Accessible Version

Accessible Version

Figure 1. Unemployment is near historic lows

Unemployment rate

Percent

Period Percent
January 1960 5.2
February 1960 4.8
March 1960 5.4
April 1960 5.2
May 1960 5.1
June 1960 5.4
July 1960 5.5
August 1960 5.6
September 1960 5.5
October 1960 6.1
November 1960 6.1
December 1960 6.6
January 1961 6.6
February 1961 6.9
March 1961 6.9
April 1961 7.0
May 1961 7.1
June 1961 6.9
July 1961 7.0
August 1961 6.6
September 1961 6.7
October 1961 6.5
November 1961 6.1
December 1961 6.0
January 1962 5.8
February 1962 5.5
March 1962 5.6
April 1962 5.6
May 1962 5.5
June 1962 5.5
July 1962 5.4
August 1962 5.7
September 1962 5.6
October 1962 5.4
November 1962 5.7
December 1962 5.5
January 1963 5.7
February 1963 5.9
March 1963 5.7
April 1963 5.7
May 1963 5.9
June 1963 5.6
July 1963 5.6
August 1963 5.4
September 1963 5.5
October 1963 5.5
November 1963 5.7
December 1963 5.5
January 1964 5.6
February 1964 5.4
March 1964 5.4
April 1964 5.3
May 1964 5.1
June 1964 5.2
July 1964 4.9
August 1964 5.0
September 1964 5.1
October 1964 5.1
November 1964 4.8
December 1964 5.0
January 1965 4.9
February 1965 5.1
March 1965 4.7
April 1965 4.8
May 1965 4.6
June 1965 4.6
July 1965 4.4
August 1965 4.4
September 1965 4.3
October 1965 4.2
November 1965 4.1
December 1965 4.0
January 1966 4.0
February 1966 3.8
March 1966 3.8
April 1966 3.8
May 1966 3.9
June 1966 3.8
July 1966 3.8
August 1966 3.8
September 1966 3.7
October 1966 3.7
November 1966 3.6
December 1966 3.8
January 1967 3.9
February 1967 3.8
March 1967 3.8
April 1967 3.8
May 1967 3.8
June 1967 3.9
July 1967 3.8
August 1967 3.8
September 1967 3.8
October 1967 4.0
November 1967 3.9
December 1967 3.8
January 1968 3.7
February 1968 3.8
March 1968 3.7
April 1968 3.5
May 1968 3.5
June 1968 3.7
July 1968 3.7
August 1968 3.5
September 1968 3.4
October 1968 3.4
November 1968 3.4
December 1968 3.4
January 1969 3.4
February 1969 3.4
March 1969 3.4
April 1969 3.4
May 1969 3.4
June 1969 3.5
July 1969 3.5
August 1969 3.5
September 1969 3.7
October 1969 3.7
November 1969 3.5
December 1969 3.5
January 1970 3.9
February 1970 4.2
March 1970 4.4
April 1970 4.6
May 1970 4.8
June 1970 4.9
July 1970 5.0
August 1970 5.1
September 1970 5.4
October 1970 5.5
November 1970 5.9
December 1970 6.1
January 1971 5.9
February 1971 5.9
March 1971 6.0
April 1971 5.9
May 1971 5.9
June 1971 5.9
July 1971 6.0
August 1971 6.1
September 1971 6.0
October 1971 5.8
November 1971 6.0
December 1971 6.0
January 1972 5.8
February 1972 5.7
March 1972 5.8
April 1972 5.7
May 1972 5.7
June 1972 5.7
July 1972 5.6
August 1972 5.6
September 1972 5.5
October 1972 5.6
November 1972 5.3
December 1972 5.2
January 1973 4.9
February 1973 5.0
March 1973 4.9
April 1973 5.0
May 1973 4.9
June 1973 4.9
July 1973 4.8
August 1973 4.8
September 1973 4.8
October 1973 4.6
November 1973 4.8
December 1973 4.9
January 1974 5.1
February 1974 5.2
March 1974 5.1
April 1974 5.1
May 1974 5.1
June 1974 5.4
July 1974 5.5
August 1974 5.5
September 1974 5.9
October 1974 6.0
November 1974 6.6
December 1974 7.2
January 1975 8.1
February 1975 8.1
March 1975 8.6
April 1975 8.8
May 1975 9.0
June 1975 8.8
July 1975 8.6
August 1975 8.4
September 1975 8.4
October 1975 8.4
November 1975 8.3
December 1975 8.2
January 1976 7.9
February 1976 7.7
March 1976 7.6
April 1976 7.7
May 1976 7.4
June 1976 7.6
July 1976 7.8
August 1976 7.8
September 1976 7.6
October 1976 7.7
November 1976 7.8
December 1976 7.8
January 1977 7.5
February 1977 7.6
March 1977 7.4
April 1977 7.2
May 1977 7.0
June 1977 7.2
July 1977 6.9
August 1977 7.0
September 1977 6.8
October 1977 6.8
November 1977 6.8
December 1977 6.4
January 1978 6.4
February 1978 6.3
March 1978 6.3
April 1978 6.1
May 1978 6.0
June 1978 5.9
July 1978 6.2
August 1978 5.9
September 1978 6.0
October 1978 5.8
November 1978 5.9
December 1978 6.0
January 1979 5.9
February 1979 5.9
March 1979 5.8
April 1979 5.8
May 1979 5.6
June 1979 5.7
July 1979 5.7
August 1979 6.0
September 1979 5.9
October 1979 6.0
November 1979 5.9
December 1979 6.0
January 1980 6.3
February 1980 6.3
March 1980 6.3
April 1980 6.9
May 1980 7.5
June 1980 7.6
July 1980 7.8
August 1980 7.7
September 1980 7.5
October 1980 7.5
November 1980 7.5
December 1980 7.2
January 1981 7.5
February 1981 7.4
March 1981 7.4
April 1981 7.2
May 1981 7.5
June 1981 7.5
July 1981 7.2
August 1981 7.4
September 1981 7.6
October 1981 7.9
November 1981 8.3
December 1981 8.5
January 1982 8.6
February 1982 8.9
March 1982 9.0
April 1982 9.3
May 1982 9.4
June 1982 9.6
July 1982 9.8
August 1982 9.8
September 1982 10.1
October 1982 10.4
November 1982 10.8
December 1982 10.8
January 1983 10.4
February 1983 10.4
March 1983 10.3
April 1983 10.2
May 1983 10.1
June 1983 10.1
July 1983 9.4
August 1983 9.5
September 1983 9.2
October 1983 8.8
November 1983 8.5
December 1983 8.3
January 1984 8.0
February 1984 7.8
March 1984 7.8
April 1984 7.7
May 1984 7.4
June 1984 7.2
July 1984 7.5
August 1984 7.5
September 1984 7.3
October 1984 7.4
November 1984 7.2
December 1984 7.3
January 1985 7.3
February 1985 7.2
March 1985 7.2
April 1985 7.3
May 1985 7.2
June 1985 7.4
July 1985 7.4
August 1985 7.1
September 1985 7.1
October 1985 7.1
November 1985 7.0
December 1985 7.0
January 1986 6.7
February 1986 7.2
March 1986 7.2
April 1986 7.1
May 1986 7.2
June 1986 7.2
July 1986 7.0
August 1986 6.9
September 1986 7.0
October 1986 7.0
November 1986 6.9
December 1986 6.6
January 1987 6.6
February 1987 6.6
March 1987 6.6
April 1987 6.3
May 1987 6.3
June 1987 6.2
July 1987 6.1
August 1987 6.0
September 1987 5.9
October 1987 6.0
November 1987 5.8
December 1987 5.7
January 1988 5.7
February 1988 5.7
March 1988 5.7
April 1988 5.4
May 1988 5.6
June 1988 5.4
July 1988 5.4
August 1988 5.6
September 1988 5.4
October 1988 5.4
November 1988 5.3
December 1988 5.3
January 1989 5.4
February 1989 5.2
March 1989 5.0
April 1989 5.2
May 1989 5.2
June 1989 5.3
July 1989 5.2
August 1989 5.2
September 1989 5.3
October 1989 5.3
November 1989 5.4
December 1989 5.4
January 1990 5.4
February 1990 5.3
March 1990 5.2
April 1990 5.4
May 1990 5.4
June 1990 5.2
July 1990 5.5
August 1990 5.7
September 1990 5.9
October 1990 5.9
November 1990 6.2
December 1990 6.3
January 1991 6.4
February 1991 6.6
March 1991 6.8
April 1991 6.7
May 1991 6.9
June 1991 6.9
July 1991 6.8
August 1991 6.9
September 1991 6.9
October 1991 7.0
November 1991 7.0
December 1991 7.3
January 1992 7.3
February 1992 7.4
March 1992 7.4
April 1992 7.4
May 1992 7.6
June 1992 7.8
July 1992 7.7
August 1992 7.6
September 1992 7.6
October 1992 7.3
November 1992 7.4
December 1992 7.4
January 1993 7.3
February 1993 7.1
March 1993 7.0
April 1993 7.1
May 1993 7.1
June 1993 7.0
July 1993 6.9
August 1993 6.8
September 1993 6.7
October 1993 6.8
November 1993 6.6
December 1993 6.5
January 1994 6.6
February 1994 6.6
March 1994 6.5
April 1994 6.4
May 1994 6.1
June 1994 6.1
July 1994 6.1
August 1994 6.0
September 1994 5.9
October 1994 5.8
November 1994 5.6
December 1994 5.5
January 1995 5.6
February 1995 5.4
March 1995 5.4
April 1995 5.8
May 1995 5.6
June 1995 5.6
July 1995 5.7
August 1995 5.7
September 1995 5.6
October 1995 5.5
November 1995 5.6
December 1995 5.6
January 1996 5.6
February 1996 5.5
March 1996 5.5
April 1996 5.6
May 1996 5.6
June 1996 5.3
July 1996 5.5
August 1996 5.1
September 1996 5.2
October 1996 5.2
November 1996 5.4
December 1996 5.4
January 1997 5.3
February 1997 5.2
March 1997 5.2
April 1997 5.1
May 1997 4.9
June 1997 5.0
July 1997 4.9
August 1997 4.8
September 1997 4.9
October 1997 4.7
November 1997 4.6
December 1997 4.7
January 1998 4.6
February 1998 4.6
March 1998 4.7
April 1998 4.3
May 1998 4.4
June 1998 4.5
July 1998 4.5
August 1998 4.5
September 1998 4.6
October 1998 4.5
November 1998 4.4
December 1998 4.4
January 1999 4.3
February 1999 4.4
March 1999 4.2
April 1999 4.3
May 1999 4.2
June 1999 4.3
July 1999 4.3
August 1999 4.2
September 1999 4.2
October 1999 4.1
November 1999 4.1
December 1999 4.0
January 2000 4.0
February 2000 4.1
March 2000 4.0
April 2000 3.8
May 2000 4.0
June 2000 4.0
July 2000 4.0
August 2000 4.1
September 2000 3.9
October 2000 3.9
November 2000 3.9
December 2000 3.9
January 2001 4.2
February 2001 4.2
March 2001 4.3
April 2001 4.4
May 2001 4.3
June 2001 4.5
July 2001 4.6
August 2001 4.9
September 2001 5.0
October 2001 5.3
November 2001 5.5
December 2001 5.7
January 2002 5.7
February 2002 5.7
March 2002 5.7
April 2002 5.9
May 2002 5.8
June 2002 5.8
July 2002 5.8
August 2002 5.7
September 2002 5.7
October 2002 5.7
November 2002 5.9
December 2002 6.0
January 2003 5.8
February 2003 5.9
March 2003 5.9
April 2003 6.0
May 2003 6.1
June 2003 6.3
July 2003 6.2
August 2003 6.1
September 2003 6.1
October 2003 6.0
November 2003 5.8
December 2003 5.7
January 2004 5.7
February 2004 5.6
March 2004 5.8
April 2004 5.6
May 2004 5.6
June 2004 5.6
July 2004 5.5
August 2004 5.4
September 2004 5.4
October 2004 5.5
November 2004 5.4
December 2004 5.4
January 2005 5.3
February 2005 5.4
March 2005 5.2
April 2005 5.2
May 2005 5.1
June 2005 5.0
July 2005 5.0
August 2005 4.9
September 2005 5.0
October 2005 5.0
November 2005 5.0
December 2005 4.9
January 2006 4.7
February 2006 4.8
March 2006 4.7
April 2006 4.7
May 2006 4.6
June 2006 4.6
July 2006 4.7
August 2006 4.7
September 2006 4.5
October 2006 4.4
November 2006 4.5
December 2006 4.4
January 2007 4.6
February 2007 4.5
March 2007 4.4
April 2007 4.5
May 2007 4.4
June 2007 4.6
July 2007 4.7
August 2007 4.6
September 2007 4.7
October 2007 4.7
November 2007 4.7
December 2007 5.0
January 2008 5.0
February 2008 4.9
March 2008 5.1
April 2008 5.0
May 2008 5.4
June 2008 5.6
July 2008 5.8
August 2008 6.1
September 2008 6.1
October 2008 6.5
November 2008 6.8
December 2008 7.3
January 2009 7.8
February 2009 8.3
March 2009 8.7
April 2009 9.0
May 2009 9.4
June 2009 9.5
July 2009 9.5
August 2009 9.6
September 2009 9.8
October 2009 10.0
November 2009 9.9
December 2009 9.9
January 2010 9.8
February 2010 9.8
March 2010 9.9
April 2010 9.9
May 2010 9.6
June 2010 9.4
July 2010 9.4
August 2010 9.5
September 2010 9.5
October 2010 9.4
November 2010 9.8
December 2010 9.3
January 2011 9.1
February 2011 9.0
March 2011 9.0
April 2011 9.1
May 2011 9.0
June 2011 9.1
July 2011 9.0
August 2011 9.0
September 2011 9.0
October 2011 8.8
November 2011 8.6
December 2011 8.5
January 2012 8.3
February 2012 8.3
March 2012 8.2
April 2012 8.2
May 2012 8.2
June 2012 8.2
July 2012 8.2
August 2012 8.1
September 2012 7.8
October 2012 7.8
November 2012 7.7
December 2012 7.9
January 2013 8.0
February 2013 7.7
March 2013 7.5
April 2013 7.6
May 2013 7.5
June 2013 7.5
July 2013 7.3
August 2013 7.2
September 2013 7.2
October 2013 7.2
November 2013 6.9
December 2013 6.7
January 2014 6.6
February 2014 6.7
March 2014 6.7
April 2014 6.2
May 2014 6.3
June 2014 6.1
July 2014 6.2
August 2014 6.1
September 2014 5.9
October 2014 5.7
November 2014 5.8
December 2014 5.6
January 2015 5.7
February 2015 5.5
March 2015 5.4
April 2015 5.4
May 2015 5.6
June 2015 5.3
July 2015 5.2
August 2015 5.1
September 2015 5.0
October 2015 5.0
November 2015 5.1
December 2015 5.0
January 2016 4.9
February 2016 4.9
March 2016 5.0
April 2016 5.0
May 2016 4.8
June 2016 4.9
July 2016 4.8
August 2016 4.9
September 2016 5.0
October 2016 4.9
November 2016 4.7
December 2016 4.7
January 2017 4.7
February 2017 4.7
March 2017 4.4
April 2017 4.4
May 2017 4.4
June 2017 4.3
July 2017 4.3
August 2017 4.4
September 2017 4.2
October 2017 4.1
November 2017 4.2
December 2017 4.1
January 2018 4.1
February 2018 4.1
March 2018 4.0
April 2018 3.9
May 2018 3.8
June 2018 4.0
July 2018 3.9
August 2018 3.8
September 2018 3.7
October 2018 3.8
November 2018 3.7
December 2018 3.9
January 2019 4.0

