U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Department of Labor Logo United States Department of Labor
Dot gov

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

Https

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

Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey
HOUSEHOLD DATA
NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED
A-38. Persons not in the labor force by desire and availability for work, age, and sex [In thousands]
Category Total Age Sex
Mar.
2023		 Mar.
2024		 16 to 24
years		 25 to 54
years		 55 years
and over		 Men Women
Mar.
2023		 Mar.
2024		 Mar.
2023		 Mar.
2024		 Mar.
2023		 Mar.
2024		 Mar.
2023		 Mar.
2024		 Mar.
2023		 Mar.
2024

Total not in the labor force

 99,489 99,924 17,456 17,304 21,217 21,022 60,815 61,597 41,192 41,713 58,297 58,211

Do not want a job now(1)

 94,842 94,814 16,088 15,871 19,202 18,759 59,552 60,184 38,878 39,160 55,964 55,654

Want a job(1)

 4,646 5,110 1,368 1,433 2,015 2,264 1,263 1,413 2,314 2,552 2,332 2,557

Did not search for work in previous year

 2,900 2,978 799 782 1,141 1,154 960 1,042 1,384 1,391 1,516 1,587

Searched for work in previous year(2),
but not in past 4 weeks

 1,746 2,132 568 652 874 1,110 303 371 930 1,162 816 971

Not available to work now

 556 693 240 249 238 386 78 59 292 326 264 367

Marginally attached (available to work now)(3)

 1,190 1,439 329 403 636 724 225 312 638 835 552 604

Discouraged over job prospects(4)

 303 286 45 97 177 134 81 55 202 195 100 91

Reasons other than discouragement

 887 1,152 284 305 459 590 144 257 436 640 452 512

Family responsibilities

 82 174 10 39 58 108 13 26 25 63 56 110

In school or training

 130 154 112 106 18 42 0 6 71 78 59 77

Ill health or disability

 116 132 7 19 68 50 41 63 55 90 61 42

Other(5)

 560 692 155 141 314 389 90 162 284 409 275 283

Footnotes
(1) Includes some persons who are not asked if they want a job, such as passive jobseekers.
(2) Persons who had a job in the prior 12 months must have searched since the end of that job.
(3) Persons "marginally attached to the labor force" are those who want a job, have 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.
(4) Discouraged workers are persons marginally attached to the labor force 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.
(5) Includes those who did not actively look for work in the prior 4 weeks for such reasons as child-care and transportation problems, as well as a small number for which reason for nonparticipation was not ascertained.

NOTE: Updated population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data.

 

Last Modified Date: April 05, 2024