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Internet address: http://stat.bls.gov/newsrels.htm Technical information: (202) 606-6378 USDL 98-386 Media contact: 606-5902 For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT Tuesday, September 22, 1998 EMPLOYMENT AND UNEMPLOYMENT AMONG YOUTH--SUMMER 1998 The number of employed youth increased by 2.5 million from April to July, the traditional summertime peak for youth employment, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. This year's seasonal expansion in employment of 16- to 24-year-olds was lower than in the preceding summer. The number of unemployed youth also rose as it typically does at this time of the year, growing by 702,000 between the spring and summer. (Because the focus of this analysis is the seasonal changes in youth employment and unemployment that occur every spring and summer, the data are not adjusted for seasonal variations.) Labor Force The 16- to 24-year-old labor force--those working or actively looking for work--grows sharply between April and July of each year, as large numbers of high school and college students search for summer jobs and many recent graduates look for permanent employment. This summer, the youth labor force rose by 3.2 million, to a total of 24.2 million in July. This was in line with the increase that occurred over the same period during the preceding four summers. (See table 1.) The proportion of the youth population working or looking for work--the group's labor force participation rate--was 72.8 percent in July, about the same as last year. The participation rate for black youth (64.4 percent) was higher than a year earlier, while the rates for young men (76.3 percent), women (69.3 percent), and whites (75.3 percent) were little different from those in 1997. (See table 2.) Employment A total of 21.6 million youth were employed this July, 64.9 percent of their population. This ratio has remained within a fairly narrow range during the 1990s. The employment-to-population ratio for young women (62.0 percent in July), has grown since the mid-1990s, while the rate for young men (67.8 percent) has declined during the same period. The employment-topopulation ratios for white and black youth have shown little or no movement since the mid-1990s. (See table 2.) About 7 in 8 employed youth were wage and salary workers in the private sector this summer, with retail trade (7.4 million) and services (5.8 million) the largest employers. There also were sizable numbers of youth employed in manufacturing and construction. Government employed a total of 1.5 million young people in July. Nearly 3 in 5 of the young people with government jobs were employed in local governments. About 11 percent of black and 6 percent of white youth worked in government. (See table 3.) - 2 Unemployment About 2.6 million 16- to 24-year-olds were unemployed this July--that is, they were not working, were actively looking for work, and were available to take a job. The youth unemployment rate was 10.8 percent. Jobless rates were 11.2 percent for young men, 10.4 percent for young women, 8.4 percent for white youth, and 24.8 percent for black youth. The summer jobless rates for these demographic groups have declined since the mid-1990s. (See table 2.) Technical Note The estimates in this release were obtained from the Current Population Survey (CPS), a national sample survey of 50,000 households conducted monthly for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) by the Bureau of the Census. The data in this release relate to the employment status of youth (16- to 24-year-old) during the months of April-July. This period was selected as being the most representative time frame in which to measure the full summertime transition from school to work. July is traditionally the peak summer month of youth employment. Beginning in January 1998, data reflect new composite estimation procedures and revised population controls used in the household survey. For additional information, see "Revisions in the Current Population Survey Effective January 1998" in the February 1998 issue of Employment and Earnings. Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-606-STAT; TDD phone: 202-606-5897; TDD message referral phone: 1-800-326-2577. Reliability Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both sampling and nonsampling error. When a sample, rather than the entire population, is surveyed, there is a chance that the sample estimates may differ from the "true" population values they represent. The exact difference, or sampling error, varies depending upon the particular sample selected, and this variability is measured by the standard error of the estimate. There is about a 90-percent chance, or level of confidence, that an estimate based on a sample will differ by no more than 1.6 standard errors from the "true" population value because of sampling error. BLS analyses are generally conducted at the 90-percent level of confidence. The CPS data also are affected by nonsampling error. Nonsampling error can occur for many reasons, including the failure to sample a segment of the population, inability to obtain information for all respondents in the sample, inability or unwillingness of respondents to provide correct information, and errors made in the collection or processing of the data. For a full discussion of the reliability of data from the CPS and information on estimating standard errors, see the "Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error" section of the February 1994 and subsequent issues of Employment and Earnings. Definitions The principal definitions used in this release are described briefly below. Employed persons are (a) all those who, during the survey reference week, did any work at all as paid employees, worked in their own business, profession, or on their own farm, or who worked 15 hours or more as unpaid workers in a family-operated enterprise; and (b) all those who did not work but had jobs or businesses from which they were temporarily absent due to illness, bad weather, vacation, child-care problems, labor disputes or personal reasons, whether or not they were paid by their employers for the time off and whether or not they were seeking other jobs. Unemployed persons are all persons who had no employment during the reference week, were available for work, except for temporary illness, and had made specific