Almost Half of the US Population Does Not Have a Job

Forget the 1950s stay-at-home mom era. The US in 2020 has lower employment than even then

The percentage of Americans who are employed sits at just over 50%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ employment-population ratio. The figure plunged to 51.3% in April (the lowest level on record) and edged up to 52.8% in May.

The backdrop: The ratio was as high as 61.2% in January, but has fallen precipitously since coronavirus-induced lockdowns shuttered businesses across the United States.

  • The measure reached its peak in April 2000 when 64.7% of eligible American adults were employed.

What it means: While the BLS’ jobs report categorizes people as “employed,” “unemployed” or “out of the labor force,” the employment-to-population ratio simply captures those who are and are not employed.

The intrigue: Torsten Sløk, chief economist at Deutsche Bank Securities notes, “To get the employment-to-population ratio back to where it was at its peak in 2000 we need to create 30 million jobs.”

Source: Axios

3 Comments
  1. cechas vodobenikov says

    breadlines poverty despair—the empire collapses in 5 years

  2. Jihadi Colin says

    This is not going to happen for the simple reason that the logic of capitalism dictates offshore outsourcing and/or automation. And given a population that lives on debt the lack of employment is not a hurdle in the path of corporate profit.

  3. Saint Jimmy (Russian American) says

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