In 2025, it was estimated that over 163 million Americans were in some form of employment, while 4.16 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.

From the late 19th century until the 1980s, the United States' unemployment rate was generally somewhere between three and ten percent of the total workforce. The periods when it peaked were in times of recession or depression - the Panic of 1893, which lasted until 1897, saw unemployment peak at over 18 percent, whereas the post-WWI recession saw unemployment spike to almost 12 percent in 1921.

However, the longest and most-severe period of mass unemployment in U.S. history came during the Great Depression - unemployment rose from just 3.2 percent in 1929 to one quarter of the total workforce in 1933, and it was not until the Second World War until it fell below five percent once more. Since this time, unemployment has never exceeded 10 percent, although it did come close during the recessions of the 1970s and 1980s.

More recent unemployment statistics for the U.S. can be found here.

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate - 20 Yrs. & over (LNS14000024) from Jan 1948 to Sep 2025 about 20 years +, household survey, unemployment, rate, and USA.

The unemployment rate in the United States falls slowly in expansions, and it may not reach its previous low point before the next recession begins. Based on this feature, I document that the frequent recessions prior to 1983 are associated with an upward trend in the unemployment rate. In contrast, the long expansions beginning in 1983 are associated with a downward trend. I then estimate a two-variable vector autoregression (VAR) that includes the unemployment rate and a recession indicator. Long-horizon forecasts from this VAR conditioned on no future recessions project that the unemployment rate will go to 3.6 percent after a long period with no recessions.

A series of recessions in the 1970s and 1980s meant that unemployment rates in some Western European countries rose to their highest levels since the Great Depression in the 1930s. While countries such as West Germany closed out the period of prosperity (known as the "Golden Age of Capitalism") with unemployment rates below one percent, figures rose gradually in the 1970s, and then furthermore in the 1980s. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, the highest levels of unemployment in the listed countries were observed in Ireland and the United States; although the highest levels of unemployment in the 1980s were observed in Spain, during its transition to democracy. Of the major economic powers listed here, Japan saw the least amount of fluctuation, with a high of just 2.5 percent in the given periods; almost half of the U.S.' lowest unemployment figure in these periods.

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate - 16-24 Yrs. (LNS14024887) from Jan 1948 to Sep 2025 about 16 to 24 years, unemployment, rate, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate - Black or African American (LNS14000006) from Jan 1972 to Sep 2025 about African-American, 16 years +, household survey, unemployment, rate, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate in California (CAUR) from Jan 1976 to Aug 2025 about CA, unemployment, rate, and USA.

The Volcker Shock was a period of historically high interest rates precipitated by Federal Reserve Chairperson Paul Volcker's decision to raise the central bank's key interest rate, the Fed funds effective rate, during the first three years of his term. Volcker was appointed chairperson of the Fed in August 1979 by President Jimmy Carter, as replacement for William Miller, who Carter had made his treasury secretary. Volcker was one of the most hawkish (supportive of tighter monetary policy to stem inflation) members of the Federal Reserve's committee, and quickly set about changing the course of monetary policy in the U.S. in order to quell inflation. The Volcker Shock is remembered for bringing an end to over a decade of high inflation in the United States, prompting a deep recession and high unemployment, and for spurring on debt defaults among developing countries in Latin America who had borrowed in U.S. dollars.

Monetary tightening and the recessions of the early '80s

Beginning in October 1979, Volcker's Fed tightened monetary policy by raising interest rates. This decision had the effect of depressing demand and slowing down the U.S. economy, as credit became more expensive for households and businesses. The Fed funds rate, the key overnight rate at which banks lend their excess reserves to each other, rose as high as 17.6 percent in early 1980. The rate was allowed to fall back below 10 percent following this first peak, however, due to worries that inflation was not falling fast enough, a second cycle of monetary tightening was embarked upon starting in August of 1980. The rate would reach its all-time peak in June of 1981, at 19.1 percent. The second recession sparked by these hikes was far deeper than the 1980 recession, with unemployment peaking at 10.8 percent in December 1980, the highest level since The Great Depression. This recession would drive inflation to a low point during Volcker's terms of 2.5 percent in August 1983.

