U.S. Unemployment (1940-2003)
Real World Data for Economics Principles
The unemployment rate is measured as the percentage of the labor force unemployed. The formula is "unemployment rate (%) = (unemployed/labor force)*100." |
The labor force excludes (1)
people less than 16 years of age***; (2)
people institutionalized; and (3)
potential workers ("not in labor force" such as homemakers, full-time students or retirees)
from the total population. |
*** "people less than 14 years of age" was used before 1947. |
| The labor force includes people who are willing and able to work: (1) employed and (2) unemployed. |
The labor force and unemployment data are collected by a nationwide random survey of some 60,000 households each month (by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). |
Source: |
Annual Average Unemployment Rates (1940 - 2003), Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, ftp://ftp.bls.gov/pub/special.requests/lf/aat1.txt. Unemployment rates of the civilian noninstitutional population. |
 Data Showcase (Animated Data Presentation) |