Labor force in the United States
The labor force is the actual number of people available for work and is the sum of the employed and the unemployed. The U.S. labor force reached a high of 164.6 million persons in February 2020, just at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.[1] Before the pandemic, the U.S. labor force had risen each year since 1960 with the exception of the period following the Great Recession, when it remained below 2008 levels from 2009 to 2011.[1] In 2021, The Great Resignation resulted in record numbers in voluntary turn over for American workers.[2]
The labor force participation rate, LFPR (or economic activity rate, EAR), is the ratio between the labor force and the overall size of their cohort (national population of the same age range). Much as in other countries in the West, the labor force participation rate in the U.S. increased significantly during the later half of the 20th century, largely because of women entering the workplace in increasing numbers. Labor force participation has declined steadily since 2000, primarily because of the aging and retirement of the Baby Boom generation. Analyzing labor force participation trends in the prime working age (25-54) cohort helps separate the impact of an aging population from other demographic factors (e.g., gender, race, and education) and government policies. The Congressional Budget Office explained in 2018 that higher educational attainment is correlated with higher labor force participation for workers aged 25–54. Prime-aged men tend to be out of the labor force because of disability, while a key reason for women is caring for family members.[3]
Race and the U.S. Labor Force[edit]
Occupation[edit]
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, as of 2019 Asians are most likely to hold a management position, while Hispanics or Latinos are most likely to hold a job in the service sector.[19]
According to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics, male LFP decreased and has continued decreasing since 1950 with 86.4%, 79.7% in 1970, 76.4% in 1990, and 73.3% in 2005. Experts predict that this decrease could remain and become higher over the years because of different policies such as the Social Security Act (1960). In addition, a decline in male education participation, age of marriage, the rise of substance abuse, and addiction to video gaming could lead to the decrease in male LFP. This decrease in male labor force participation rate was probably from the benefit of disability insurance, especially in the group of less-educated men.
According to the article "Why are prime-age men vanishing from the labor force?[20]" (Economic review , Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, first quarter 2018), author found that from 1996 to 2015, most men in the prime-age who only hold a high-school degree or associate's degree would have a nonparticipation rate much higher than those who hold an advanced degree. There were studies that showed that the demand in low-skilled workers had been down during 1970 to 1980. Alternatively, the demand of middle-skilled labors during that period of time increased significantly, this could be explained since organizations tried to replace the low-skilled workers and used middle-skilled workers. During the Great Recession, overall, the nonparticipation rate increased for everyone regardless of their education level. However, the author tried to dig deeper and categorized men into four different groups: those, who do not have a high school diploma, who have a high school diploma, who have an associate's degree, and who have a bachelor's degree or higher. It was obvious that the greatest increase was from the group with only a high school diploma.
The aging in U.S population also explained the decrease in Men LFP. The median-age of male was increased from 34 years old to 37.2 years old. In addition, baby-boomer numbers increased which meant more people over 65 years old, and fewer people who were of labor age. With these numbers, even though the labor force participation rate remained same, the aging in population still could affect and drag the LFPR down. According to the 2020 Current Population Survey, most men reported that they were not able to work due to higher education, ill health, or disability, however, this is a self-report. Regarding the Social Security Disability Program, 35% of recipients responded that their disability was due to mental health disorder. According to National Library of Medicine, the percentage of men diagnosed with depression was lower than women, yet the effect on the male labor force participation rate was considerable. There were different reasons leading to this, it could be unrecognized, undiagnosed, and untreated. Another 30% responded that their disability correlated to musculoskeletal disorder, much due to obesity.
The men LFPR tend to increase further after COVID-19. Experts said that there are many reasons could lead to this results. People within the age that about to retire would like to retire earlier, even though they are healthy, they would prefer to spend their time for family, hobbies, or voluntary. In addition, COVID-19 created a threat to most people, especially who have problem with their health before. Another reason could be many companies are trying to move their plant to different countries where could cut companies' costs and benefits. According to ScienceAdvances,[21] more than half of men in their 30s has a criminal history arrest. This could be another reason explains why men nonparticipation rate increases.
International comparison[edit]
For 2017, the Central Intelligence Agency ranked the U.S. as having the fourth largest labor force in the world at about 160 million, behind China (807 million), India (522 million), and the European Union (235 million).[62]