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Figure 2. Improvement in unemployment is broadly shared

Unemployment by race and ethnicity

Percent

Period White Hispanic Asian Black
January 1995 4.8 10.2   10.3
February 1995 4.7 9.0   10.1
March 1995 4.7 8.9   9.7
April 1995 5.0 8.9   10.7
May 1995 5.0 9.8   10.0
June 1995 4.9 9.1   10.7
July 1995 4.9 8.8   10.9
August 1995 4.9 9.6   11.1
September 1995 4.9 9.1   11.1
October 1995 4.9 9.4   10.0
November 1995 5.0 9.5   9.7
December 1995 4.9 9.3   10.2
January 1996 4.9 9.4   10.6
February 1996 4.8 9.6   10.0
March 1996 4.8 9.6   10.6
April 1996 4.8 9.6   10.7
May 1996 4.9 9.6   10.2
June 1996 4.6 8.8   10.4
July 1996 4.7 8.8   10.6
August 1996 4.4 8.8   10.6
September 1996 4.5 8.2   10.6
October 1996 4.5 8.0   10.7
November 1996 4.6 8.5   10.6
December 1996 4.6 7.4   10.5
January 1997 4.5 8.4   10.8
February 1997 4.5 8.2   10.7
March 1997 4.4 8.3   10.5
April 1997 4.3 8.2   10.2
May 1997 4.1 7.7   10.3
June 1997 4.2 7.5   10.8
July 1997 4.2 7.9   9.5
August 1997 4.2 7.2   9.4
September 1997 4.2 7.4   9.5
October 1997 4.1 7.8   9.5
November 1997 3.9 7.0   9.5
December 1997 3.9 7.3   10.0
January 1998 4.0 7.1   9.4
February 1998 3.9 6.9   9.3
March 1998 4.0 6.9   9.2
April 1998 3.7 6.7   9.1
May 1998 3.8 6.9   8.9
June 1998 3.9 7.4   8.8
July 1998 3.8 7.3   9.5
August 1998 3.9 7.4   8.8
September 1998 3.9 7.3   9.1
October 1998 3.9 7.2   8.6
November 1998 3.8 7.1   8.6
December 1998 3.8 7.7   7.7
January 1999 3.8 6.7   7.8
February 1999 3.8 6.7   8.2
March 1999 3.6 5.8   8.0
April 1999 3.8 7.0   7.8
May 1999 3.7 6.7   7.4
June 1999 3.8 6.6   7.7
July 1999 3.7 6.5   8.7
August 1999 3.7 6.5   7.7
September 1999 3.6 6.7   8.5
October 1999 3.5 6.4   8.4
November 1999 3.5 6.0   8.0
December 1999 3.5 5.8   7.8
January 2000 3.4 5.6   8.2
February 2000 3.6 5.7   8.1
March 2000 3.5 6.1   7.4
April 2000 3.4 5.5   7.0
May 2000 3.5 5.8   7.7
June 2000 3.4 5.6   7.8
July 2000 3.5 5.8   7.7
August 2000 3.6 5.9   7.9
September 2000 3.5 5.8   7.3
October 2000 3.4 5.1   7.3
November 2000 3.5 6.0   7.3
December 2000 3.5 5.7   7.4
January 2001 3.6 5.8   8.2
February 2001 3.7 6.1   7.7
March 2001 3.7 6.2   8.3
April 2001 3.9 6.4   8.0
May 2001 3.8 6.3   7.9
June 2001 4.0 6.6   8.3
July 2001 4.0 6.2   8.0
August 2001 4.3 6.5   9.1
September 2001 4.3 6.7   8.9
October 2001 4.7 7.1   9.5
November 2001 4.9 7.3   9.8
December 2001 5.1 7.7   10.1
January 2002 5.1 7.8   10.0
February 2002 5.0 7.0   9.9
March 2002 5.0 7.5   10.5
April 2002 5.2 8.0   10.7
May 2002 5.1 7.1   10.2
June 2002 5.1 7.4   10.5
July 2002 5.2 7.4   9.8
August 2002 5.1 7.5   9.8
September 2002 5.1 7.4   9.7
October 2002 5.1 7.9   9.8
November 2002 5.1 7.8   10.7
December 2002 5.1 7.9   11.3
January 2003 5.2 7.9 5.5 10.5
February 2003 5.1 7.7 5.8 10.7
March 2003 5.1 7.8 6.5 10.3
April 2003 5.3 7.6 6.0 10.9
May 2003 5.4 8.0 5.5 10.9
June 2003 5.5 8.3 7.4 11.5
July 2003 5.4 8.0 5.9 10.9
August 2003 5.4 7.7 6.0 10.9
September 2003 5.3 7.3 6.4 11.1
October 2003 5.1 7.5 6.2 11.4
November 2003 5.2 7.4 5.2 10.2
December 2003 5.0 6.7 5.4 10.1
January 2004 5.0 7.3 5.0 10.4
February 2004 4.9 7.4 4.5 9.7
March 2004 5.1 7.6 4.3 10.3
April 2004 5.0 7.1 4.7 9.8
May 2004 4.9 6.9 4.6 10.1
June 2004 5.0 6.6 4.6 10.2
July 2004 4.7 6.8 3.9 11.0
August 2004 4.7 6.8 3.7 10.5
September 2004 4.6 6.8 4.5 10.3
October 2004 4.6 6.8 4.9 10.8
November 2004 4.6 6.7 4.1 10.7
December 2004 4.5 6.6 4.2 10.7
January 2005 4.5 6.0 4.1 10.6
February 2005 4.6 6.3 4.3 10.9
March 2005 4.5 5.8 3.9 10.5
April 2005 4.4 6.4 4.2 10.3
May 2005 4.4 6.0 4.2 10.1
June 2005 4.3 5.7 3.6 10.2
July 2005 4.2 5.5 4.8 9.2
August 2005 4.2 5.8 3.7 9.7
September 2005 4.4 6.4 4.3 9.4
October 2005 4.4 6.0 3.2 9.1
November 2005 4.3 6.1 3.6 10.6
December 2005 4.2 6.1 3.8 9.2
January 2006 4.1 5.5 3.0 8.9
February 2006 4.1 5.4 3.0 9.5
March 2006 4.0 5.2 3.5 9.5
April 2006 4.1 5.5 3.9 9.4
May 2006 4.1 5.0 3.3 8.7
June 2006 4.1 5.2 3.1 8.9
July 2006 4.1 5.2 2.4 9.5
August 2006 4.1 5.3 3.0 8.8
September 2006 3.9 5.5 3.0 9.0
October 2006 3.9 4.8 2.8 8.4
November 2006 4.0 5.1 3.1 8.5
December 2006 3.9 5.0 2.5 8.3
January 2007 4.2 5.5 3.1 7.9
February 2007 4.1 5.1 2.6 8.0
March 2007 3.8 5.0 3.0 8.4
April 2007 4.0 5.6 3.5 8.3
May 2007 3.9 5.8 3.2 8.3
June 2007 4.1 5.5 2.7 8.5
July 2007 4.2 5.9 2.7 8.1
August 2007 4.2 5.5 3.5 7.6
September 2007 4.2 5.9 3.4 8.0
October 2007 4.1 5.7 3.8 8.5
November 2007 4.2 5.9 3.6 8.5
December 2007 4.4 6.3 3.7 9.0
January 2008 4.4 6.3 3.1 9.1
February 2008 4.4 6.2 2.9 8.4
March 2008 4.5 6.9 3.6 9.2
April 2008 4.4 7.1 3.5 8.6
May 2008 4.8 6.9 4.1 9.6
June 2008 5.0 7.6 4.2 9.4
July 2008 5.2 7.5 3.7 10.0
August 2008 5.4 8.0 4.5 10.6
September 2008 5.4 8.0 4.0 11.3
October 2008 5.9 8.8 3.9 11.4
November 2008 6.2 8.7 4.8 11.5
December 2008 6.7 9.4 5.1 12.1
January 2009 7.1 10.1 6.1 12.7
February 2009 7.6 11.3 6.7 13.7
March 2009 8.0 11.7 6.5 13.7
April 2009 8.1 11.4 6.8 15.0
May 2009 8.5 12.3 7.0 15.0
June 2009 8.7 12.1 7.9 14.8
July 2009 8.7 12.5 8.1 14.8
August 2009 8.9 13.0 7.6 14.8
September 2009 8.9 12.6 7.6 15.3
October 2009 9.2 12.8 7.6 15.8
November 2009 9.2 12.4 7.2 15.7
December 2009 9.0 12.8 8.4 16.1
January 2010 8.8 12.9 8.3 16.5
February 2010 8.9 12.7 8.2 16.1
March 2010 8.9 12.9 7.6 16.8
April 2010 9.0 12.5 7.0 16.6
May 2010 8.7 12.0 7.8 15.5
June 2010 8.6 12.3 7.4 15.2
July 2010 8.5 12.2 7.9 15.6
August 2010 8.6 12.0 7.3 15.9
September 2010 8.6 12.3 6.6 16.0
October 2010 8.6 12.3 7.2 15.6
November 2010 8.9 12.9 7.5 16.2
December 2010 8.5 12.9 7.2 15.5
January 2011 8.1 12.3 6.8 15.8
February 2011 8.1 11.8 6.7 15.5
March 2011 8.0 11.6 7.3 15.8
April 2011 8.1 11.9 6.5 16.5
May 2011 7.9 11.6 7.2 16.3
June 2011 8.1 11.5 6.5 16.2
July 2011 8.0 11.2 7.4 15.9
August 2011 7.9 11.2 7.2 16.4
September 2011 7.9 11.2 8.0 15.9
October 2011 7.9 11.3 7.4 14.6
November 2011 7.7 11.2 6.4 15.6
December 2011 7.5 11.1 6.8 15.4
January 2012 7.4 10.7 6.7 13.6
February 2012 7.4 10.9 6.2 14.0
March 2012 7.3 10.6 6.4 14.0
April 2012 7.4 10.3 5.4 13.3
May 2012 7.4 10.9 5.5 13.5
June 2012 7.3 10.9 6.1 14.5
July 2012 7.3 10.2 5.9 14.2
August 2012 7.2 10.1 5.9 13.8
September 2012 7.0 9.7 4.9 13.6
October 2012 6.9 10.0 4.9 14.1
November 2012 6.8 9.9 6.3 13.3
December 2012 6.9 9.6 6.6 14.0
January 2013 7.1 9.7 6.4 13.7
February 2013 6.8 9.7 6.0 13.8
March 2013 6.7 9.3 5.1 13.0
April 2013 6.7 9.0 5.3 13.3
May 2013 6.7 9.0 4.5 13.4
June 2013 6.6 9.1 4.7 14.2
July 2013 6.5 9.4 5.3 12.6
August 2013 6.4 9.2 5.1 12.8
September 2013 6.3 8.8 5.4 13.0
October 2013 6.3 9.1 5.4 12.8
November 2013 6.1 8.7 5.2 12.3
December 2013 5.9 8.3 4.3 11.9
January 2014 5.7 8.3 4.7 12.1
February 2014 5.8 8.2 5.9 11.8
March 2014 5.8 7.9 5.5 12.1
April 2014 5.3 7.2 5.9 11.6
May 2014 5.4 7.7 5.7 11.4
June 2014 5.3 7.8 4.7 11.0
July 2014 5.3 7.7 4.2 11.6
August 2014 5.3 7.4 4.5 11.4
September 2014 5.1 6.8 4.4 11.0
October 2014 4.9 6.8 5.1 10.6
November 2014 5.0 6.6 4.8 10.9
December 2014 4.7 6.4 4.4 10.6
January 2015 4.9 6.7 4.0 10.3
February 2015 4.7 6.8 4.0 10.1
March 2015 4.8 6.8 3.2 9.9
April 2015 4.7 6.8 4.4 9.8
May 2015 4.8 6.8 4.1 10.3
June 2015 4.6 6.8 3.8 9.6
July 2015 4.5 6.9 4.0 9.1
August 2015 4.4 6.6 3.4 9.4
September 2015 4.4 6.2 3.5 9.3
October 2015 4.4 6.3 3.5 8.9
November 2015 4.4 6.4 3.9 9.4
December 2015 4.4 6.2 4.1 8.5
January 2016 4.3 5.8 3.7 8.8
February 2016 4.2 5.4 3.8 8.6
March 2016 4.3 5.5 4.0 8.9
April 2016 4.4 6.1 3.8 8.9
May 2016 4.2 5.6 4.1 8.2
June 2016 4.3 5.9 3.5 8.7
July 2016 4.2 5.5 3.8 8.4
August 2016 4.4 5.6 4.2 8.0
September 2016 4.4 6.4 3.8 8.4
October 2016 4.4 5.7 3.4 8.3
November 2016 4.2 5.7 3.1 8.0
December 2016 4.2 5.9 2.7 7.9
January 2017 4.3 5.8 3.7 7.7
February 2017 4.0 5.5 3.5 8.0
March 2017 3.9 5.0 3.3 7.9
April 2017 3.8 5.1 3.2 7.9
May 2017 3.8 5.1 3.7 7.7
June 2017 3.8 4.9 3.6 7.1
July 2017 3.7 5.2 3.8 7.4
August 2017 3.8 5.1 4.0 7.6
September 2017 3.7 5.1 3.6 7.1
October 2017 3.5 4.9 3.0 7.3
November 2017 3.7 4.8 3.0 7.3
December 2017 3.7 4.9 2.5 6.7
January 2018 3.5 5.0 3.0 7.7
February 2018 3.7 4.9 3.0 6.8
March 2018 3.6 5.1 3.1 6.8
April 2018 3.5 4.8 2.8 6.5
May 2018 3.5 4.9 2.2 5.9
June 2018 3.5 4.6 3.2 6.5
July 2018 3.3 4.5 3.1 6.6
August 2018 3.4 4.7 3.0 6.3
September 2018 3.3 4.5 3.5 6.0
October 2018 3.3 4.4 3.1 6.2
November 2018 3.4 4.5 2.7 6.0
December 2018 3.4 4.4 3.3 6.6
January 2019 3.5 4.9 3.1 6.8

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Unemployment by education, age 25 and over

