Full text of Summer 2003 : Text File, USDL 03-412
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Technical information: (202) 691-6378 USDL 03-412
http://www.bls.gov/cps/
For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT
Media contact: 691-5902 Friday, August 8, 2003
EMPLOYMENT AND UNEMPLOYMENT AMONG YOUTH--SUMMER 2003
The number of employed youth 16 to 24 years old increased by 2.1 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 summertime expansion in youth employment was somewhat
smaller than last year's 2.4 million increase. Unemployment among youth
increased by 628,000 between April and July, the largest seasonal increase
since 1998. (Because this analysis focuses on the seasonal changes in
youth employment and unemployment that occur every spring and summer, the
data are not seasonally adjusted.)
Labor force
The youth labor force--16- to 24-year-olds working or actively looking
for work--grows sharply between April and July each year as large numbers
of high school and college students take or search for summer employment
and many graduates enter the labor market to begin or seek permanent jobs.
This summer, the youth labor force rose by 2.7 million to a total of 24.2
million in July. (See table 1.)
The July labor force participation rate for youth--the proportion of
their population working or looking for work--in 2003 (67.3 percent) was
lower than in 2002 (69.5 percent) and was the lowest rate for any July
since 1966. The over-the-year decrease in the youth labor force partici-
pation rate may reflect, at least in part, the continuing weakness in the
labor market in 2003. However, the participation rate for youth in July
has been on the decline for a number of years, perhaps in response to in-
creases in school enrollment during the summer. In July 2003, 25.5 per-
cent of 16- to 24-year-olds were enrolled in school, up from 16.3 percent
in July 1994, and participation rates for students are typically lower
than for non-students. Only about half of the youth enrolled in school
in July 2003 were in the labor force compared with almost three-fourths of
those not in school.
In July 2003, the labor force participation rate for young men, which
has declined steadily since 1995, was at its lowest July point on record,
70.0 percent. The July 2003 participation rate for young women was 64.5
percent, the lowest it has been since 1975. While the participation rates
for young whites (70.4 percent) decreased from a year earlier, the rate for
young blacks remained about the same (56.8 percent). For young Asians and
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| |
| Changes in Youth Employment and Unemployment Data |
| |
| The estimates presented in this release incorporate the use of |
| Census 2000-based population controls. Consequently, the estimates |
| for the years 2000-02 appearing in this release may differ from those|
| previously published, which were based on population controls derived|
| from the 1990 census, and the estimates beginning in 2000 are not |
| strictly comparable with those for earlier years. In addition, data |
| for 2003 are not strictly comparable with data for 2002 and earlier |
| years due to the introduction of revised population controls in |
| January 2003. For further information, see the Technical Note. |
| |
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- 2 -
young Hispanics, the labor force participation rates in July were 50.5 per-
cent and 62.0 percent, respectively. (See table 2.)
Employment
There were 21.0 million 16- to 24-year-olds employed in July 2003. The
employment-population ratio for youth--the proportion of the 16- to 24-year-
old civilian noninstitutional population that were employed--was 58.3 per-
cent, the lowest July ratio since 1964. The ratio decreased by 2.6 percent-
age points over the year and has fallen by 6.5 percentage points since July
2000. In July 2003, the employment-population ratios for young men (60.1 per-
cent), young women (56.6 percent), young whites (62.6 percent), and young
blacks (41.7 percent) were all lower than a year earlier.
In July 2003, 23 percent of employed youth worked in the leisure and
hospitality industry (including fast-food restaurants) and 19 percent
worked in retail trade. Also, large percentages of employed youth worked
in education and health services, professional and business services, con-
struction, and government. (See table 3.) (Industries reflect the intro-
duction of the 2002 Census industry classification system derived from the
2002 North American Industry Classification System.)
Unemployment
There were 3.2 million youth unemployed in July 2003; these youth were
not working but were available to take a job and were actively looking for
work. The youth unemployment rate was 13.3 percent, up from 12.4 percent
in July 2002 and 9.6 percent in July 2000. In July 2003, the unemployment
rates for young men (14.2 percent), young whites (11.1 percent), and young
blacks (26.6 percent) were higher than in July 2002. The July 2003 jobless
rates for young women (12.2 percent) and Hispanic youth (14.0 percent)
showed little or no change from a year earlier. The unemployment rate in
July 2003 for Asian youth was 13.2 percent. (See table 2.)