The legacy of the Volcker Shock

By the end of Volcker's terms as Fed Chair, inflation was at a manageable rate of around four percent, while unemployment had fallen under six percent, as the economy grew and business confidence returned. While supporters of Volcker's actions point to these numbers as proof of the efficacy of his actions, critics have claimed that there were less harmful ways that inflation could have been brought under control. The recessions of the early 1980s are cited as accelerating deindustrialization in the U.S., as manufacturing jobs lost in 'rust belt' states such as Michigan, Ohio, and Pennsylvania never returned during the years of recovery. The Volcker Shock was also a driving factor behind the Latin American debt crises of the 1980s, as governments in the region defaulted on debts which they had incurred in U.S. dollars. Debates about the validity of using interest rate hikes to get inflation under control have recently re-emerged due to the inflationary pressures facing the U.S. following the Coronavirus pandemic and the Federal Reserve's subsequent decision to embark on a course of monetary tightening.

Unemployment Rate in Japan remained unchanged at 2.60 percent in October. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - Japan Unemployment Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

The unemployment rate of the United Kingdom was five percent in September 2025, up from 4.8 percent in the previous month, and the highest rate of unemployment since 2021. Before the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic, the UK had relatively low levels of unemployment. Between January 2000 and the most recent month, unemployment was highest in November 2011, when the unemployment rate hit 8.5 percent. Will unemployment continue to rise in 2025? Although low by historic standards, there has been a noticeable uptick in the UK's unemployment rate, with other labor market indicators also pointing to further loosening. In December 2024, the number of job vacancies in the UK fell to its lowest level since May 2021, while payrolled employment declined by 47,000 compared with November. Whether this is a continuation of a broader cooling of the labor market since 2022 or a reaction to more recent economic developments, such as upcoming tax rises for employers, remains to be seen. Forecasts made in late 2024 suggest that the unemployment rate will remain relatively stable in 2025, averaging out at 4.1 percent and falling again to four percent in 2026.
Demographics of the unemployed As of the third quarter of 2024, the unemployment rate for men was slightly higher than that of women, at 4.4 percent, compared to 4.1 percent. During the financial crisis at the end of the 2000s, the unemployment rate for women peaked at a quarterly rate of 7.7 percent, whereas for men, the rate was 9.1 percent. Unemployment is also heavily associated with age, and young people in general are far more vulnerable to unemployment than older age groups. In late 2011, for example, the unemployment rate for those aged between 16 and 24 reached 22.3 percent, compared with 8.2 percent for people aged 25 to 34, while older age groups had even lower peaks during this time.

CSI: Expected Unemployment: Next Yr: More data was reported at 24.000 % in May 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 25.000 % for Apr 2018. CSI: Expected Unemployment: Next Yr: More data is updated monthly, averaging 31.000 % from Jan 1978 (Median) to May 2018, with 485 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 72.000 % in May 1980 and a record low of 13.000 % in May 1983. CSI: Expected Unemployment: Next Yr: More data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by University of Michigan. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.H030: Consumer Sentiment Index: Unemployment, Interest Rates, Prices and Government Expectations. The question was: How about people out of work during the coming 12 months -- do you think there will be more unemployment than now, about the same, or less?

United States CSI: Expected Unemployment: Next Yr data was reported at 100.000 1966=100 in May 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 103.000 1966=100 for Apr 2018. United States CSI: Expected Unemployment: Next Yr data is updated monthly, averaging 85.000 1966=100 from Jan 1978 (Median) to May 2018, with 485 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 129.000 1966=100 in May 1983 and a record low of 33.000 1966=100 in May 1980. United States CSI: Expected Unemployment: Next Yr data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by University of Michigan. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.H030: Consumer Sentiment Index: Unemployment, Interest Rates, Prices and Government Expectations. The question was: How about people out of work during the coming 12 months -- do you think there will be more unemployment than now, about the same, or less?