Percent

Period Bachelor's degree Some college High school degree Less than HS degree
January 1995 2.4 4.0 5.0 9.2
February 1995 2.3 3.7 4.7 8.9
March 1995 2.5 4.1 4.5 8.0
April 1995 2.7 4.1 5.1 8.8
May 1995 2.5 4.2 5.0 8.7
June 1995 2.6 4.1 4.7 8.7
July 1995 2.5 4.1 4.7 9.0
August 1995 2.5 4.0 4.5 9.5
September 1995 2.4 3.8 4.7 9.1
October 1995 2.4 3.9 4.5 9.1
November 1995 2.3 4.1 4.8 9.3
December 1995 2.4 3.7 4.7 9.2
January 1996 2.4 3.9 4.9 8.7
February 1996 2.3 3.8 4.7 8.9
March 1996 2.2 3.7 4.7 9.2
April 1996 2.3 3.8 4.8 9.1
May 1996 2.3 3.8 4.8 9.7
June 1996 2.2 3.8 4.6 8.6
July 1996 2.2 3.7 4.7 8.8
August 1996 2.1 3.7 4.4 8.5
September 1996 2.2 3.7 4.5 8.2
October 1996 2.2 3.7 4.6 7.8
November 1996 2.3 3.7 4.6 8.4
December 1996 2.3 3.7 4.5 8.3
January 1997 2.1 3.5 4.5 8.8
February 1997 2.1 3.5 4.6 8.8
March 1997 2.0 3.5 4.4 8.3
April 1997 2.0 3.4 4.3 8.4
May 1997 2.2 3.0 4.2 8.5
June 1997 2.0 3.3 4.3 8.2
July 1997 2.1 3.1 4.2 7.7
August 1997 2.1 3.2 4.2 7.6
September 1997 2.1 3.3 4.1 8.0
October 1997 1.9 2.9 4.1 7.8
November 1997 1.7 3.1 3.8 7.4
December 1997 1.8 3.3 4.0 7.5
January 1998 1.9 3.2 4.0 7.0
February 1998 1.9 3.1 4.0 7.1
March 1998 1.8 3.2 4.2 7.1
April 1998 1.7 2.7 3.9 7.2
May 1998 1.7 3.2 3.7 7.0
June 1998 1.7 2.8 4.0 7.2
July 1998 1.7 2.9 4.1 7.2
August 1998 1.8 2.7 3.9 7.1
September 1998 1.7 3.0 4.1 6.9
October 1998 1.9 3.0 4.0 6.9
November 1998 1.9 2.9 3.9 7.1
December 1998 1.8 2.9 3.8 6.9
January 1999 1.8 2.9 3.5 7.1
February 1999 1.9 3.1 3.5 7.5
March 1999 1.9 2.9 3.5 6.1
April 1999 2.0 3.0 3.5 6.9
May 1999 1.9 2.9 3.5 6.8
June 1999 2.0 2.4 3.8 6.8
July 1999 1.8 3.0 3.6 6.9
August 1999 1.6 3.0 3.5 7.1
September 1999 1.7 2.7 3.7 6.9
October 1999 1.7 2.7 3.4 6.6
November 1999 1.7 2.7 3.2 6.4
December 1999 1.7 2.5 3.5 5.8
January 2000 1.8 2.6 3.4 6.4
February 2000 1.6 3.0 3.4 6.0
March 2000 1.7 2.8 3.3 6.6
April 2000 1.5 2.6 3.3 6.2
May 2000 1.6 2.6 3.4 6.9
June 2000 1.6 2.7 3.4 6.3
July 2000 1.7 2.8 3.4 6.4
August 2000 1.9 2.8 3.7 6.2
September 2000 1.9 2.6 3.5 6.2
October 2000 1.6 2.4 3.6 6.4
November 2000 1.5 2.6 3.5 6.5
December 2000 1.5 2.7 3.5 5.9
January 2001 1.6 3.0 3.8 6.7
February 2001 1.6 2.8 3.7 7.5
March 2001 2.0 2.7 3.8 6.8
April 2001 2.1 2.9 3.7 6.8
May 2001 2.1 3.0 3.9 6.6
June 2001 2.2 3.0 3.8 6.9
July 2001 2.2 3.0 4.1 6.8
August 2001 2.3 3.3 4.4 7.2
September 2001 2.5 3.4 4.4 7.7
October 2001 2.6 4.1 4.7 7.6
November 2001 2.9 4.2 5.0 8.0
December 2001 3.0 4.2 4.9 8.3
January 2002 2.9 4.3 5.3 8.2
February 2002 2.9 4.2 5.3 8.3
March 2002 2.8 4.3 5.4 8.1
April 2002 2.9 4.6 5.5 9.1
May 2002 2.9 4.8 5.5 8.3
June 2002 3.0 4.6 5.4 7.8
July 2002 3.0 4.4 5.1 8.6
August 2002 2.8 4.4 5.2 8.4
September 2002 2.9 4.6 5.0 7.8
October 2002 3.0 4.6 4.9 8.7
November 2002 2.9 4.7 5.2 9.0
December 2002 2.9 4.9 5.3 8.9
January 2003 3.0 4.7 5.2 8.8
February 2003 3.0 4.7 5.4 8.9
March 2003 3.1 4.8 5.5 8.6
April 2003 3.0 4.8 5.7 8.5
May 2003 3.0 4.9 5.6 9.0
June 2003 3.1 4.9 5.7 9.4
July 2003 3.1 5.0 5.4 8.8
August 2003 3.2 4.9 5.4 9.3
September 2003 3.2 4.9 5.3 8.6
October 2003 3.1 4.8 5.5 9.0
November 2003 3.1 4.7 5.3 8.7
December 2003 3.0 4.4 5.4 7.9
January 2004 2.9 4.5 4.9 9.1
February 2004 2.9 4.3 5.0 8.6
March 2004 2.9 4.7 5.3 8.8
April 2004 2.9 4.1 5.3 8.6
May 2004 2.9 4.0 5.1 8.8
June 2004 2.7 4.1 5.2 8.7
July 2004 2.6 4.2 5.0 8.2
August 2004 2.7 4.1 4.9 8.1
September 2004 2.6 4.1 4.7 8.7
October 2004 2.5 4.2 4.8 8.4
November 2004 2.5 4.3 4.8 8.0
December 2004 2.5 4.2 4.8 8.1
January 2005 2.4 4.1 4.7 7.7
February 2005 2.4 4.2 4.9 7.8
March 2005 2.4 3.9 4.7 7.8
April 2005 2.4 3.9 4.4 8.2
May 2005 2.4 3.9 4.5 7.8
June 2005 2.3 3.9 4.8 6.9
July 2005 2.3 3.7 4.8 7.5
August 2005 2.1 3.5 4.7 7.5
September 2005 2.3 3.7 4.9 8.2
October 2005 2.3 3.8 4.8 7.3
November 2005 2.3 3.9 4.8 7.4
December 2005 2.1 3.9 4.5 7.4
January 2006 2.1 3.6 4.4 7.0
February 2006 2.2 3.6 4.4 7.1
March 2006 2.2 3.7 4.1 6.9
April 2006 2.2 3.8 4.4 6.9
May 2006 2.1 3.8 4.3 7.0
June 2006 2.1 3.5 4.1 7.1
July 2006 2.0 3.6 4.5 7.1
August 2006 1.8 3.5 4.6 6.8
September 2006 2.1 3.6 4.1 6.4
October 2006 1.9 3.4 4.1 5.8
November 2006 1.8 3.4 4.3 6.6
December 2006 1.8 3.4 4.3 6.7
January 2007 2.1 3.8 4.3 6.9
February 2007 1.9 3.6 4.3 7.3
March 2007 1.8 3.6 4.0 6.9
April 2007 1.9 3.6 4.1 7.1
May 2007 2.0 3.4 4.4 6.6
June 2007 2.0 3.5 4.1 6.7
July 2007 2.1 3.6 4.6 7.3
August 2007 2.1 3.6 4.4 6.5
September 2007 2.0 3.4 4.5 7.6
October 2007 2.1 3.5 4.6 7.3
November 2007 2.2 3.3 4.5 7.7
December 2007 2.1 3.8 4.7 7.7
January 2008 2.1 3.7 4.7 7.7
February 2008 2.0 3.8 4.7 7.4
March 2008 2.1 3.9 5.1 8.4
April 2008 2.1 4.0 5.0 7.7
May 2008 2.2 4.3 5.0 8.1
June 2008 2.4 4.3 5.1 8.7
July 2008 2.5 4.6 5.4 8.6
August 2008 2.8 4.9 5.8 9.7
September 2008 2.6 5.0 6.2 9.8
October 2008 3.1 5.2 6.4 10.3
November 2008 3.2 5.5 7.0 10.8
December 2008 3.6 5.7 7.8 11.1
January 2009 3.9 6.5 8.2 12.4
February 2009 4.1 7.3 8.5 13.2
March 2009 4.3 7.5 9.2 14.0
April 2009 4.4 7.7 9.5 14.9
May 2009 4.8 7.8 10.0 15.2
June 2009 4.8 8.1 9.7 15.6
July 2009 4.8 8.0 9.5 15.3
August 2009 4.8 8.1 9.7 15.6
September 2009 5.0 8.3 10.6 14.9
October 2009 4.7 8.7 11.0 15.2
November 2009 4.8 8.8 10.3 14.7
December 2009 4.9 8.7 10.6 15.0
January 2010 4.9 8.6 10.2 15.3
February 2010 4.9 8.1 10.7 15.8
March 2010 4.9 8.4 11.0 14.9
April 2010 4.8 8.4 10.8 14.7
May 2010 4.6 8.2 10.9 14.6
June 2010 4.4 8.1 10.6 14.2
July 2010 4.5 8.3 10.0 13.5
August 2010 4.6 8.7 10.0 14.1
September 2010 4.5 8.9 9.7 15.6
October 2010 4.6 8.2 9.8 15.0
November 2010 5.0 8.6 10.0 15.4
December 2010 4.8 8.1 9.8 15.0
January 2011 4.3 8.1 9.5 14.3
February 2011 4.3 7.9 9.7 14.0
March 2011 4.4 7.5 9.7 14.1
April 2011 4.5 7.5 9.9 14.7
May 2011 4.5 7.8 9.6 14.5
June 2011 4.3 8.3 10.0 14.4
July 2011 4.2 8.3 9.1 14.5
August 2011 4.2 8.3 9.3 14.1
September 2011 4.2 8.5 9.4 14.3
October 2011 4.3 8.1 9.4 13.5
November 2011 4.4 7.7 8.8 12.8
December 2011 4.1 7.6 8.7 13.7
January 2012 4.3 7.1 8.5 13.0
February 2012 4.2 7.2 8.3 13.1
March 2012 4.1 7.5 8.1 12.8
April 2012 4.0 7.6 8.0 12.5
May 2012 3.9 7.7 8.3 12.9
June 2012 4.0 7.3 8.6 12.6
July 2012 4.1 7.2 8.5 12.4
August 2012 4.1 6.7 8.6 11.8
September 2012 4.0 6.6 8.5 11.7
October 2012 3.7 6.9 8.3 12.1
November 2012 3.9 6.5 8.0 12.0
December 2012 4.0 6.9 8.0 11.8
January 2013 3.8 6.9 8.1 12.0
February 2013 3.9 6.5 7.9 11.3
March 2013 3.8 6.3 7.7 11.1
April 2013 3.9 6.4 7.5 11.6
May 2013 3.9 6.5 7.3 11.0
June 2013 3.8 6.5 7.7 10.7
July 2013 3.8 6.1 7.5 10.8
August 2013 3.4 6.1 7.4 11.1
September 2013 3.7 6.1 7.6 10.5
October 2013 3.7 6.4 7.2 10.9
November 2013 3.4 6.4 7.2 10.7
December 2013 3.3 6.2 7.0 9.8
January 2014 3.3 5.9 6.5 9.4
February 2014 3.4 6.0 6.4 9.8
March 2014 3.4 6.0 6.3 9.4
April 2014 3.3 5.7 6.2 8.7
May 2014 3.2 5.5 6.5 9.2
June 2014 3.3 5.2 5.9 9.2
July 2014 3.1 5.3 6.1 9.5
August 2014 3.2 5.3 6.1 9.2
September 2014 2.9 5.4 5.4 8.5
October 2014 3.0 4.9 5.7 8.1
November 2014 3.2 4.9 5.7 8.6
December 2014 2.8 5.0 5.3 8.6
January 2015 2.8 5.2 5.4 8.3
February 2015 2.7 5.0 5.4 8.2
March 2015 2.4 4.8 5.3 8.6
April 2015 2.7 4.7 5.4 8.5
May 2015 2.8 4.4 5.8 8.7
June 2015 2.5 4.2 5.4 8.2
July 2015 2.5 4.3 5.5 8.3
August 2015 2.4 4.3 5.5 7.9
September 2015 2.5 4.3 5.3 7.9
October 2015 2.5 4.4 5.2 7.6
November 2015 2.6 4.4 5.5 6.8
December 2015 2.5 4.2 5.6 6.5
January 2016 2.5 4.2 5.2 7.1
February 2016 2.5 4.2 5.2 7.0
March 2016 2.6 4.2 5.3 7.4
April 2016 2.4 4.2 5.4 7.6
May 2016 2.5 3.8 5.1 7.5
June 2016 2.5 4.2 5.1 7.6
July 2016 2.5 4.2 5.1 6.4
August 2016 2.6 4.2 5.0 7.4
September 2016 2.5 4.2 5.3 8.5
October 2016 2.6 3.9 5.5 7.5
November 2016 2.4 3.9 5.0 7.8
December 2016 2.5 3.8 5.1 7.6
January 2017 2.5 3.8 5.2 7.4
February 2017 2.4 4.0 4.9 7.6
March 2017 2.4 3.7 4.9 6.6
April 2017 2.4 3.7 4.6 6.4
May 2017 2.3 4.0 4.7 6.3
June 2017 2.3 3.8 4.6 6.5
July 2017 2.3 3.8 4.5 7.0
August 2017 2.4 3.7 5.0 6.1
September 2017 2.3 3.6 4.4 6.7
October 2017 2.1 3.7 4.3 6.0
November 2017 2.1 3.6 4.4 5.2
December 2017 2.1 3.6 4.2 6.3
January 2018 2.2 3.4 4.4 5.5
February 2018 2.2 3.5 4.4 5.6
March 2018 2.2 3.5 4.3 5.6
April 2018 2.1 3.4 4.3 5.8
May 2018 2.0 3.2 3.9 5.5
June 2018 2.3 3.3 4.1 5.6
July 2018 2.2 3.2 4.0 5.0
August 2018 2.0 3.5 3.9 5.7
September 2018 2.0 3.2 3.7 5.6
October 2018 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.9
November 2018 2.2 3.1 3.5 5.6
December 2018 2.1 3.3 3.8 5.8
January 2019 2.4 3.4 3.8 5.7

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Figure 3. Wage growth has picked up, but it is still moderate