Technical Note
The estimates in this release were obtained from the Current Population
Survey (CPS), a national sample survey of 60,000 households conducted month-
ly for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) by the U.S. Census Bureau. The
data in this release relate to the employment status of youth (16- to 24-year-
olds) during the months of April-July. This period was selected as being the
most representative time frame in which to measure the full summertime tran-
sition from school to work. July is the peak summer month of youth employment.
The estimates presented in this release incorporate the use of Census
2000-based population controls. Sample results from the CPS are weighted
up to independent estimates of the population by sex, age, race, and
Hispanic/non-Hispanic origin. The weights, or population controls, are
developed using counts of the civilian noninstitutional population derived
from the decennial census and are updated using information from admini-
strative records. Previously published estimates of employment and unem-
ployment among youth for the years 2000-02 were based on population con-
trols from the 1990 census. Consequently, the estimates for the years
2000-02 appearing in this release may differ from those previously pub-
lished, and the estimates beginning in 2000 are not strictly comparable
with estimates for earlier years. In addition, data for 2003 are not
strictly comparable with data for 2002 and earlier years due to the intro-
duction of revised population controls in January 2003. For a discussion
of the introduction of the revised population controls and the impact their
introduction had on CPS data, see "Revisions to the Current Population Survey
Effective in January 2003" in the February 2003 issue of Employment and
Earnings and available at http://www.bls.gov/cps/rvcps03.pdf on the BLS Web
site.
Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired
individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; TDD message referral
phone: 1-800-877-8339.
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 de-
pending 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 infor-
mation, and errors made in the collection or processing of the data.
For a full discussion of the reliability of data from the CPS and infor-
mation on estimating standard errors, see the "Explanatory Notes and Estimates
of Error" section 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 per-
sonal 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 ref-
erence 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.
Industries reflect the introduction of the 2002 Census industry classifi-
cation system derived from the 2002 North American Industry Classification
System into the Current Population Survey.
Table 1. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 to 24 years of age by sex, race, and
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, April-July 2003
(Numbers in thousands. Data are not seasonally adjusted.)
April-July changes
Employment status, sex, race, and (1)
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity April May June July
Number Percent
TOTAL
Civilian noninstitutional population................... 35,815 35,847 35,880 35,905 91 0.3
Civilian labor force................................. 21,445 21,870 23,975 24,150 2,705 12.6
Participation rate............................. 59.9 61.0 66.8 67.3 7.4 12.3
Employed........................................... 18,873 19,032 20,432 20,950 2,077 11.0
Employment-population ratio ................... 52.7 53.1 56.9 58.3 5.7 10.7
Unemployed......................................... 2,572 2,838 3,542 3,200 628 24.4
Looking for full-time work..................... 1,749 2,148 2,671 2,448 699 40.0
Looking for part-time work..................... 824 690 871 753 -71 -8.6
Unemployment rate.............................. 12.0 13.0 14.8 13.3 1.3 10.5
Not in labor force................................... 14,370 13,976 11,905 11,755 -2,615 -18.2
Men
Civilian noninstitutional population................... 18,004 18,019 18,035 18,042 39 .2
Civilian labor force................................. 11,124 11,384 12,487 12,635 1,511 13.6
Participation rate............................. 61.8 63.2 69.2 70.0 8.2 13.3
Employed........................................... 9,668 9,813 10,594 10,838 1,170 12.1
Employment-population ratio ................... 53.7 54.5 58.7 60.1 6.4 11.9
Unemployed......................................... 1,455 1,572 1,893 1,796 341 23.4
Looking for full-time work..................... 1,017 1,236 1,473 1,416 398 39.2
