 2018

81.7 77.9 20.6 46.3

Nov 2018

82.6 77.5 21.4 46.3

Dec 2018

80.8 77.5 20.8 46.2

Jan 2019

81.4 77.0 21.1 46.4

Feb 2019

80.6 77.9 20.8 47.1

Mar 2019

81.0 78.0 19.7 48.2

Apr 2019

79.8 77.4 20.3 48.5

May 2019

80.5 75.9 20.2 47.3

Jun 2019

79.9 75.2 21.0 47.1

Jul 2019

80.8 76.2 20.6 46.7

Aug 2019

79.8 76.4 19.9 46.6

Sep 2019

80.3 75.9 20.5 46.2

Oct 2019

78.7 74.7 20.3 47.6

Nov 2019

78.4 74.0 20.8 46.6

Dec 2019

80.4 75.5 20.9 47.0

Jan 2020

79.0 75.9 20.7 46.4

Feb 2020

79.9 76.9 20.7 45.5

Mar 2020

79.5 75.0 19.1 46.4

Apr 2020

78.1 73.5 18.7 46.5

May 2020

79.1 74.3 17.8 46.0

Jun 2020

79.1 72.5 18.7 47.7

Jul 2020

78.7 75.4 17.5 44.3

Aug 2020

79.5 73.7 17.2 44.4

Sep 2020

79.6 71.3 17.5 45.5

Oct 2020

77.7 72.8 17.2 44.4

Nov 2020

77.8 73.5 17.6 44.8

Dec 2020

76.6 73.5 17.6 44.3

Jan 2021

77.4 76.3 17.3 43.9

Feb 2021

78.5 74.3 17.1 43.6

Mar 2021

78.7 74.1 16.8 42.2

Apr 2021

80.5 74.0 17.0 44.6

May 2021

79.4 73.7 16.7 45.3

Jun 2021

78.4 75.2 16.0 46.6

Jul 2021

78.7 73.3 15.8 44.0

Aug 2021

77.4 72.2 15.9 41.2

Sep 2021

78.7 71.3 16.0 41.2

Oct 2021

79.0 71.4 15.8 39.4

The difference in participation rates between veterans and nonveterans reflects, at least in part, the older age profile of veterans who served during World War II, Korean War, and Vietnam-era—all of whom are now over age 60. These veterans accounted for the largest share of the veteran population, at 35 percent (or 6.3 million) in October 2021. Older people, whether veterans or nonveterans, tend to have lower participation rates than younger people.

By period of service, Gulf War-era II veterans, who tend to be younger, had a labor force participation rate of 79.0 percent in October 2021. Gulf War-era I veterans had a labor force participation rate of 71.4 percent during this period. World War II, Korean War, and Vietnam-era veterans had a labor force participation rate at 15.8 percent. Veterans of other service periods had a participation rate of 39.4 percent in October 2021.

These data are from the Current Population Survey and are not seasonally adjusted. See table A-5 in  "The Employment Situation — October 2021" to learn more. Also see charts of Employment Situation data. For additional information on veterans please see the Veterans Demographics page.  To read more see Gulf War Era Veterans in the Labor Force.

Note: Veterans are men and women who previously served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces and were civilians when they were surveyed. People on active duty are not included in the survey. 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 (all other time periods). Veterans could have served anywhere in the world during these periods of service. Veterans who served in more than one wartime period are classified 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.

SUGGESTED CITATION

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, Labor force participation rate for veterans was 46.8 percent in October 2021 at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2021/labor-force-participation-rate-for-veterans-was-46-8-percent-in-october-2021.htm (visited October 13, 2024).

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