The Bureau of Labor Statistics calculates the unemployment rate as the ratio of unemployed people to the total civilian labor force. It provides unemployment data from 2008 to 2011, showing a decrease in the unemployment rate over time. The unemployment rate can decline if the number of unemployed people finding jobs decreases or if unemployed people stop looking for work and drop out of the labor force.

2. Unemployment Statistics
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (http://www.bls.gov) calculates the unemployment rate. This is
calculated as the ratio of the number of unemployed people divided by the total number in the
civilian labor force.

3. Unemployment Statistics
This table shows the change in the civilian labor force and the number of
unemployed from the 4th quarter of 2008 through the 4th quarter of 2011.
2008 2009 2009 2009 2009 2010 2010 2010 2010 2011 2011 2011 2011
4th 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 1st 2nd 3rd 4th
Civilian labor
force 154,708 154,300 154,660 154,214 153,582 153,707 154,132 153,913 153,788 153,314 153,510 153,679 153,960
Unemployed 10,642 12,766 14,343 14,840 15,257 15,040 14,871 14,640 14,711 13,766 13,903 13,908 13,393
Numbers are in the thousands.

4. Unemployment Statistics
This table shows the calculated unemployment rate.
2008 2009 2009 2009 2009 2010 2010 2010 2010 2011 2011 2011 2011
4th 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 1st 2nd 3rd 4th
Civilian labor
force 154,708 154,300 154,660 154,214 153,582 153,707 154,132 153,913 153,788 153,314 153,510 153,679 153,960
Unemployed 10,642 12,766 14,343 14,840 15,257 15,040 14,871 14,640 14,711 13,766 13,903 13,908 13,393
Unemployment
Rate 6.9 8.3 9.3 9.6 9.9 9.8 9.6 9.5 9.6 9 9.1 9.1 8.7

5. Unemployment Statistics
This is a graph of the unemployment rate data. Note that the trend line shows a
decrease in the unemployment rate.

6. Unemployment Statistics
There are three ways that the unemployment rate goes down.
How the unemployment rate goes down:
If this value goes down.
If this value goes up.
Or both.

7. Unemployment Statistics
These three graphs show the changes in the unemployment rate, the number of
unemployed, and the size of the labor force.

8. Unemployment Statistics
This is how the Bureau of Labor Statistics defines “unemployed.”
“Who is counted as unemployed?
•Persons are classified as unemployed if they
do not have a job, have actively looked for
work in the prior 4 weeks, and are currently
available for work. “
- Bureau of Labor Statistics

9. Unemployment Statistics
So, the labor force is made up of the employed and the unemployed, as defined by
the Bureau.

10. Unemployment Statistics
The unemployment rate goes down when unemployed people become employed.

11. Unemployment Statistics
However, the unemployment rate also goes down when unemployed people stop looking for
work. At that point, the number of unemployed people goes down, as does the size of the labor
force.

12. Unemployment Statistics
These are the statistics for Dec 2011 and Jan 2012. Notice that over 1 million
employees stopped looking for work from December to January.
Dec'11 Jan'12
Civilian labor force 153,887 154,395
Employed 140,790 141,637
Unemployed 13,097 12,758
Unemployment rate 8.5 8.3
Not in labor force 86,697 87,874
Numbers are in the thousands.

13. Unemployment Statistics
Had those people stayed in the labor force, the unemployment rate would have been
8.9%!

14. Unemployment Statistics
• Calculating
unemployment statistics
is extremely complex and
relies on estimation,
extrapolation, a good
deal of data analysis.