Looking for part-time work..................... 438 335 420 381 -57 -13.1
Unemployment rate.............................. 13.1 13.8 15.2 14.2 1.1 8.7
Not in labor force................................... 6,880 6,634 5,548 5,407 -1,473 -21.4
Women
Civilian noninstitutional population................... 17,811 17,828 17,845 17,863 52 .3
Civilian labor force................................. 10,321 10,486 11,488 11,516 1,194 11.6
Participation rate............................. 57.9 58.8 64.4 64.5 6.5 11.2
Employed........................................... 9,204 9,219 9,838 10,112 907 9.9
Employment-population ratio ................... 51.7 51.7 55.1 56.6 4.9 9.5
Unemployed......................................... 1,117 1,267 1,650 1,404 287 25.7
Looking for full-time work..................... 731 912 1,198 1,032 301 41.1
Looking for part-time work..................... 386 355 451 372 -14 -3.5
Unemployment rate.............................. 10.8 12.1 14.4 12.2 1.4 12.7
Not in labor force................................... 7,490 7,342 6,357 6,348 -1,142 -15.2
White (2)
Civilian noninstitutional population................... 28,008 28,029 28,051 28,066 58 .2
Civilian labor force................................. 17,504 17,797 19,503 19,749 2,245 12.8
Participation rate............................. 62.5 63.5 69.5 70.4 7.9 12.6
Employed........................................... 15,706 15,807 17,084 17,566 1,861 11.8
Employment-population ratio ................... 56.1 56.4 60.9 62.6 6.5 11.6
Unemployed......................................... 1,798 1,990 2,418 2,182 384 21.4
Looking for full-time work..................... 1,133 1,466 1,779 1,611 478 42.2
Looking for part-time work..................... 665 524 639 571 -94 -14.1
Unemployment rate.............................. 10.3 11.2 12.4 11.1 .8 7.6
Not in labor force................................... 10,504 10,232 8,548 8,317 -2,187 -20.8
Black or African American (2)
Civilian noninstitutional population................... 5,137 5,145 5,152 5,159 22 .4
Civilian labor force................................. 2,612 2,679 2,921 2,930 318 12.2
Participation rate............................. 50.8 52.1 56.7 56.8 5.9 11.7
Employed........................................... 2,018 2,029 2,086 2,150 131 6.5
Employment-population ratio ................... 39.3 39.4 40.5 41.7 2.4 6.1
Unemployed......................................... 593 650 835 780 187 31.4
Looking for full-time work..................... 491 535 683 655 164 33.5
Looking for part-time work..................... 103 115 153 125 22 21.8
Unemployment rate.............................. 22.7 24.3 28.6 26.6 3.9 17.2
Not in labor force................................... 2,525 2,466 2,231 2,229 -296 -11.7
Asian (2)
Civilian noninstitutional population................... 1,441 1,456 1,460 1,464 23 1.6
Civilian labor force................................. 640 704 787 740 99 15.5
Participation rate............................. 44.4 48.3 53.9 50.5 6.1 13.7
Employed........................................... 580 620 648 642 61 10.6
Employment-population ratio ................... 40.3 42.6 44.4 43.8 3.5 8.8
Unemployed......................................... 60 84 139 98 38 63.6
Looking for full-time work..................... 39 52 104 63 24 61.1
Looking for part-time work..................... 20 32 35 34 14 68.5
Unemployment rate.............................. 9.3 11.9 17.7 13.2 3.9 41.7
Not in labor force................................... 801 752 673 724 -76 -9.5
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity
Civilian noninstitutional population................... 6,055 6,063 6,071 6,079 24 .4
Civilian labor force................................. 3,623 3,627 3,792 3,772 149 4.1
Participation rate............................. 59.8 59.8 62.5 62.0 2.2 3.7
Employed........................................... 3,197 3,168 3,203 3,244 47 1.5
Employment-population ratio ................... 52.8 52.2 52.8 53.4 .6 1.1
Unemployed......................................... 425 459 589 528 102 24.1
Looking for full-time work..................... 314 397 429 406 92 29.4
Looking for part-time work..................... 111 62 160 121 10 9.0
Unemployment rate.............................. 11.7 12.7 15.5 14.0 2.2 19.2
Not in labor force................................... 2,432 2,436 2,279 2,307 -125 -5.2
1 Changes are calculated using unrounded data.
2 Beginning in 2003, persons who selected this race group only; persons who selected more than one race group are
not included. Prior to 2003, persons who reported more than one race group were included in the group they
identified as the main race.