Nominal compensation

Percent change from year earlier

Period Avg. hourly earnings, prod. workers Employment cost index (ECI) Avg. hourly earnings, all workers
1990:Q1 4.0 4.9  
1990:Q2 4.2 5.2  
1990:Q3 4.1 5.0  
1990:Q4 3.8 4.6  
1991:Q1 3.2 4.5  
1991:Q2 3.2 4.3  
1991:Q3 3.1 4.4  
1991:Q4 2.8 4.4  
1992:Q1 2.7 4.2  
1992:Q2 2.4 3.6  
1992:Q3 2.4 3.4  
1992:Q4 2.4 3.4  
1993:Q1 2.7 3.5  
1993:Q2 2.5 3.8  
1993:Q3 2.4 3.6  
1993:Q4 2.6 3.7  
1994:Q1 2.5 3.4  
1994:Q2 2.5 3.4  
1994:Q3 2.6 3.5  
1994:Q4 2.7 3.2  
1995:Q1 2.6 3.0  
1995:Q2 2.7 2.8  
1995:Q3 2.9 2.6  
1995:Q4 2.9 2.5  
1996:Q1 3.1 2.8  
1996:Q2 3.4 2.9  
1996:Q3 3.4 2.9  
1996:Q4 3.6 3.1  
1997:Q1 3.8 2.8  
1997:Q2 3.7 2.8  
1997:Q3 3.8 2.9  
1997:Q4 4.2 3.3  
1998:Q1 4.1 3.4  
1998:Q2 4.3 3.5  
1998:Q3 4.0 3.8  
1998:Q4 3.7 3.5  
1999:Q1 3.7 3.1  
1999:Q2 3.6 3.2  
1999:Q3 3.8 3.1  
1999:Q4 3.7 3.5  
2000:Q1 3.8 4.6  
2000:Q2 3.8 4.7  
2000:Q3 3.8 4.7  
2000:Q4 4.1 4.5  
2001:Q1 4.1 4.6  
2001:Q2 4.0 4.4  
2001:Q3 3.7 4.5  
2001:Q4 3.3 4.4  
2002:Q1 3.0 3.8  
2002:Q2 2.7 3.8  
2002:Q3 2.9 3.3  
2002:Q4 3.1 3.1  
2003:Q1 3.2 3.6  
2003:Q2 2.9 3.5  
2003:Q3 2.6 4.0  
2003:Q4 2.0 4.0  
2004:Q1 1.8 3.8  
2004:Q2 2.0 3.9  
2004:Q3 2.1 3.8  
2004:Q4 2.5 3.7  
2005:Q1 2.6 3.5  
2005:Q2 2.6 3.1  
2005:Q3 2.8 2.9  
2005:Q4 3.0 3.0  
2006:Q1 3.4 2.6  
2006:Q2 3.9 2.8  
2006:Q3 4.1 3.0  
2006:Q4 4.1 3.1  
2007:Q1 4.1 3.1  
2007:Q2 4.0 3.1 3.4
2007:Q3 4.0 3.0 3.2
2007:Q4 3.8 3.1 3.0
2008:Q1 3.8 3.2 2.9
2008:Q2 3.7 3.1 2.9
2008:Q3 3.7 2.8 3.2
2008:Q4 3.9 2.4 3.5
2009:Q1 3.6 2.0 3.4
2009:Q2 3.1 1.4 3.1
2009:Q3 2.7 1.2 2.5
2009:Q4 2.6 1.2 2.2
2010:Q1 2.5 1.6 2.0
2010:Q2 2.5 1.9 1.8
2010:Q3 2.3 2.0 1.8
2010:Q4 2.2 2.0 1.8
2011:Q1 2.1 2.0 1.9
2011:Q2 2.1 2.3 2.0
2011:Q3 2.1 2.2 2.1
2011:Q4 1.8 2.2 2.0
2012:Q1 1.5 2.1 1.9
2012:Q2 1.5 1.8 2.0
2012:Q3 1.4 1.9 1.9
2012:Q4 1.4 1.8 1.9
2013:Q1 1.9 1.9 2.1
2013:Q2 1.9 1.9 2.1
2013:Q3 2.1 1.9 2.1
2013:Q4 2.3 2.0 2.1
2014:Q1 2.4 1.7 2.1
2014:Q2 2.3 2.0 2.0
2014:Q3 2.3 2.3 2.1
2014:Q4 2.1 2.3 2.0
2015:Q1 1.9 2.8 2.1
2015:Q2 2.1 1.9 2.3
2015:Q3 2.0 1.9 2.2
2015:Q4 2.3 1.9 2.5
2016:Q1 2.5 1.8 2.5
2016:Q2 2.5 2.4 2.5
2016:Q3 2.5 2.2 2.6
2016:Q4 2.5 2.2 2.6
2017:Q1 2.3 2.3 2.6
2017:Q2 2.3 2.3 2.5
2017:Q3 2.4 2.6 2.7
2017:Q4 2.3 2.6 2.5
2018:Q1 2.6 2.8 2.7
2018:Q2 2.9 2.9 2.9
2018:Q3 3.0 2.8 3.0
2018:Q4 3.4 3.0 3.3

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Real compensation

Percent change from year earlier

Period ECI less core PCE inflation
1990:Q1 1.1
1990:Q2 1.2
1990:Q3 0.7
1990:Q4 0.4
1991:Q1 0.6
1991:Q2 0.7
1991:Q3 1.0
1991:Q4 1.0
1992:Q1 0.9
1992:Q2 0.4
1992:Q3 0.5
1992:Q4 0.6
1993:Q1 0.8
1993:Q2 1.0
1993:Q3 0.8
1993:Q4 1.2
1994:Q1 1.1
1994:Q2 1.2
1994:Q3 1.3
1994:Q4 1.0
1995:Q1 0.7
1995:Q2 0.6
1995:Q3 0.5
1995:Q4 0.4
1996:Q1 0.8
1996:Q2 1.0
1996:Q3 1.1
1996:Q4 1.2
1997:Q1 0.9
1997:Q2 0.8
1997:Q3 1.2
1997:Q4 1.8
1998:Q1 2.0
1998:Q2 2.3
1998:Q3 2.5
1998:Q4 2.2
1999:Q1 1.8
1999:Q2 1.9
1999:Q3 1.8
1999:Q4 2.0
2000:Q1 2.9
2000:Q2 3.0
2000:Q3 2.9
2000:Q4 2.7
2001:Q1 2.8
2001:Q2 2.5
2001:Q3 2.8
2001:Q4 2.7
2002:Q1 2.3
2002:Q2 2.2
2002:Q3 1.4
2002:Q4 1.4
2003:Q1 1.9
2003:Q2 2.1
2003:Q3 2.7
2003:Q4 2.6
2004:Q1 2.1
2004:Q2 1.9
2004:Q3 1.8
2004:Q4 1.6
2005:Q1 1.3
2005:Q2 1.0
2005:Q3 0.8
2005:Q4 0.8
2006:Q1 0.5
2006:Q2 0.5
2006:Q3 0.5
2006:Q4 0.8
2007:Q1 0.7
2007:Q2 1.0
2007:Q3 1.0
2007:Q4 0.8
2008:Q1 1.1
2008:Q2 0.9
2008:Q3 0.6
2008:Q4 0.8
2009:Q1 0.9
2009:Q2 0.3
2009:Q3 0.3
2009:Q4 -0.3
2010:Q1 -0.1
2010:Q2 0.4
2010:Q3 0.7
2010:Q4 1.1
2011:Q1 0.9
2011:Q2 0.8
2011:Q3 0.4
2011:Q4 0.3
2012:Q1 0.0
2012:Q2 -0.1
2012:Q3 0.2
2012:Q4 0.0
2013:Q1 0.4
2013:Q2 0.5
2013:Q3 0.4
2013:Q4 0.4
2014:Q1 0.2
2014:Q2 0.3
2014:Q3 0.6
2014:Q4 0.8
2015:Q1 1.4
2015:Q2 0.6
2015:Q3 0.6
2015:Q4 0.7
2016:Q1 0.3
2016:Q2 0.8
2016:Q3 0.5
2016:Q4 0.4
2017:Q1 0.5
2017:Q2 0.7
2017:Q3 1.1
2017:Q4 1.0
2018:Q1 1.1
2018:Q2 1.0
2018:Q3 0.8
2018:Q4 1.0

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Figure 4. Inflation is running near target

