Macro - 21.1 Defining and Computing Unemployment Rate and Patterns in Unemployment

Assume that the total working-age population is 121.6 million. If 50.0 million are not in the labor force, what is the labor force participation rate? (Round your answer to one decimal place.)

58.9% 121.6−50=71.6 million 71.6/121.6≈0.589 (100)×(0.589)=58.9%

Suppose a country's labor force is 153.9 million (of whom 139.1 million are employed). What is the country's unemployment rate? Round your answer to the nearest tenth.

9.6%

_______ workers tend to have higher unemployment rates than _______ workers. More educated; less educated Younger; middle-aged White; hispanic Older; younger

Younger; middle-aged Younger workers tend to have higher unemployment, while middle-aged workers tend to have lower unemployment, probably because the middle-aged workers feel the responsibility of needing to have a job more heavily.

Which of the following best describes the unemployed? those who are out of work and actively looking for a job those who are currently working for pay those who are out of paid work and not actively looking for a job all of the above

those who are out of work and actively looking for a job To be classified as unemployed, a person must be without a job, currently available to work, and actively looking for work in the previous four weeks. If a person is not currently working and not looking for work, they are classified as 'not in the labor force.'

The Bureau of Labor Statistics is interested in this years labor participation rate. If there are 350 million working-age adults and 300 million in the labor force, what is the labor participation rate? (round your answer to the nearest 10th)

85.7% Step 1. Divide the number of people in the labor force (300 million) by the total adult (working-age) population (350 million). Percentage in the labor force=300,000,000350,000,000=.857 Step 2. Multiply by 100 to obtain the percentage. Percentage in the labor force=(100)×(0.857)=85.7%

Suppose the adult population over the age of 16 is 495 million and the labor force is 94.9 million. What is the labor force participation rate? (round your answer to the nearest 10th)

19.2% Percentage in the labor force=94.9495=.192 Percentage in the labor force=(100)×(0.192)=19.2%

Jackie works for the Bureau of Labor Statistics in Country Y. The data she collected is listed below: Population (adult work-aged) Country Y: 9,600,530 Labor Force Country Y: 4,555,235 What is the labor force participation rate? (round your answer to the nearest 10th)

47.4% 4,555,235/9,600,530=.474 x100=47.4

The adult working-age population is 230.3 million, 103.2 million of which are not in the labor force. If there are 6.6 million unemployed individuals, what is the unemployment rate? Round your answer to the nearest tenth.

5.2% The unemployment rate is the ratio of unemployed people to the total labor force. The total labor force is divided into employed persons and unemployed persons, and the total population is composed of the labor force and those not in the labor force. So, to find the total labor force, we can subtract the number of people 'not in the labor force' from total population, 230.3−103.2=127.1 million. Sine the number of unemployed people is given, the unemployment rate can be calculated as, Unemployment Rate = Unemployed People / Total Labor Force ×100 = 6.6127.1×100=5.2%

Calculate the unemployment rate if the number of unemployed people (actively seeking work) is 70.67 million, and the number of employed people is 845.71 million. Round your answer to the nearest tenth.

7.7% Unemployment Rate=Unemployed People/Total Labor Force×100 =70.67916.38×100=7.7%

If the number of unemployed people actively seeking work is 10.4 million, and the number of employed people is 111.3 million, what is the unemployment rate? Round the answer to the nearest tenth.

8.5%

Which of the following statements about the US unemployment rate is true? The US unemployment rate has never fallen to zero. During the Great Depression the unemployment rate reached almost 50%. The timing of rises and falls in US unemployment rates rarely coincide with the upswings and downswings in the overall economy. There is a significant upward trend in US unemployment rates.

The US unemployment rate has never fallen to zero. The US unemployment rate never falls all the way to zero. It almost never seems to get below 3%—and it stays that low only for very short periods.

