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Monday, Oct. 21, 2024

Is the percentage of working-age Americans in the labor force at an all-time low?


no

The labor force participation rate among working-age Americans is higher than before the COVID-19 pandemic and higher than the lowest level recorded.

The rate refers to people working or actively seeking work.

Here are the rates for ages 15 to 64 at key points:

70.4%: lowest on record, 1977

77.4%: highest, late-1990s

74.1%: 2019

73%: 2020 (pandemic declared in March)

75%: 2023

Considering people 25-54, the lowest rate was 64.8% (1948); the rate was 83.3% in 2023; the peak was 84.1% in the late-1990s.

Republican Eric Hovde, who is running against U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wisconsin, said the rate among working-age Americans is at a record low.

His campaign did not reply to requests for information.

Retirees and students have reduced the overall labor participation rate.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce says pandemic-caused early retirements, lower net international migration and lack of child care have created a labor shortage.

See a full discussion of this at Wisconsin Watch

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

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