efforts to find employment sometime during the 4 weeks preceding the survey. Persons who were waiting to be recalled to a job from which they had been laid off need not have been looking for work to be classified as unemployed. Civilian labor force comprises all persons classified as employed or unemployed. Unemployment rate represents the number of unemployed persons as a percent of the civilian labor force. Not in the labor force includes all persons who are not classified as employed or unemployed. Industry and class of worker for the employed relate to the job held in the survey reference week. Persons with two or more jobs are classified in the job at which they worked the greatest number of hours. In terms of class-of-worker categories, wage and salary workers are those who receive wages, salaries, commissions, tips, or pay-in-kind from a private employer or from a government unit; self-employed persons are those who work for profit or fees in their own business, profession, or trade, or operate a farm; and unpaid family workers are persons working without pay for 15 hours a week or more in an enterprise operated by a member of their family. Table 1. Employment status of the civilian population 16 to 24 years of age by sex and race, April-July 1998 (Numbers in thousands. Data are not seasonally adjusted.) ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ | | | | | | | | | | April-July changes ___________________ Employment status, sex, and race | April | May | June | July | | | | | | | | | | | | Number | Percent ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ | | | | | | TOTAL Civilian noninstitutional population................... Civilian labor force................................. Participation rate............................. Employed........................................... Employment-population ratio (1)................ Unemployed......................................... Looking for full-time work....................... Looking for part-time work....................... Unemployment rate................................ Not in labor force................................... 33,108 20,984 63.4 19,059 57.6 1,925 1,227 698 9.2 12,124 33,149 21,626 65.2 19,372 58.4 2,254 1,582 672 10.4 11,522 33,232 23,671 71.2 20,866 62.8 2,805 2,046 759 11.8 9,561 33,266 24,225 72.8 21,599 64.9 2,626 1,910 716 10.8 9,041 158 3,241 9.4 2,539 7.4 702 683 18 1.7 -3,083 0.5 15.4 14.9 13.3 12.8 36.5 55.7 2.6 18.2 -25.4 16,660 10,949 65.7 9,904 16,712 11,311 67.7 10,069 16,772 12,495 74.5 11,028 16,779 12,807 76.3 11,370 119 1,858 10.6 1,467 .7 17.0 16.1 14.8 Men Civilian noninstitutional population................... Civilian labor force................................. Participation rate............................. Employed........................................... Employment-population ratio (1)................ Unemployed......................................... Looking for full-time work....................... Looking for part-time work....................... Unemployment rate................................ Not in labor force................................... 59.4 1,045 686 359 9.5 5,712 60.3 1,242 927 314 11.0 5,401 65.8 1,467 1,078 388 11.7 4,277 67.8 1,436 1,083 353 11.2 3,973 8.3 391 397 -6 1.7 -1,739 14.0 37.4 58.0 -1.7 17.5 -30.4 16,448 10,035 61.0 9,156 55.7 880 542 338 8.8 6,412 16,437 10,315 62.8 9,303 56.6 1,012 655 357 9.8 6,122 16,460 11,176 67.9 9,838 59.8 1,338 968 371 12.0 5,284 16,487 11,418 69.3 10,228 62.0 1,190 827 363 10.4 5,068 39 1,383 8.2 1,073 6.4 310 286 24 1.7 -1,344 .2 13.8 13.5 11.7 11.5 35.3 52.8 7.2 18.9 -21.0 26,471 17,505 66.1 16,133 60.9 1,372 849 523 7.8 8,966 26,514 18,122 68.4 16,520 62.3 1,602 1,096 506 8.8 8,391 26,562 19,636 73.9 17,628 66.4 2,008 1,419 589 10.2 6,926 26,606 20,028 75.3 18,343 68.9 1,685 1,178 507 8.4 6,578 134 2,523 9.1 2,210 8.0 313 329 -16 .6 -2,388 .5 14.4 13.8 13.7 13.1 22.8 38.8 -3.1 7.3 -26.6 Women Civilian noninstitutional population................... Civilian labor force................................. Participation rate............................. Employed........................................... Employment-population ratio (1)................ Unemployed......................................... Looking for full-time work....................... Looking for part-time work....................... Unemployment rate................................ Not in labor force................................... White Civilian noninstitutional population................... Civilian labor force................................. Participation rate............................. Employed........................................... Employment-population ratio (1)................ Unemployed......................................... Looking for full-time work....................... Looking for part-time work....................... Unemployment rate................................ Not in labor force................................... Black Civilian noninstitutional population................... 4,969 4,976 4,985 4,993 24 .5 Civilian labor force................................. 2,652 2,664 3,099 3,216 564 21.3 Participation rate............................. 53.4 53.5 62.2 64.4 11.0 20.7 Employed........................................... 2,165 2,090 2,422 2,419 254 11.7 Employment-population ratio (1)................ 43.6 42.0 48.6 48.4 4.9 11.2 Unemployed......................................... 487 574 676 797 310 63.7 Looking for full-time work....................... 332 430 547 636 304 91.7 Looking for part-time work....................... 155 145 130 161 6 3.7 Unemployment rate................................ 18.4 21.6 21.8 24.8 6.4 34.9 Not in labor force................................... 2,317 2,312 1,886 1,777 -540 -23.3 ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 1 Employment as a percent of the civilian noninstitutional population. NOTE: Beginning in January 1998, data reflect new composite estimation procedures and revised population controls used in the household survey. Table 2. Employment status of the civilian population 16 to 24 years of age by sex and race, July 1995-98 (Numbers in thousands. Data are not seasonally adjusted.) _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ | | | | Employment status, sex, and race | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ | | | | TOTAL Civilian noninstitutional population............................. Civilian labor force........................................... Participation rate....................................... Employed..................................................... Employment-population ratio (1).......................... Unemployed................................................... Looking for full-time work................................. Looking for part-time work................................. Unemployment rate.......................................... Not in labor force............................................. 