Which of the following best describes a discouraged worker? an individual who has stopped looking for employment an individual who is actively seeking employment but has yet to secure a job an individual who is underemployed all of the above

an individual who has stopped looking for employment Discouraged workers are those who have stopped looking for employment due to the lack of suitable positions available.

Which of the following best defines the underemployed? individuals who are trained or skilled for one type or level of work but are working in a job that does not utilize their skills individuals who have stopped looking for employment individuals who are not working and not looking for work individuals who are in the labor force but who do not have jobs

individuals who are trained or skilled for one type or level of work but are working in a job that does not utilize their skills The category of the underemployed includes those who are trained or skilled for one type or level of work but are working in a lower paying job or one that does not utilize their skills. For example, we would consider an individual with a college degree in finance who is working as a sales clerk underemployed. This category also includes people who have only part time or temporary jobs but are looking for full time and permanent employment. These people are counted as employed, although they are not employed in the way they would like or need to be.

Which of the following best describes the labor force? those who are employed along with those who are unemployed those who are not working and not looking for work those who are out of work and actively looking for a job those who are currently working for pay

those who are employed along with those who are unemployed The labor force is defined as the number of people employed plus the number of people unemployed. The size of the labor force and the unemployment rate in the U.S. are measured and tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics through a monthly survey which asks a series of questions to divide the adult population into employed, unemployed, or not in the labor force.

Both Karen and Bob are out of work. Karen applies to a few jobs each week, but does not particularly care to be employed. Bob was avidly searching for a job, but a little over a month ago he gave up searching. Who would be counted as unemployed by the Current Population Survey (CPS)? Karen Bob both Karen and Bob neither Karen nor Bob

Karen Since Karen reports that she is looking for work, she is considered unemployed. The US Census Bureau is unable to capture the fact that she does so without caring to be employed. Inability to exclude such people from the unemployment measure, as well as failure to include discouraged workers, are two of the problems with the unemployment data.

Discouraged workers are included in ___________________. the underemployed category the unemployed category the employed category none of the above

none of the above A person who is out of work, would like to work, has looked for work in the past year, and is available for work, but who has given up looking, is considered a discouraged worker. Discouraged workers are not counted as unemployed, but a tally is kept each month of the number of discouraged workers. They are not part of the labor force since they are not considered employed or unemployed.

All of the following are potential examples of hidden unemployment, except: someone who has found part-time work but is looking for full-time work someone with a graduate degree who is working as a waiter someone who has a full-time job but wants to look for a job with more upward mobility someone who is so discouraged by unemployment that she stops looking for work

someone who has a full-time job but wants to look for a job with more upward mobility Hidden unemployment covers people who are mislabeled as employed, unemployed, or out of the labor force. Someone who has a graduate degree but is working retail is considered underemployed and falls under this umbrella. Someone with part-time work who is looking for full-time work could be incorrectly labeled as employed, although they are not employed in the way they would like or need to be. Someone who has quit looking for work because she is discouraged could be mislabeled as out of the labor force.

True or false? Those who classify themselves as underemployed are included in the unemployment rate.

False Those who are underemployed are considered employed, and therefore not included in the unemployment rate. For example, there are some people who have only part time or temporary jobs, and they are looking for full time and permanent employment that are counted as employed, although they are not employed in the way they would like or need to be.

All of the following are steps of how the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics calculates the unemployment rate, except: divide country into 3,137 areas divides areas into districts of about 300 households each call about 15,000 four-household clusters interview about 50,000 US-owned companies

interview about 50,000 US-owned companies The unemployment rate announced by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on the first Friday of each month for the previous month is based on the Current Population Survey (CPS), which the Bureau has carried out every month since 1940. The Bureau takes great care to make this survey representative of the country as a whole. The country is first divided into 3,137 areas. The U.S. Bureau of the Census then selects 729 of these areas to survey. It divides the 729 areas into districts of about 300 households each, and divides each district into clusters of about four dwelling units. Every month, Census Bureau employees call about 15,000 of the four-household clusters, for a total of 60,000 households.