In 2023, it was estimated that over 161 million Americans were in some form of employment, while 3.64 percent of the total workforce was unemployed. This was the lowest unemployment rate since the 1950s, although these figures are expected to rise in 2023 and beyond. 1980s-2010s Since the 1980s, the total United States labor force has generally risen as the population has grown, however, the annual average unemployment rate has fluctuated significantly, usually increasing in times of crisis, before falling more slowly during periods of recovery and economic stability. For example, unemployment peaked at 9.7 percent during the early 1980s recession, which was largely caused by the ripple effects of the Iranian Revolution on global oil prices and inflation. Other notable spikes came during the early 1990s; again, largely due to inflation caused by another oil shock, and during the early 2000s recession. The Great Recession then saw the U.S. unemployment rate soar to 9.6 percent, following the collapse of the U.S. housing market and its impact on the banking sector, and it was not until 2016 that unemployment returned to pre-recession levels. 2020s 2019 had marked a decade-long low in unemployment, before the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic saw the sharpest year-on-year increase in unemployment since the Great Depression, and the total number of workers fell by almost 10 million people. Despite the continuation of the pandemic in the years that followed, alongside the associated supply-chain issues and onset of the inflation crisis, unemployment reached just 3.67 percent in 2022 - current projections are for this figure to rise in 2023 and the years that follow, although these forecasts are subject to change if recent years are anything to go by.
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Employment Rate in the United States remained unchanged at 59.60 percent in August. This dataset provides - United States Employment Rate- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.
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Graph and download economic data for Employed, Usually Work Full Time (LNS12500000) from Jan 1968 to Aug 2025 about full-time, 16 years +, household survey, employment, and USA.
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The number of employed persons in The United States increased to 163394 Thousand in August of 2025 from 163106 Thousand in July of 2025. This dataset provides - United States Employed Persons - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.
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Unemployment Rate in the United States increased to 4.30 percent in August from 4.20 percent in July of 2025. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Unemployment Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.
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Graph and download economic data for All Employees, Manufacturing (MANEMP) from Jan 1939 to Aug 2025 about headline figure, establishment survey, manufacturing, employment, and USA.
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Full Time Employment in the United States decreased to 134480 Thousand in August from 134837 Thousand in July of 2025. This dataset provides - United States Full Time Employment- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.
In October 2024, about 133.5 million people in the United States were employed on a full-time basis. In line with the definition of the BLS, full-time workers are persons who usually work 35 hours or more per week. Seasonal adjustment is a statistical method for removing the seasonal component of a time series used when analyzing non-seasonal trends, whereas non-seasonally-adjusted reflects the actual current data.
In 2024, about 133 million people were employed in the United States on a full-time basis, returning to pre-pandemic levels. Employment in the U.S. The number of full-time employees in the United States has increased by more than 30 million people since 1991. In 1990, there were 98.67 million full-time employees which had increased to 134.06 million employees in 2023. After the recession, the number of full-time employees dropped and part-time employment increased significantly. There were about 28.1 million part-time employees in the country as of January 2024. Full-time employment usually is associated with certain benefits that are otherwise not offered to part-time employees, such as health insurance and annual leave. In the United States, a full time worker us usually regard as an individual who works more than 30 hours a week. Salaries nationwide Salary in the United States can vary greatly between ethnicities and gender. The median weekly earnings of a full-time salary worker, was 1,310 U.S. dollars for the Asian population, but only 794 U.S. dollars for the Black or African American population in 2020. In the same year, the median hourly wage for female salary workers 15.22 U.S. dollars, while males earned an hourly wage of 17.75 U.S. dollars. Based on a constant value, the wage among salary workers has fluctuated since 1979, where employees earned a median of 14.80 U.S. dollars, compared to 16.36 U.S. dollars in 2020. The minimum wage in the United States was established at 7.25 U.S. dollars per hour as of 2009.
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Key information about United States Employed Persons
In June 2025, about 163.88 million people were employed in the United States, an increase from the previous month. Employed persons consist of: persons who did any work for pay or profit during the survey reference week; persons who did at least 15 hours of unpaid work in a family-operated enterprise; and persons who were temporarily absent from their regular jobs because of illness, vacation, bad weather, industrial dispute, or various personal reasons.