NOTE: Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals
because data are not presented for all races. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or
Latino may be of any race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by race. Data reflect Census
2000-based population controls. Data also reflect revised population controls introduced in January 2003.
Table 2. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 to 24 years of age by sex, race, and
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, July 2000-03
(Numbers in thousands. Data are not seasonally adjusted.)
Employment status, sex, race, and 2000 2001 2002 2003
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity
TOTAL
Civilian noninstitutional population................... 34,214 34,846 35,322 35,905
Civilian labor force................................. 24,514 24,627 24,536 24,150
Participation rate............................. 71.6 70.7 69.5 67.3
Employed........................................... 22,156 22,042 21,501 20,950
Employment-population ratio ................... 64.8 63.3 60.9 58.3
Unemployed......................................... 2,358 2,585 3,034 3,200
Looking for full-time work..................... 1,732 1,898 2,250 2,448
Looking for part-time work..................... 626 687 785 753
Unemployment rate.............................. 9.6 10.5 12.4 13.3
Not in labor force................................... 9,700 10,219 10,786 11,755
Men
Civilian noninstitutional population................... 17,175 17,468 17,758 18,042
Civilian labor force................................. 12,910 12,950 12,837 12,635
Participation rate............................. 75.2 74.1 72.3 70.0
Employed........................................... 11,657 11,576 11,231 10,838
Employment-population ratio ................... 67.9 66.3 63.2 60.1
Unemployed......................................... 1,253 1,374 1,606 1,796
Looking for full-time work..................... 986 1,051 1,172 1,416
Looking for part-time work..................... 267 322 434 381
Unemployment rate.............................. 9.7 10.6 12.5 14.2
Not in labor force................................... 4,265 4,518 4,921 5,407
Women
Civilian noninstitutional population................... 17,039 17,378 17,563 17,863
Civilian labor force................................. 11,604 11,677 11,699 11,516
Participation rate............................. 68.1 67.2 66.6 64.5
Employed........................................... 10,498 10,466 10,271 10,112
Employment-population ratio ................... 61.6 60.2 58.5 56.6
Unemployed......................................... 1,105 1,211 1,428 1,404
Looking for full-time work..................... 746 846 1,077 1,032
Looking for part-time work..................... 359 364 351 372
Unemployment rate.............................. 9.5 10.4 12.2 12.2
Not in labor force................................... 5,436 5,701 5,865 6,348
White (1)
Civilian noninstitutional population................... 27,146 27,570 27,959 28,066
Civilian labor force................................. 20,248 20,324 20,262 19,749
Participation rate............................. 74.6 73.7 72.5 70.4
Employed........................................... 18,648 18,508 18,092 17,566
Employment-population ratio ................... 68.7 67.1 64.7 62.6
Unemployed......................................... 1,600 1,816 2,169 2,182
Looking for full-time work..................... 1,145 1,323 1,566 1,611
Looking for part-time work..................... 455 494 604 571
Unemployment rate.............................. 7.9 8.9 10.7 11.1
Not in labor force................................... 6,897 7,246 7,697 8,317
Black or African American (1)
Civilian noninstitutional population................... 4,960 5,078 5,199 5,159
Civilian labor force................................. 3,080 3,074 2,989 2,930
Participation rate............................. 62.1 60.5 57.5 56.8
Employed........................................... 2,462 2,464 2,319 2,150
Employment-population ratio ................... 49.6 48.5 44.6 41.7
Unemployed......................................... 618 610 670 780
Looking for full-time work..................... 494 460 549 655
Looking for part-time work..................... 123 150 121 125
Unemployment rate.............................. 20.1 19.8 22.4 26.6
Not in labor force................................... 1,880 2,004 2,211 2,229
Asian (1)
Civilian noninstitutional population................... 1,734 1,767 1,724 1,464
Civilian labor force................................. 938 949 966 740
Participation rate............................. 54.1 53.7 56.0 50.5
Employed........................................... 832 842 815 642
Employment-population ratio ................... 48.0 47.7 47.3 43.8
Unemployed......................................... 106 107 151 98
Looking for full-time work..................... 66 75 97 63
Looking for part-time work..................... 40 32 54 34
Unemployment rate.............................. 11.3 11.2 15.6 13.2
Not in labor force................................... 795 818 758 724
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity
Civilian noninstitutional population................... 5,838 5,957 6,004 6,079
Civilian labor force................................. 3,839 3,908 3,900 3,772
Participation rate............................. 65.8 65.6 65.0 62.0
Employed........................................... 3,389 3,434 3,390 3,244
Employment-population ratio ................... 58.1 57.7 56.5 53.4
Unemployed......................................... 450 474 510 528
Looking for full-time work..................... 342 381 419 406
Looking for part-time work..................... 108 93 91 121
Unemployment rate.............................. 11.7 12.1 13.1 14.0
Not in labor force................................... 1,999 2,049 2,104 2,307
1 Beginning in 2003, persons who selected this race group only; persons who selected more than one race group are
not included. Prior to 2003, persons who reported more than one race group were included in the group they
identified as the main race.
