How to Calculate Unemployment Rate
Find the number of unemployed people., Find the number of employed people., Remove people who are not considered to be in the labor force., Divide the number of unemployed people by the total number of employed and unemployed people., Multiply the...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Find the number of unemployed people.
"Unemployed" people are defined by the federal government as people who are able to work and who have actively looked for work in the last four weeks.
Actively looking for work fits a broad category that includes having contacted an employer directly with a resume or through an interview, going to a public or private employment agency, asking friends or relatives for work opportunities, going to a school employment center, placing advertisements looking for work, or filling out job applications.People who are unemployed, but who have stopped looking for work because they don't believe they can find one in their line of work, they were previously unable to find work, or because they feel they are too old, or too inexperienced to work, are considered to be "marginally attached to the labor force" and are therefore not considered to be part of the labor force.
The federal government finds this number through surveying 60,000 US households every month. -
Step 2: Find the number of employed people.
The employed population of a nation is accounted for by people who have full-time jobs.
They are also considered to be employed if they are self-employed, if they work part-time, or if they work for a family business for more than 15 hours a week, even if the work is unpaid.
People who are on maternity or paternity leave, on sabbatical, or on vacation from work are also considered employed because they do have a job to come back to.
Even if a person is employed part-time or works in a job below his or her pay grade, that person is still considered to be employed.
The federal government also finds this number through surveying 60,000 US households every month., People who are not part of the labor force are people who are not actively looking for work or people who are otherwise occupied, whether they are students, homemakers, or disabled.
People who are not part of the labor force include people under 16 years of age, people in institutions, such as prisons and nursing homes, people in the armed forces, people who are retired, students, and the disabled.
It's important to know which people are not considered to be part of the labor force so that you don't mistakenly count them as part or not part of the labor force and skew the equation. , For example, if we have 4 million unemployed people and 40 million employed people, we can divide 4 by 44 and get a decimal of .09.
Note that, when calculating the real unemployment, the figure will not be so nice and neat.
You may notice that the original numbers were in millions but we dropped all the zeros, choosing just to divide the prefixes.
If you divide the numbers with their full digits in the millions you will actually get the same exact decimal.
Try it, you'll see! , This calculation is as easy as moving your decimal point two spaces to the left, for example converting .09 into 9%. , If you want to take it a step further and would like to find out what the employment rate is, then all you have to do is take the unemployment rate and subtract it from
100.
So, for example, 100
- 9 =
91.
This means that the employment rate of our fictional land is 90%, or that 90 percent of the people who are able to work and able to find work have found it.
That sounds a bit nicer, doesn't it? -
Step 3: Remove people who are not considered to be in the labor force.
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Step 4: Divide the number of unemployed people by the total number of employed and unemployed people.
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Step 5: Multiply the decimal number by 100 to get the percentage.
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Step 6: Find the employment rate by subtracting this number from 100.
Detailed Guide
"Unemployed" people are defined by the federal government as people who are able to work and who have actively looked for work in the last four weeks.
Actively looking for work fits a broad category that includes having contacted an employer directly with a resume or through an interview, going to a public or private employment agency, asking friends or relatives for work opportunities, going to a school employment center, placing advertisements looking for work, or filling out job applications.People who are unemployed, but who have stopped looking for work because they don't believe they can find one in their line of work, they were previously unable to find work, or because they feel they are too old, or too inexperienced to work, are considered to be "marginally attached to the labor force" and are therefore not considered to be part of the labor force.
The federal government finds this number through surveying 60,000 US households every month.
The employed population of a nation is accounted for by people who have full-time jobs.
They are also considered to be employed if they are self-employed, if they work part-time, or if they work for a family business for more than 15 hours a week, even if the work is unpaid.
People who are on maternity or paternity leave, on sabbatical, or on vacation from work are also considered employed because they do have a job to come back to.
Even if a person is employed part-time or works in a job below his or her pay grade, that person is still considered to be employed.
The federal government also finds this number through surveying 60,000 US households every month., People who are not part of the labor force are people who are not actively looking for work or people who are otherwise occupied, whether they are students, homemakers, or disabled.
People who are not part of the labor force include people under 16 years of age, people in institutions, such as prisons and nursing homes, people in the armed forces, people who are retired, students, and the disabled.
It's important to know which people are not considered to be part of the labor force so that you don't mistakenly count them as part or not part of the labor force and skew the equation. , For example, if we have 4 million unemployed people and 40 million employed people, we can divide 4 by 44 and get a decimal of .09.
Note that, when calculating the real unemployment, the figure will not be so nice and neat.
You may notice that the original numbers were in millions but we dropped all the zeros, choosing just to divide the prefixes.
If you divide the numbers with their full digits in the millions you will actually get the same exact decimal.
Try it, you'll see! , This calculation is as easy as moving your decimal point two spaces to the left, for example converting .09 into 9%. , If you want to take it a step further and would like to find out what the employment rate is, then all you have to do is take the unemployment rate and subtract it from
100.
So, for example, 100
- 9 =
91.
This means that the employment rate of our fictional land is 90%, or that 90 percent of the people who are able to work and able to find work have found it.
That sounds a bit nicer, doesn't it?
About the Author
Olivia Allen
A passionate writer with expertise in hobbies topics. Loves sharing practical knowledge.
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