The seasonally-adjusted national unemployment rate is measured on a monthly basis in the United States. In June 2025, the national unemployment rate was at 4.1 percent. Seasonal adjustment is a statistical method of removing the seasonal component of a time series that is used when analyzing non-seasonal trends.
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View monthly updates and historical trends for US Hires Rate: Total Nonfarm. from United States. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics. Track economic data w…
In June 2025, about 163.37 million people were employed in the United States. Employed persons consist of: persons who did any work for pay or profit during the survey reference week; persons who did at least 15 hours of unpaid work in a family-operated enterprise; and persons who were temporarily absent from their regular jobs because of illness, vacation, bad weather, industrial dispute, or various personal reasons.
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Employment in industry (% of total employment) (modeled ILO estimate) in United States was reported at 19.34 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. United States - Employment in industry (% of total employment) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on September of 2025.
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Graph and download economic data for All Employees, Total Private (USPRIV) from Jan 1939 to Aug 2025 about headline figure, establishment survey, private industries, private, employment, industry, and USA.
View monthly updates and historical trends for US Unemployment Rate. from United States. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics. Track economic data with YCha…
In 2024, the U.S. employment rate stood at 60.1 percent. Employed persons consist of: persons who did any work for pay or profit during the survey reference week; persons who did at least 15 hours of unpaid work in a family-operated enterprise; and persons who were temporarily absent from their regular jobs because of illness, vacation, bad weather, industrial dispute, or various personal reasons. The employment-population ratio represents the proportion of the civilian non-institutional population that is employed. The monthly unemployment rate for the United States can be found here.
As of October 2024, there were 133.89 million full-time employees in the United States. This is a slight decrease from the previous month, when there were 134.15 million full-time employees. The impact COVID-19 on employment In December 2019, the COVID-19 virus began its spread across the globe. Since being classified as a pandemic, the virus caused a global health crisis that has taken the lives of millions of people worldwide. The COVID-19 pandemic changed many facets of society, most significantly, the economy. In the first years, many businesses across all industries were forced to shut down, with large numbers of employees being laid off. The economy continued its recovery in 2022 with the nationwide unemployment rate returning to a more normal 3.4 percent as of April 2023. Unemployment benefits Because so many people in the United States lost their jobs, record numbers of individuals applied for unemployment insurance for the first time. As an early response to this nation-wide upheaval, the government issued relief checks and extended the benefits paid by unemployment insurance. In May 2020, the amount of unemployment insurance benefits paid rose to 23.73 billion U.S. dollars. As of December 2022, this value had declined to 2.24 billion U.S. dollars.
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View monthly updates and historical trends for US Job Openings Rate: Total Nonfarm. from United States. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics. Track economic…
In 2023, it was estimated that over 161 million Americans were in some form of employment, while 3.64 percent of the total workforce was unemployed. This was the lowest unemployment rate since the 1950s, although these figures are expected to rise in 2023 and beyond. 1980s-2010s Since the 1980s, the total United States labor force has generally risen as the population has grown, however, the annual average unemployment rate has fluctuated significantly, usually increasing in times of crisis, before falling more slowly during periods of recovery and economic stability. For example, unemployment peaked at 9.7 percent during the early 1980s recession, which was largely caused by the ripple effects of the Iranian Revolution on global oil prices and inflation. Other notable spikes came during the early 1990s; again, largely due to inflation caused by another oil shock, and during the early 2000s recession. The Great Recession then saw the U.S. unemployment rate soar to 9.6 percent, following the collapse of the U.S. housing market and its impact on the banking sector, and it was not until 2016 that unemployment returned to pre-recession levels. 2020s 2019 had marked a decade-long low in unemployment, before the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic saw the sharpest year-on-year increase in unemployment since the Great Depression, and the total number of workers fell by almost 10 million people. Despite the continuation of the pandemic in the years that followed, alongside the associated supply-chain issues and onset of the inflation crisis, unemployment reached just 3.67 percent in 2022 - current projections are for this figure to rise in 2023 and the years that follow, although these forecasts are subject to change if recent years are anything to go by.