PCE inflation

Percent change from year earlier

Period Total Core
January 1990 4.2 3.6
February 1990 4.3 3.8
March 1990 4.3 4.0
April 1990 3.8 3.9
May 1990 3.7 3.9
June 1990 3.9 4.1
July 1990 3.9 4.1
August 1990 4.6 4.4
September 1990 5.0 4.4
October 1990 5.2 4.3
November 1990 5.1 4.2
December 1990 4.9 4.0
January 1991 4.5 4.1
February 1991 4.1 3.9
March 1991 3.7 3.7
April 1991 3.7 3.5
May 1991 3.9 3.6
June 1991 3.6 3.5
July 1991 3.5 3.5
August 1991 3.1 3.4
September 1991 2.8 3.4
October 1991 2.4 3.3
November 1991 2.5 3.4
December 1991 2.6 3.5
January 1992 2.4 3.2
February 1992 2.6 3.2
March 1992 2.8 3.3
April 1992 2.9 3.4
May 1992 2.6 3.2
June 1992 2.6 3.0
July 1992 2.8 3.1
August 1992 2.7 2.9
September 1992 2.5 2.7
October 1992 2.7 2.8
November 1992 2.7 2.9
December 1992 2.6 2.8
January 1993 2.7 2.8
February 1993 2.6 2.7
March 1993 2.6 2.7
April 1993 2.6 2.7
May 1993 2.7 2.9
June 1993 2.6 2.9
July 1993 2.4 2.7
August 1993 2.5 2.8
September 1993 2.4 2.8
October 1993 2.4 2.6
November 1993 2.3 2.6
December 1993 2.2 2.5
January 1994 2.0 2.2
February 1994 2.1 2.3
March 1994 2.1 2.4
April 1994 2.0 2.3
May 1994 1.8 2.1
June 1994 2.0 2.3
July 1994 2.2 2.3
August 1994 2.2 2.2
September 1994 2.3 2.2
October 1994 2.1 2.3
November 1994 2.1 2.2
December 1994 2.1 2.2
January 1995 2.3 2.4
February 1995 2.3 2.3
March 1995 2.2 2.2
April 1995 2.3 2.3
May 1995 2.3 2.2
June 1995 2.2 2.1
July 1995 2.0 2.0
August 1995 2.0 2.2
September 1995 1.9 2.1
October 1995 2.0 2.2
November 1995 1.8 2.0
December 1995 2.0 2.1
January 1996 2.0 2.0
February 1996 2.0 2.0
March 1996 2.1 2.0
April 1996 2.1 1.9
May 1996 2.1 1.9
June 1996 2.0 1.9
July 1996 2.1 1.9
August 1996 2.0 1.7
September 1996 2.2 1.9
October 1996 2.3 1.9
November 1996 2.4 2.0
December 1996 2.4 1.9
January 1997 2.3 1.9
February 1997 2.3 1.9
March 1997 2.1 1.9
April 1997 1.9 2.0
May 1997 1.7 1.9
June 1997 1.8 2.0
July 1997 1.7 1.8
August 1997 1.7 1.7
September 1997 1.6 1.6
October 1997 1.4 1.5
November 1997 1.3 1.4
December 1997 1.1 1.5
January 1998 1.0 1.5
February 1998 0.8 1.4
March 1998 0.7 1.2
April 1998 0.7 1.2
May 1998 0.9 1.3
June 1998 0.7 1.0
July 1998 0.9 1.2
August 1998 0.9 1.4
September 1998 0.6 1.2
October 1998 0.7 1.3
November 1998 0.7 1.2
December 1998 0.8 1.4
January 1999 1.0 1.4
February 1999 1.0 1.3
March 1999 1.1 1.2
April 1999 1.4 1.3
May 1999 1.3 1.3
June 1999 1.4 1.4
July 1999 1.4 1.3
August 1999 1.5 1.2
September 1999 1.9 1.4
October 1999 1.8 1.4
November 1999 1.9 1.5
December 1999 2.1 1.5
January 2000 2.2 1.5
February 2000 2.5 1.7
March 2000 2.9 1.8
April 2000 2.3 1.7
May 2000 2.3 1.7
June 2000 2.6 1.7
July 2000 2.6 1.7
August 2000 2.4 1.8
September 2000 2.5 1.8
October 2000 2.5 1.8
November 2000 2.5 1.9
December 2000 2.4 1.8
January 2001 2.6 1.9
February 2001 2.4 1.9
March 2001 2.0 1.8
April 2001 2.3 1.9
May 2001 2.5 1.8
June 2001 2.3 2.0
July 2001 2.0 2.0
August 2001 2.0 2.0
September 2001 1.3 1.2
October 2001 1.5 1.7
November 2001 1.3 1.8
December 2001 1.0 1.7
January 2002 0.7 1.4
February 2002 0.7 1.5
March 2002 1.0 1.5
April 2002 1.2 1.6
May 2002 1.0 1.7
June 2002 1.0 1.6
July 2002 1.2 1.6
August 2002 1.4 1.7
September 2002 1.9 2.4
October 2002 1.7 1.8
November 2002 1.9 1.7
December 2002 2.1 1.7
January 2003 2.3 1.7
February 2003 2.5 1.6
March 2003 2.5 1.7
April 2003 1.8 1.4
May 2003 1.6 1.4
June 2003 1.6 1.3
July 2003 1.7 1.4
August 2003 1.8 1.3
September 2003 1.9 1.2
October 2003 1.8 1.3
November 2003 1.8 1.4
December 2003 1.9 1.4
January 2004 2.1 1.7
February 2004 1.9 1.8
March 2004 1.8 1.8
April 2004 2.2 2.0
May 2004 2.7 2.0
June 2004 2.9 2.1
July 2004 2.7 2.0
August 2004 2.4 2.0
September 2004 2.3 2.0
October 2004 2.8 2.1
November 2004 3.1 2.2
December 2004 2.9 2.1
January 2005 2.6 2.2
February 2005 2.6 2.2
March 2005 2.7 2.2
April 2005 2.8 2.1
May 2005 2.5 2.1
June 2005 2.3 2.0
July 2005 2.6 2.1
August 2005 3.0 2.1
September 2005 3.8 2.1
October 2005 3.5 2.2
November 2005 2.9 2.2
December 2005 2.8 2.2
January 2006 3.2 2.1
February 2006 3.0 2.1
March 2006 2.8 2.1
April 2006 3.0 2.2
May 2006 3.2 2.3
June 2006 3.4 2.5
July 2006 3.3 2.4
August 2006 3.2 2.6
September 2006 2.0 2.5
October 2006 1.6 2.4
November 2006 1.8 2.2
December 2006 2.2 2.2
January 2007 2.1 2.4
February 2007 2.3 2.5
March 2007 2.5 2.3
April 2007 2.3 2.2
May 2007 2.3 2.1
June 2007 2.3 2.0
July 2007 2.1 2.0
August 2007 1.9 2.0
September 2007 2.5 2.1
October 2007 3.1 2.1
November 2007 3.6 2.3
December 2007 3.4 2.3
January 2008 3.3 2.1
February 2008 3.2 2.0
March 2008 3.2 2.1
April 2008 3.2 2.1
May 2008 3.3 2.2
June 2008 3.9 2.3
July 2008 4.1 2.2
August 2008 4.0 2.2
September 2008 3.7 2.1
October 2008 2.8 1.8
November 2008 1.1 1.6
December 2008 0.3 1.4
January 2009 0.1 1.1
February 2009 0.1 1.1
March 2009 -0.3 1.0
April 2009 -0.4 1.2
May 2009 -0.7 1.1
June 2009 -0.8 1.0
July 2009 -1.2 0.9
August 2009 -0.9 0.9
September 2009 -0.8 1.0
October 2009 0.2 1.4
November 2009 1.6 1.5
December 2009 2.2 1.6
January 2010 2.4 1.7
February 2010 2.1 1.7
March 2010 2.3 1.7
April 2010 2.2 1.5
May 2010 2.1 1.5
June 2010 1.5 1.4
July 2010 1.5 1.4
August 2010 1.4 1.3
September 2010 1.3 1.2
October 2010 1.2 0.9