NOTE: Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals
because data are not presented for all races. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic
or Latino may be of any race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by race. Data for 2000-02
have been revised to reflect Census 2000-based population controls. Data for 2003 also reflect an additional
upward adjustment to the population controls used in the household survey.
Table 3. Employed persons 16 to 24 years of age by industry, class of worker, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, July 2002-03
(In thousands. Data are not seasonally adjusted.)
Black Hispanic
Total White (1) or Asian (1) or
African Latino
Industry and class of worker American (1) ethnicity
2002 2003 2002 2003 2002 2003 2002 2003 2002 2003
Total employed............ 21,501 20,950 18,092 17,566 2,319 2,150 815 642 3,390 3,244
Agriculture and related
industries..................... 387 352 356 341 4 4 4 1 133 87
Nonagricultural industries...... 21,115 20,599 17,736 17,225 2,315 2,146 811 640 3,257 3,157
Private wage and salary
workers...................... 19,019 18,773 16,077 15,771 2,024 1,893 711 585 3,003 2,958
Mining...................... 24 45 24 43 - - - - - 3
Construction................ 1,322 1,442 1,217 1,343 85 55 11 8 317 370
Manufacturing............... 1,476 1,318 1,269 1,119 146 132 44 26 381 288
Durable goods............. 869 762 758 674 89 57 13 12 170 111
Nondurable goods.......... 608 557 511 444 57 75 32 14 211 177
Wholesale trade............. 482 476 419 402 48 46 13 15 105 74
Retail trade................ 4,220 3,944 3,561 3,210 441 448 173 171 561 494
Transportation and utilities 528 465 403 354 99 100 20 3 77 56
Information................. 491 438 405 352 51 51 27 15 61 63
Financial activities........ 1,103 1,130 916 909 117 109 60 79 125 153
Professional and business
services................... 1,800 1,653 1,473 1,389 214 178 82 44 317 310
Education and health
services................... 1,928 2,127 1,545 1,722 282 268 91 67 246 275
Leisure and hospitality..... 4,662 4,727 3,998 4,053 462 418 153 132 669 745
Other services.............. 983 1,009 848 874 79 89 36 26 144 128
Government.................... 1,617 1,439 1,237 1,134 252 218 91 39 192 148
Federal..................... 219 159 146 93 59 53 10 10 32 16
State....................... 444 412 325 306 62 65 39 20 63 46
Local....................... 953 867 766 735 130 99 42 9 97 86
Self-employed and unpaid
family workers............... 479 386 422 321 40 35 9 16 63 51
1 Beginning in 2003, persons who selected this race group only; persons who selected more than one race group are not included.
Prior to 2003, persons who reported more than one race group were included in the group they identified as the main race.
- Dash represents zero.
NOTE: Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not
presented for all races. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race and, therefore,
are classified by ethnicity as well as by race. Industries reflect the introduction of the 2002 Census industry classification system
derived from the 2002 North American Industry Classification System into the Current Population Survey. Data reflect Census 2000-
based population controls. Data for 2003 also reflect an additional upward adjustment to the population controls used in the house-
hold survey.