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The regular unemployment rate remained at 3.6% and the broader U-6 measure rose .1% to 7.1%.
The above 7.1% is referred to as the U-6 unemployment rate (found in the monthly BLS Employment Situation Summary, Table A-15; Table A-12 in 2008 and before). It counts not only people without work seeking full-time employment (the more familiar U-3 rate), but also counts “marginally attached workers and those working part-time for economic reasons.” Note that some of these part-time workers counted as employed by U-3 could be working as little as an hour a week. And the “marginally attached workers” include those who have gotten discouraged and stopped looking, but still want to work. The age considered for this calculation is 16 years and over.
Here is a look at the May U-6 numbers for the previous 19 years:
May 2021 10.2%
May 2020 21.2%
May 2019 7.2%
May 2018 7.7%
May 2017 8.4%
May 2016 9.7%
May 2015 10.7%
May 2014 12.1%
May 2013 13.8%
May 2012 14.8%
May 2011 15.8%
May 2010 16.5%
May 2009 16.4%
May 2008 9.8%
May 2007 8.3%
May 2006 8.2%
May 2005 8.9%
May 2004 9.7%
May 2003 10.1%
The May 2022 BLS Analysis
Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 390,000 in May and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 3.6%, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Notable job gains occurred in leisure and hospitality, in professional and business services, and in transportation and warehousing. Employment in retail trade declined. The change in total nonfarm payroll employment for March was revised down by 30,000, from +428,000 to +398,000, and the change for April was revised up by 8,000, from +428,000 to +436,000. With these revisions, employment in March and April combined is 22,000 lower than previously reported. (Monthly revisions result from additional reports received from businesses and government agencies since the last published estimates and from the recalculation of seasonal factors).
The unemployment rate is also published by the BLS. That rate is found by dividing the number of unemployed by the total civilian labor force. On June 3rd, 2022, the BLS published the most recent unemployment rate for May 2022 of 3.6% (actually, it is 3.620% down .001% from 3.621% in April.
The unemployment rate was determined by dividing the unemployed of 5,950,000 (–up from the month before by 9,000—since May 2021, this number has decreased by 3,301,000) by the total civilian labor force of 164,376,000 (up by 330,000 from April 2022). Since May 2021, our total civilian labor force has increased by 3,575,000 workers.
(The continuing ‘Strange BLS Math’ saga—after a detour in December 2016 when the BLS {for the first time in years} DECREASED the total Civilian Noninstitutional Population—this month the BLS increased this total to 263,679,000. This is an increase of 120,000 from last month’s increase of 115,000. In one year, this population has increased by 2,469,000. For the last 3 years the Civilian Noninstitutional Population has increased each month—except in December 2016, December 2018, December 2019, & December 2020—by…)
Up from April 2022
by
120,000
Up from March 2022
by
115,000
Up from February 2022
by
120,000
Up from January 2022
by
122,000
Up from December 2021
by
1,066,000
Up from November 2021
by
107,000
Up from October 2021
by
121,000
Up from September 2021
by
142,000
Up from August 2021
by
155,000
Up from July 2021
by
142,000
Up from June 2021
by
131,000
Up from May 2021
by
128,000
Up from April 2021
by
107,000
Up from March 2021
by
100,000
Up from February 2021
by
85,000
Up from January 2021
by
67,000
Down from December 2020
by
379,000
Up from November 2020
by
145,000
Up from October 2020
by
160,000
Up from September 2020
by
183,000
Up from August 2020
by
184,000
Up from July 2020
by
185,000
Up from June 2020
by
169,000
Up from May 2020
by
157,000
Up from April 2020
by
151,000
Up from March 2020
by
138,000
Up from February 2020
by
130,000
Up from January 2020
by
126,000
Down from December 2019
by
679,000
Up from November 2019
by
161,000
Up from October 2019
by
175,000
Up from September 2019
by
207,000
Up from August 2019
by
206,000
Up from July 2019
by
207,000
Up from June 2019
by
188,000
Up from May 2019
by
176,000
Subtract the ‘civilian labor force’ from the ‘civilian noninstitutional population’) and you get 99,302,000 ‘Not in Labor Force’—down by 211,000 from last month’s 99,513,000. In one year, this NILF population has decreased by 1,107,000. The government tells us that most of these NILFs got discouraged and just gave up looking for a job. My monthly recurring question is: “If that is the case, how do they survive when they don’t earn any money because they don’t have a job? Are they ALL relying on the government to support them??”
This month, our Employment Participation Rate—the population 16 years and older working or seeking work—rose to 62.3%. This rate is .1% lower than the historically low rate of 62.4% recorded in September 2015—and, before that, the rate recorded in October 1977—9 months into Jimmy Carter’s presidency—almost 40 years ago!
Final take on these numbers: Fewer people looking for work will always bring down the unemployment rate.
Thanks for reading. I look forward to working with you.
Joe Pelayo
Joseph Michaels International Recruiters
Recruiting Great Employees Since 1990.
1 (800) 786-1099
Email: info@josephmichaels.com