November 2010 1.2 0.9
December 2010 1.3 0.9
January 2011 1.5 1.0
February 2011 1.8 1.1
March 2011 2.1 1.2
April 2011 2.5 1.4
May 2011 2.7 1.5
June 2011 2.8 1.6
July 2011 2.9 1.7
August 2011 3.0 1.9
September 2011 3.1 1.9
October 2011 2.8 1.8
November 2011 2.8 1.9
December 2011 2.6 2.1
January 2012 2.6 2.1
February 2012 2.6 2.1
March 2012 2.4 2.1
April 2012 2.1 2.0
May 2012 1.6 1.9
June 2012 1.6 1.9
July 2012 1.4 1.8
August 2012 1.5 1.7
September 2012 1.7 1.7
October 2012 2.0 1.9
November 2012 1.7 1.8
December 2012 1.6 1.7
January 2013 1.5 1.6
February 2013 1.6 1.6
March 2013 1.3 1.5
April 2013 1.1 1.4
May 2013 1.3 1.4
June 2013 1.5 1.5
July 2013 1.6 1.5
August 2013 1.4 1.6
September 2013 1.2 1.6
October 2013 1.0 1.5
November 2013 1.3 1.6
December 2013 1.5 1.6
January 2014 1.5 1.5
February 2014 1.1 1.5
March 2014 1.5 1.6
April 2014 1.8 1.7
May 2014 1.8 1.7
June 2014 1.8 1.7
July 2014 1.8 1.8
August 2014 1.6 1.7
September 2014 1.6 1.7
October 2014 1.4 1.6
November 2014 1.2 1.5
December 2014 0.8 1.5
January 2015 0.2 1.3
February 2015 0.3 1.4
March 2015 0.3 1.4
April 2015 0.1 1.3
May 2015 0.2 1.3
June 2015 0.3 1.3
July 2015 0.3 1.2
August 2015 0.3 1.3
September 2015 0.1 1.3
October 2015 0.2 1.2
November 2015 0.3 1.3
December 2015 0.4 1.3
January 2016 1.0 1.5
February 2016 0.7 1.6
March 2016 0.7 1.5
April 2016 1.0 1.6
May 2016 0.9 1.6
June 2016 0.9 1.6
July 2016 0.8 1.7
August 2016 1.0 1.8
September 2016 1.3 1.7
October 2016 1.5 1.9
November 2016 1.5 1.8
December 2016 1.7 1.9
January 2017 2.0 1.9
February 2017 2.2 1.9
March 2017 1.9 1.6
April 2017 1.8 1.6
May 2017 1.6 1.6
June 2017 1.5 1.6
July 2017 1.5 1.5
August 2017 1.5 1.4
September 2017 1.8 1.5
October 2017 1.7 1.6
November 2017 1.9 1.6
December 2017 1.8 1.6
January 2018 1.8 1.6
February 2018 1.9 1.7
March 2018 2.1 2.0
April 2018 2.0 1.9
May 2018 2.3 2.0
June 2018 2.3 2.0
July 2018 2.4 2.0
August 2018 2.2 1.9
September 2018 2.0 2.0
October 2018 2.0 1.8
November 2018 1.8 1.9

Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Figure 5. Both labor supply and productivity growth have slowed

Components of GDP growth

Average annual percent change

Business cycle Productivity Labor
1974-81 2.5 0.6
1982-90 1.6 1.7
1991-2000 1.2 2.0
2001-07 1.0 1.5
2008-18 0.5 1.0

Source: Congressional Budget Office.

Figure 6. Youth labor force participation has declined as more go to school

Labor force participation, ages 16 to 25

Percent

Period Total Female Male
1990:Q1 67.8 63.4 72.3
1990:Q2 67.6 62.9 72.2
1990:Q3 67.1 63.0 71.2
1990:Q4 66.7 62.1 71.3
1991:Q1 66.7 62.3 71.1
1991:Q2 65.9 61.6 70.2
1991:Q3 65.6 60.8 70.3
1991:Q4 65.9 61.8 69.9
1992:Q1 66.0 62.1 69.9
1992:Q2 65.9 61.6 70.3
1992:Q3 66.5 62.1 70.9
1992:Q4 66.0 61.4 70.6
1993:Q1 66.4 62.0 70.8
1993:Q2 66.3 62.1 70.4
1993:Q3 66.0 61.9 70.1
1993:Q4 65.6 61.9 69.3
1994:Q1 66.4 62.7 70.1
1994:Q2 66.6 63.1 70.1
1994:Q3 66.3 62.2 70.3
1994:Q4 66.4 62.3 70.5
1995:Q1 66.8 62.7 70.9
1995:Q2 66.5 62.5 70.5
1995:Q3 66.2 62.1 70.4
1995:Q4 65.5 61.9 69.1
1996:Q1 65.5 61.8 69.1
1996:Q2 65.7 62.0 69.3
1996:Q3 65.3 62.1 68.4
1996:Q4 65.6 63.0 68.2
1997:Q1 65.5 62.8 68.3
1997:Q2 65.6 62.6 68.6
1997:Q3 65.3 62.5 68.1
1997:Q4 65.3 62.7 67.9
1998:Q1 66.1 63.7 68.4
1998:Q2 65.8 63.2 68.4
1998:Q3 66.0 63.5 68.4
1998:Q4 65.6 62.9 68.2
1999:Q1 65.6 63.2 68.0
1999:Q2 65.4 63.0 67.7
1999:Q3 65.5 62.9 68.1
1999:Q4 65.5 62.5 68.4
2000:Q1 66.0 62.9 69.0
2000:Q2 66.0 63.0 69.0
2000:Q3 65.5 62.8 68.2
2000:Q4 65.8 63.2 68.3
2001:Q1 65.8 63.2 68.4
2001:Q2 64.5 61.9 66.9
2001:Q3 64.0 61.3 66.7
2001:Q4 64.1 61.9 66.2
2002:Q1 63.5 61.4 65.5
2002:Q2 63.4 61.1 65.8
2002:Q3 63.4 61.2 65.5
2002:Q4 62.8 60.6 65.1
2003:Q1 62.0 59.6 64.4
2003:Q2 62.0 59.8 64.2
2003:Q3 61.3 59.2 63.4
2003:Q4 60.8 58.1 63.4
2004:Q1 61.0 58.6 63.5
2004:Q2 61.1 58.8 63.3
2004:Q3 61.0 58.5 63.5
2004:Q4 61.4 58.7 64.0
2005:Q1 60.7 58.4 63.0
2005:Q2 60.8 58.5 63.0
2005:Q3 60.7 58.7 62.7
2005:Q4 60.8 58.6 63.0
2006:Q1 60.6 57.7 63.4
2006:Q2 60.5 57.8 63.2
2006:Q3 60.6 57.9 63.3
2006:Q4 60.8 58.0 63.4
2007:Q1 60.3 58.0 62.6
2007:Q2 59.2 56.7 61.6
2007:Q3 58.9 57.0 60.8
2007:Q4 59.3 57.2 61.4
2008:Q1 58.7 56.3 61.1
2008:Q2 59.3 57.1 61.5
2008:Q3 58.9 56.7 61.1
2008:Q4 58.2 56.0 60.4
2009:Q1 57.7 56.0 59.3
2009:Q2 57.6 55.8 59.5
2009:Q3 56.7 55.1 58.3
2009:Q4 55.4 53.9 56.9
2010:Q1 55.1 53.6 56.7
2010:Q2 55.4 53.7 57.0
2010:Q3 55.1 53.6 56.7
2010:Q4 55.1 53.5 56.7
2011:Q1 55.1 53.4 56.7
2011:Q2 54.6 53.1 56.0
2011:Q3 54.9 53.2 56.4
2011:Q4 55.4 53.3 57.4
2012:Q1 54.7 53.3 56.1
2012:Q2 54.8 53.0 56.6
2012:Q3 54.7 53.0 56.4
2012:Q4 55.2 53.5 56.9
2013:Q1 55.0 53.2 56.7
2013:Q2 55.2 53.6 56.7
2013:Q3 55.2 53.4 56.9
2013:Q4 54.8 53.6 56.0
2014:Q1 54.7 53.5 55.9
2014:Q2 54.7 53.3 56.0
2014:Q3 55.0 53.3 56.8
2014:Q4 55.6 54.3 56.9
2015:Q1 55.0 53.5 56.4
2015:Q2 55.0 53.7 56.4
2015:Q3 54.9 53.9 55.9
2015:Q4 55.2 54.1 56.3
2016:Q1 55.1 54.1 56.2
2016:Q2 55.0 53.8 56.2
2016:Q3 55.3 53.8 56.8
2016:Q4 55.2 53.5 56.9
2017:Q1 55.6 54.3 56.9
2017:Q2 55.4 53.9 56.8
2017:Q3 55.8 54.8 56.9
2017:Q4 55.1 54.1 56.0
2018:Q1 55.9 54.5 57.2
2018:Q2 55.2 54.2 56.2
2018:Q3 54.7 54.6 55.0
2018:Q4 55.1 54.8 55.2