32,436 24,102 74.3 21,041 64.9 3,062 2,273 789 12.7 8,334 32,310 23,677 73.3 20,702 64.1 2,975 2,136 839 12.6 8,633 32,803 23,931 73.0 21,197 64.6 2,734 2,005 729 11.4 8,872 33,266 24,225 72.8 21,599 64.9 2,626 1,910 716 10.8 9,041 16,246 12,884 79.3 11,311 69.6 1,573 1,219 354 12.2 3,363 16,179 12,667 78.3 11,023 68.1 1,644 1,182 462 13.0 3,512 16,548 12,653 76.5 11,207 67.7 1,446 1,094 352 11.4 3,894 16,779 12,807 76.3 11,370 67.8 1,436 1,083 353 11.2 3,973 Men Civilian noninstitutional population............................. Civilian labor force........................................... Participation rate....................................... Employed..................................................... Employment-population ratio (1).......................... Unemployed................................................... Looking for full-time work................................. Looking for part-time work................................. Unemployment rate.......................................... Not in labor force............................................. Women Civilian noninstitutional population............................. Civilian labor force........................................... Participation rate....................................... Employed..................................................... Employment-population ratio (1).......................... Unemployed................................................... Looking for full-time work................................. Looking for part-time work................................. Unemployment rate.......................................... Not in labor force............................................. 16,190 11,219 69.3 9,730 60.1 1,489 1,054 435 13.3 4,971 16,131 11,010 68.3 9,678 60.0 1,331 954 377 12.1 5,121 16,256 11,278 69.4 9,990 61.5 1,289 912 377 11.4 4,977 16,487 11,418 69.3 10,228 62.0 1,190 827 363 10.4 5,068 25,777 19,890 77.2 17,876 69.3 2,014 1,454 559 10.1 5,887 25,729 19,644 76.4 17,584 68.3 2,060 1,428 632 10.5 6,085 26,159 19,901 76.1 17,992 68.8 1,909 1,412 497 9.6 6,258 26,606 20,028 75.3 18,343 68.9 1,685 1,178 507 8.4 6,578 White Civilian noninstitutional population............................. Civilian labor force........................................... Participation rate....................................... Employed..................................................... Employment-population ratio (1).......................... Unemployed................................................... Looking for full-time work................................. Looking for part-time work................................. Unemployment rate.......................................... Not in labor force............................................. Black Civilian noninstitutional population............................. 4,834 4,883 4,958 4,993 Civilian labor force........................................... 3,083 3,026 3,030 3,216 Participation rate....................................... 63.8 62.0 61.1 64.4 Employed..................................................... 2,230 2,258 2,347 2,419 Employment-population ratio (1).......................... 46.1 46.2 47.3 48.4 Unemployed................................................... 852 768 684 797 Looking for full-time work................................. 667 617 500 636 Looking for part-time work................................. 186 151 183 161 Unemployment rate.......................................... 27.7 25.4 22.6 24.8 Not in labor force............................................. 1,751 1,858 1,927 1,777 _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 1 Employment as a percent of the civilian noninstitutional population. NOTE: Beginning in January 1998, data reflect new composite estimation procedures and revised population controls used in the household survey. Table 3. Employed persons 16 to 24 years of age by industry, class of worker, and race, July 1997-98 (Numbers in thousands. Data are not seasonally adjusted.) ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ | | | | Total | White | Black ___________________________________________________________ Industry and class of worker | | | | | | | | | | 1997 | 1998 | 1997 | 1998 | 1997 | 1998 ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ | | | | | | Total employed................................... 21,197 21,599 17,992 18,343 2,347 2,419 Agriculture ......................................... Nonagricultural industries........................... Private wage and salary workers.................... Mining........................................... Construction..................................... Manufacturing.................................... Transportation and public utilities.............. Wholesale trade.................................. Retail trade..................................... Finance, insurance, and real estate.............. Services......................................... 763 20,434 18,627 60 1,153 2,258 734 546 7,458 924 5,493 803 20,796 18,927 57 1,161 2,188 821 657 7,377 890 5,778 726 17,266 15,838 58 1,080 1,925 602 482 6,353 771 4,568 756 17,586 16,074 53 1,088 1,812 711 594 6,279 733 4,803 17 2,330 2,049 42 222 103 41 832 119 691 30 2,389 2,109 4 49 278 90 45 840 102 700 Government......................................... Federal.......................................... State............................................ Local............................................ 1,445 176 462 806 1,484 178 464 842 1,118 116 370 631 1,163 138 338 687 248 39 77 132 254 32 103 119 Self-employed and unpaid family workers............ 362 384 310 349 33 26 ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ NOTE: Beginning in January 1998, data reflect new composite estimation procedures and revised population controls used in the household survey. Dash represents zero.