One aim of the Soviet Union, and communist countries in general, was to achieve full employment. Official policy was designed to prevent unemployment, and the state stopped paying most unemployment benefits in the 1930s. Every citizen had the right (or requirement) to work, and jobs were allocated by the state, not competed for as they were in the west. People could apply for certain positions, based on their education, experience, or interests, but roles could often be distributed to meet employment demands, or preferential roles were distributed via nepotism. The socialist economic system removed job market competition, which provided increased job security but removed many of the incentives that boosted productivity (especially in later decades). In the 1970s and 1980s, average work weeks were under 35 hours long and people retired in their mid to late fifties. Compared to the U.S. in 1985, on average, work weeks were around four hours shorter in the USSR, and Soviet men retired five years earlier, while women retired nine years earlier than their American counterparts.

Wages In earlier years, wages had been tied to individual performance or output, however the de-Stalinization process of the 1960s introduced a more standardized system of payment; from this point onwards, base wages were more fixed, and bonuses had a larger impact on disposable income. Personal finances in the Soviet Union were very different from those in the west; wages were split into base salaries and bonuses, along with a social wage that was "paid" in the form of investments in housing, healthcare, education, and infrastructure, as well as subsidized vouchers for holidays and food. Many of these amenities were also provided by the state, which removed the individual costs that were required across the west and in post-Soviet states today. Overall, income and money in general had a much lower influence on daily life in the USSR than it did in the west, lessening factors such as financial stress and indebtedness, but restricting consumeristic freedom.

Gender differences A major difference between the East and West Blocs was the participation rate of women in the workforce. Throughout most of the USSR's history, women made up the majority of the workforce, with a 51.4 percent share in 1970, and 50.4 percent in 1989; in the U.S. figures for these years were 38 and 45 percent respectively. Although this was due to the fact that women also made up a larger share of the total population (around 53 percent in this period), Soviet women were possibly the most economically active in the world in these decades. When comparing activity rates of women aged between 40 and 44 across Europe in 1985, the USSR had a participation rate of 97 percent; this was the highest in the East Bloc (where rates ranged from 85 to 93 percent in other countries), and is much higher than rates in Northern Europe (71 percent), Western Europe (56 percent) and Southern Europe (37 percent).

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate in New York (NYUR) from Jan 1976 to Aug 2025 about NY, unemployment, rate, and USA.

Unemployment Rate in Canada decreased to 6.90 percent in October from 7.10 percent in September of 2025. This dataset provides - Canada Unemployment Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

CSI: Expected Inflation: Next 5 Yrs data was reported at 2.400 % in Jul 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 2.600 % for Jun 2018. CSI: Expected Inflation: Next 5 Yrs data is updated monthly, averaging 2.900 % from Feb 1979 (Median) to Jul 2018, with 382 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 9.700 % in Feb 1980 and a record low of 2.300 % in Dec 2016. CSI: Expected Inflation: Next 5 Yrs data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by University of Michigan. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.H030: Consumer Sentiment Index: Unemployment, Interest Rates, Prices and Government Expectations. The questions were: 'What about the outlook for prices over the next 5 to 10 years? Do you think prices will be higher, to go up, on the average, during the next 12 months?' and 'By about what percent per year do you expect prices to go up or down, on the average, during the next 5 to 10 years?'

These files contain the publicly available data and statistical code to reproduce the tables and figures found in: Harper S, Charters TJ, Strumpf EC, Galea S, Nandi A. Economic downturns and suicide mortality in the United States, 1980-2010: observational study. Int J Epidemiol 2015

Unemployment Rate in Germany remained unchanged at 6.30 percent in November. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - Germany Unemployment Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

United States CSI: Expected Interest Rates: Next Yr: Go Down data was reported at 4.000 % in May 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 6.000 % for Apr 2018. United States CSI: Expected Interest Rates: Next Yr: Go Down data is updated monthly, averaging 11.000 % from Jan 1978 (Median) to May 2018, with 485 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 54.000 % in Jun 1980 and a record low of 3.000 % in May 2014. United States CSI: Expected Interest Rates: Next Yr: Go Down data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by University of Michigan. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.H030: Consumer Sentiment Index: Unemployment, Interest Rates, Prices and Government Expectations. The question was: No one can say for sure, but what do you think will happen to interest rates for borrowing money during the next 12 months -- will they go up, stay the same, or go down?