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

School and work by youth

Percent

Period Enrolled, working Enrolled, not working Working Not enrolled, not working
1990 19.4 20.9 47.9 11.8
1991 19.5 21.2 46.7 12.6
1992 19.9 21.7 46.4 12.0
1993 20.2 22.0 45.9 11.9
1994 22.0 21.9 44.6 11.5
1995 22.0 22.1 44.4 11.5
1996 22.7 23.4 43.0 10.9
1997 23.2 24.0 42.5 10.3
1998 23.7 24.0 42.2 10.1
1999 23.5 24.5 42.0 10.0
2000 23.0 24.0 42.8 10.2
2001 22.8 25.2 41.7 10.3
2002 22.4 26.4 40.9 10.3
2003 22.0 27.9 39.6 10.6
2004 22.2 28.4 39.0 10.4
2005 22.1 28.2 38.7 11.0
2006 21.9 28.9 38.7 10.5
2007 21.7 30.3 37.7 10.3
2008 21.6 30.8 37.2 10.4
2009 20.8 32.5 36.1 10.6
2010 20.3 34.0 34.9 10.8
2011 20.2 34.4 34.8 10.6
2012 20.4 34.6 34.5 10.5
2013 18.9 33.4 36.1 11.6
2014 18.6 33.6 36.4 11.4
2015 18.5 33.9 36.5 11.1
2016 19.0 33.6 36.2 11.2
2017 19.2 34.1 36.2 10.5
2018 19.0 34.2 36.2 10.6

Note: Work includes both working and looking for work.

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Figure 7. Male labor force participation has declined for decades

Male labor force participation, ages 25 to 54
Period Percent Trend: -1.5 ppt per decade
1960 97.0 97.5
1961 96.9 97.3
1962 96.8 97.2
1963 96.8 97.0
1964 96.8 96.9
1965 96.7 96.7
1966 96.6 96.6
1967 96.6 96.4
1968 96.3 96.3
1969 96.1 96.1
1970 95.9 96.0
1971 95.4 95.8
1972 95.1 95.7
1973 95.0 95.5
1974 94.8 95.3
1975 94.4 95.2
1976 94.2 95.0
1977 94.2 94.9
1978 94.3 94.7
1979 94.4 94.6
1980 94.3 94.4
1981 94.1 94.3
1982 94.1 94.1
1983 93.8 94.0
1984 93.9 93.8
1985 93.9 93.7
1986 93.8 93.5
1987 93.7 93.4
1988 93.6 93.2
1989 93.7 93.0
1990 93.4 92.9
1991 93.1 92.7
1992 93.0 92.6
1993 92.6 92.4
1994 91.7 92.3
1995 91.6 92.1
1996 91.8 92.0
1997 91.8 91.8
1998 91.8 91.7
1999 91.7 91.5
2000 91.6 91.4
2001 91.3 91.2
2002 91.0 91.0
2003 90.6 90.9
2004 90.4 90.7
2005 90.5 90.6
2006 90.6 90.4
2007 90.8 90.3
2008 90.6 90.1
2009 89.8 90.0
2010 89.2 89.8
2011 88.7 89.7
2012 88.7 89.5
2013 88.4 89.4
2014 88.2 89.2
2015 88.3 89.1
2016 88.5 88.9
2017 88.6 88.7
2018 89.0 88.6

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Female labor force participation, ages 25 to 54
Period Percent
1960 42.9
1961 43.3
1962 43.4
1963 44.2
1964 44.5
1965 45.2
1966 46.2
1967 47.3
1968 47.9
1969 49.1
1970 50.1
1971 50.3
1972 51.1
1973 52.3
1974 53.9
1975 55.1
1976 56.8
1977 58.5
1978 60.6
1979 62.3
1980 64.0
1981 65.3
1982 66.4
1983 67.1
1984 68.2
1985 69.6
1986 70.8
1987 71.9
1988 72.7
1989 73.6
1990 74.0
1991 74.1
1992 74.6
1993 74.6
1994 75.3
1995 75.6
1996 76.1
1997 76.7
1998 76.5
1999 76.8
2000 76.7
2001 76.4
2002 75.9
2003 75.7
2004 75.3
2005 75.2
2006 75.5
2007 75.4
2008 75.8
2009 75.6
2010 75.2
2011 74.7
2012 74.5
2013 73.9
2014 73.9
2015 73.7
2016 74.3
2017 75.0
2018 75.3

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Figure 8. U.S. prime age labor force participation is relatively low

Male

Percent

  1995 2017
Czech Republic 95.4 95.7
Japan 97.5 95.5
Switzerland 97.7 95.2
Mexico 94.7 94.2
Iceland 96.8 93.8
Sweden 91.9 93.6
Slovenia 0.0 93.4
Hungary 86.5 93.3
Estonia 93.1 93.2
Slovak Republic 94.9 93.1
New Zealand 91.8 93.1
Greece 94.5 93.0
France 94.9 92.9
United Kingdom 92.7 92.4
Portugal 93.1 92.3
Austria 93.7 92.3
Spain 92.8 92.0
Germany 92.8 91.9
Luxembourg 93.9 91.8
Latvia   91.8
OECD countries 93.1 91.4
Netherlands 92.8 91.3
Chile   91.3
Turkey 93.7 91.2
Canada 90.9 91.1
Poland 90.1 91.1
Korea 94.6 91.0
Australia 91.7 90.3
Belgium 92.3 90.0
Finland 90.7 89.8
Denmark 91.8 89.6
Ireland 90.9 89.4
United States 91.6 88.6
Italy 90.3 88.5
Norway 91.2 87.9
Israel 88.8 87.0

Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Labour force statistics by sex and age 25 to 54 (indicators). https://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=LFS_SEXAGE_I_R (Accessed on 25 February 2019).

Female

Percent

  1995 2017
Slovenia   90.3
Sweden 87.1 88.7
Iceland 88.0 88.7
Portugal 74.0 87.0
Switzerland 75.0 85.5
Latvia   85.4
Austria 73.1 85.0
Luxembourg 52.7 84.0
Finland 84.5 83.6
Estonia 85.9 83.6
Norway 80.4 83.3
Canada 75.7 82.9
France 77.3 82.8
Denmark 82.1 82.7
Germany 73.1 82.5
Czech Republic 83.0 82.1
Netherlands 66.4 82.0
Spain 55.9 82.0
New Zealand 71.6 81.6
United Kingdom 74.0 81.0
Hungary 68.9 80.4
Slovak Republic 82.0 79.8
Belgium 68.2 79.6
Israel 67.0 78.8
Poland 78.0 78.7
Australia 69.0 77.7
Japan 65.2 77.5
Greece 55.0 77.0
United States 75.6 75.0
Ireland 54.8 75.0
OECD countries 66.8 73.0
Chile 46.5 68.8
Italy 53.4 67.3
Korea 55.4 66.6
Mexico 42.7 55.3
Turkey 33.0 43.8

Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Labour force statistics by sex and age 25 to 54 (indicators). https://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=LFS_SEXAGE_I_R (Accessed on 25 February 2019).

