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The Labor Force Participation rate remained unchanged November at 62.8%.
The Employment/Population Ratio remained unchanged at 59.2%.
The contribution of these two factors to the Unemployment Rate is shown in the chart below.
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UR = (LR – ER) / LR
Where LR is the Labor Force Participation Rate, and ER is the Employment Ratio.
Note how a decrease in the participation rate on its own, reduces the unemployment rate: The number of available workers drops, and thus there are relatively fewer unemployed – even in the absence of job growth. This is what has happened in the recovery since the “Great Recession”.
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More detailed Labor Force Participation Charts and Employment Ratio Charts
| U.S. Unemployment Rate. Seasonally Adjusted. | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Labor Force Mlns | Rate (%) | Monthly Change (%pts) | Year/Year Change (%pts) | ||||||||
| Nov. 2013 | Nov. 2014 | Nov. 2013 | Sep. 2014 | Oct. 2014 | Nov. 2014 | Sep. 2014 | Oct. 2014 | Nov. 2014 | Sep. 2014 | Oct. 2014 | Nov. 2014 | |
| All Ages (16+) | 155.3 | 156.4 | 7.0 | 5.9 | 5.8 | 5.8 | -0.2 | -0.1 | 0.0 | -1.3 | -1.4 | -1.2 |
| 16 to 19 years | 5.7 | 5.8 | 20.8 | 20.0 | 18.6 | 17.7 | 0.4 | -1.4 | -0.9 | -1.3 | -3.4 | -3.1 |
| 20 to 24 years | 15.5 | 15.6 | 11.6 | 11.4 | 10.5 | 10.9 | 0.8 | -0.9 | 0.4 | -1.4 | -1.7 | -0.7 |
| 25 years and over | 134.1 | 135.1 | 5.8 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.7 | -0.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -1.2 | -1.3 | -1.1 |
| 25 to 34 years | 33.9 | 34.3 | 7.4 | 6.2 | 6.2 | 6.1 | -0.7 | 0.0 | -0.1 | -1.1 | -1.0 | -1.3 |
| 35 to 44 years | 32.5 | 32.4 | 5.6 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 4.3 | -0.5 | 0.1 | -0.1 | -1.3 | -1.3 | -1.3 |
| 45 to 54 years | 34.3 | 34.0 | 5.4 | 4.1 | 4.0 | 4.1 | -0.2 | -0.1 | 0.1 | -1.4 | -1.9 | -1.3 |
| 55 years and over | 33.3 | 34.3 | 4.9 | 3.9 | 4.1 | 4.5 | -0.7 | 0.2 | 0.4 | -1.4 | -1.3 | -0.4 |