Figure 9. Decline in LFPR most notable at lower levels of education attainment

Male labor force participation by educational attainment, ages 25 to 54

Percent

Period Bachelor's degree Some college High school degree Less than high school degree
1979 97.0 95.4 96.0 88.3
1980 97.0 95.2 95.7 87.6
1981 97.0 95.1 95.4 87.6
1982 96.9 94.8 95.2 87.1
1983 96.5 94.7 95.0 86.8
1984 96.7 94.9 94.9 86.5
1985 96.9 95.1 94.8 85.9
1986 96.8 94.9 94.8 85.5
1987 96.8 95.0 94.6 84.8
1988 96.9 94.8 94.2 84.6
1989 97.0 94.8 94.1 85.0
1990 96.8 94.6 93.9 84.4
1991 96.6 94.5 93.2 84.0
1992 96.7 94.5 93.1 82.9
1993 96.6 93.9 92.6 81.9
1994 96.4 93.5 91.3 80.1
1995 96.1 93.1 91.3 79.5
1996 95.9 93.2 91.2 81.7
1997 96.0 93.1 91.3 81.9
1998 95.9 92.9 91.1 82.3
1999 95.7 92.7 90.9 82.1
2000 95.8 92.6 90.7 82.1
2001 95.7 92.5 89.9 81.9
2002 95.6 91.9 89.8 81.8
2003 95.0 91.2 89.3 82.2
2004 94.9 91.1 89.0 82.4
2005 94.9 91.5 89.1 82.0
2006 95.0 91.5 89.0 82.7
2007 95.4 91.8 89.1 82.7
2008 95.2 91.3 88.7 82.3
2009 95.1 90.4 87.6 81.2
2010 94.5 89.8 87.1 81.0
2011 94.5 88.8 86.1 80.6
2012 94.5 89.1 86.0 79.2
2013 94.2 88.9 85.4 79.3
2014 94.1 88.3 85.0 79.6
2015 93.9 88.8 84.8 79.5
2016 94.0 89.0 85.0 79.7
2017 93.9 88.9 85.1 79.9
2018 94.2 89.0 85.7 79.9

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Female labor force participation by educational attainment, ages 25 to 54

Percent

Period Bachelor's degree Some college High school degree Less than high school degree
1979 73.9 66.7 63.1 49.3
1980 75.3 69.2 64.6 49.7
1981 76.7 70.6 65.9 50.1
1982 77.8 71.8 66.8 49.9
1983 78.8 72.5 67.2 50.0
1984 80.1 73.6 67.9 50.0
1985 81.0 74.7 69.3 50.4
1986 81.7 75.6 70.4 51.7
1987 82.5 76.7 71.3 52.1
1988 82.9 77.3 72.0 52.7
1989 83.2 78.2 73.1 53.2
1990 83.8 78.4 73.5 52.2
1991 83.8 78.6 73.8 51.3
1992 84.3 79.3 73.8 51.5
1993 84.3 79.0 73.5 50.2
1994 84.9 79.9 73.9 50.1
1995 84.6 80.0 74.1 51.3
1996 84.5 80.5 74.7 51.8
1997 84.6 80.6 75.2 53.8
1998 83.9 80.5 74.5 54.9
1999 83.7 80.5 74.8 55.3
2000 82.9 80.4 74.9 56.2
2001 82.1 80.1 74.7 56.2
2002 82.0 79.2 74.3 54.7
2003 81.8 79.2 73.9 53.8
2004 81.8 78.8 73.0 53.4
2005 82.2 78.9 72.5 53.0
2006 82.5 78.8 72.7 53.0
2007 82.2 79.1 72.1 52.4
2008 83.0 79.3 72.2 52.0
2009 83.2 78.7 71.7 52.7
2010 82.6 78.1 71.4 52.2
2011 82.3 77.5 70.2 51.6
2012 82.6 76.9 69.3 51.7
2013 82.4 75.9 68.4 50.0
2014 82.4 75.9 68.2 49.3
2015 82.3 75.9 67.0 49.1
2016 82.7 76.2 67.3 50.7
2017 82.9 76.7 68.0 50.9
2018 83.2 77.0 67.7 51.3

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Figure 10. Productivity growth has slowed

Business-sector productivity growth

Percent change

Period 4-quarter 5-yr average*
1961:Q1 0.87 3.38
1961:Q2 3.57 3.83
1961:Q3 5.84 3.63
1961:Q4 5.67 3.71
1962:Q1 3.33 3.55
1962:Q2 2.25 3.77
1962:Q3 3.12 3.06
1962:Q4 3.09 3.86
1963:Q1 3.17 3.74
1963:Q2 1.85 4.47
1963:Q3 3.48 4.55
1963:Q4 3.19 4.22
1964:Q1 3.91 3.79
1964:Q2 1.53 3.66
1964:Q3 2.60 3.63
1964:Q4 0.85 3.75
1965:Q1 2.39 3.54
1965:Q2 1.16 3.39
1965:Q3 4.31 3.35
1965:Q4 4.08 3.71
1966:Q1 5.96 3.38
1966:Q2 2.63 3.39
1966:Q3 1.50 3.09
1966:Q4 0.54 3.12
1967:Q1 2.07 2.84
1967:Q2 2.57 3.02
1967:Q3 1.97 2.59
1967:Q4 1.30 2.69
1968:Q1 2.63 2.37
1968:Q2 3.45 2.44
1968:Q3 3.39 1.92
1968:Q4 1.00 2.69
1969:Q1 0.29 2.62
1969:Q2 0.03 2.71
1969:Q3 0.55 2.35
1969:Q4 -0.05 2.39
1970:Q1 0.49 2.87
1970:Q2 1.33 2.88
1970:Q3 3.41 2.64
1970:Q4 2.30 2.82
1971:Q1 4.04 2.84
1971:Q2 2.29 2.60
1971:Q3 4.20 2.62
1971:Q4 0.43 2.34
1972:Q1 1.44 2.35
1972:Q2 2.61 2.23
1972:Q3 3.77 2.31
1972:Q4 3.80 2.36
1973:Q1 3.27 2.33
1973:Q2 3.23 2.69
1973:Q3 0.70 2.11
1973:Q4 -0.73 2.41
1974:Q1 -2.39 2.29
1974:Q2 -0.68 2.49
1974:Q3 -1.91 2.40
1974:Q4 0.31 2.00
1975:Q1 1.35 1.98
1975:Q2 3.86 2.03
1975:Q3 4.15 1.40
1975:Q4 3.00 1.26
1976:Q1 2.80 1.97
1976:Q2 2.37 1.95
1976:Q3 2.24 2.32
1976:Q4 1.44 2.13
1977:Q1 1.38 2.26
1977:Q2 1.39 2.11
1977:Q3 2.09 1.77
1977:Q4 0.36 1.56
1978:Q1 -0.19 1.09
1978:Q2 0.45 1.06
1978:Q3 1.86 0.99
1978:Q4 2.66 1.26
1979:Q1 0.10 1.05
1979:Q2 -0.36 1.21
1979:Q3 -0.69 0.82
1979:Q4 -0.32 0.68
1980:Q1 0.52 0.44
1980:Q2 -0.68 0.67
1980:Q3 -0.36 0.93
1980:Q4 0.07 0.71
1981:Q1 3.16 1.03
1981:Q2 2.14 1.05
1981:Q3 2.41 1.36
1981:Q4 -0.78 1.51
1982:Q1 -0.42 1.68
1982:Q2 -1.55 1.83
1982:Q3 -0.29 1.74
1982:Q4 1.05 2.06
1983:Q1 1.80 2.13
1983:Q2 3.61 2.24
1983:Q3 3.20 1.90
1983:Q4 3.16 2.28
1984:Q1 1.91 2.12
1984:Q2 2.33 2.49
1984:Q3 1.92 2.55
1984:Q4 1.59 2.43
1985:Q1 1.14 2.55
1985:Q2 1.07 2.40
1985:Q3 2.48 2.38
1985:Q4 2.42 2.06
1986:Q1 2.94 2.00
1986:Q2 1.94 1.87
1986:Q3 2.11 1.80
1986:Q4 0.90 1.67
1987:Q1 -0.10 1.66
1987:Q2 -0.04 1.70
1987:Q3 0.33 1.62
1987:Q4 1.60 1.75
1988:Q1 1.32 1.57
1988:Q2 1.33 1.60
1988:Q3 0.76 1.18
1988:Q4 0.67 1.10
1989:Q1 0.77 1.34
1989:Q2 0.93 1.54
1989:Q3 1.09 1.74
1989:Q4 0.92 2.09
1990:Q1 1.49 2.22
1990:Q2 1.89 2.24
1990:Q3 2.36 2.30
1990:Q4 0.23 2.11
1991:Q1 -0.30 1.94
1991:Q2 0.78 1.88
1991:Q3 2.56 2.00
1991:Q4 2.91 1.95
1992:Q1 3.52 1.84
1992:Q2 3.56 1.73
1992:Q3 3.94 1.71
1992:Q4 2.29 1.51
1993:Q1 0.74 1.46
1993:Q2 -0.69 1.70
1993:Q3 -1.33 1.79
1993:Q4 0.24 1.61
1994:Q1 0.96 1.70
1994:Q2 0.90 1.65
1994:Q3 -0.38 1.20
1994:Q4 0.36 1.00
1995:Q1 0.32 1.13
1995:Q2 1.11 1.22
1995:Q3 0.20 1.50
1995:Q4 1.07 1.71
1996:Q1 1.54 1.82
1996:Q2 2.57 1.96
1996:Q3 2.23 2.09
1996:Q4 1.61 2.43
1997:Q1 0.30 2.58
1997:Q2 1.51 2.57
1997:Q3 2.33 2.92
1997:Q4 3.12 2.85
1998:Q1 2.06 3.29
1998:Q2 1.56 3.13
1998:Q3 2.43 3.23
1998:Q4 2.74 2.91
1999:Q1 3.77 3.20
1999:Q2 2.57 3.25
1999:Q3 2.65 3.59
1999:Q4 2.65 3.64
2000:Q1 2.36 3.52
2000:Q2 3.55 3.59
2000:Q3 2.00 3.46
2000:Q4 3.29 3.60
2001:Q1 0.72 3.62
2001:Q2 2.49 3.86
2001:Q3 1.65 3.71
2001:Q4 3.49 3.68
2002:Q1 3.63 3.63
2002:Q2 3.63 3.42
2002:Q3 3.11 3.61
2002:Q4 1.20 3.37
2003:Q1 1.90 3.29
2003:Q2 2.59 3.21
2003:Q3 4.61 3.35
2003:Q4 4.30 3.15
2004:Q1 2.80 3.04
2004:Q2 1.57 2.66
2004:Q3 1.27 2.41
2004:Q4 2.07 2.38
2005:Q1 2.38 2.32
2005:Q2 1.42 2.55
2005:Q3 1.43 2.44
2005:Q4 0.65 1.96
2006:Q1 1.89 1.75
2006:Q2 0.85 1.63
2006:Q3 0.22 1.48
2006:Q4 0.16 1.56
2007:Q1 0.57 1.89
2007:Q2 1.54 2.06
2007:Q3 1.83 2.15
2007:Q4 2.19 2.30
2008:Q1 0.89 2.18
2008:Q2 0.85 2.27
2008:Q3 0.45 2.15
2008:Q4 0.56 2.01
2009:Q1 0.61 2.16
2009:Q2 2.42 1.90
2009:Q3 4.78 2.00
2009:Q4 5.15 1.94
2010:Q1 3.38 1.82
2010:Q2 2.01 1.64
2010:Q3 1.24 1.73
2010:Q4 1.15 1.70
2011:Q1 0.05 1.63
2011:Q2 -0.32 1.84
2011:Q3 -1.01 1.77
2011:Q4 0.52 1.17
2012:Q1 0.52 0.97
2012:Q2 1.46 0.84
2012:Q3 0.45 0.65
2012:Q4 -0.08 0.73
2013:Q1 0.31 0.73
2013:Q2 0.44 0.72
2013:Q3 1.10 0.72
2013:Q4 0.95 0.68
2014:Q1 0.27 0.82
2014:Q2 0.64 0.74
2014:Q3 0.73 0.79
2014:Q4 0.95 0.68
2015:Q1 0.90 0.82
2015:Q2 0.69 1.02
2015:Q3 1.47 0.78
2015:Q4 0.00 0.84
2016:Q1 -0.53 0.91
2016:Q2 -0.53 0.87
2016:Q3 0.62 0.84
2016:Q4 1.04 0.83
2017:Q1 0.81 0.83
2017:Q2 0.82 0.85
2017:Q3 1.04 0.87
2017:Q4 0.80 0.88
2018:Q1 0.55 0.89
2018:Q2 0.74 0.92
2018:Q3 1.48 0.95

* Centered 5-year moving average through 2015, trailing average thereafter. Return to table

1961-2018 avg.: 2.2

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Last Update: February 28, 2019