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Slip and Drift in Labor Statistics Since 2007

Author

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  • Clifford F. Thies

Abstract

This paper draws attention to recent trends concerning statistics from the U.S. Department of Labor. One is a slip in labor force participation even after controlling for demographic changes in the population. Another is some provisional indication that the official unemployment rate is drifting apart from other measures of the performance of the labor force. Economists should make greater use of additional sources of data on the labor market, and I offer some reasons to be concerned with effects of long-term unemployment, moral effects, beyond lost output.

Suggested Citation

  • Clifford F. Thies, 2017. "Slip and Drift in Labor Statistics Since 2007," Econ Journal Watch, Econ Journal Watch, vol. 14(1), pages 121–132-1, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:ejw:journl:v:14:y:2017:i:1:p:121-132
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mulligan, Casey B., 2012. "The Redistribution Recession: How Labor Market Distortions Contracted the Economy," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780199942213, Decembrie.
    2. David Card, 2011. "Origins of the Unemployment Rate: The Lasting Legacy of Measurement without Theory," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 101(3), pages 552-557, May.
    3. Keyssar,Alexander, 1986. "Out of Work," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521297677, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. John Komlos, 2019. "The Real U.S. Unemployment Rate Is Twice the Official Rate, and the Phillips Curve," CESifo Working Paper Series 7859, CESifo.
    2. John Komlos, 2019. "Estimating Labor Market Slack, U.S. 1994-2019," CESifo Working Paper Series 7941, CESifo.
    3. Rodolphe Buda, 2025. "Building an Annual Retrospective for French Labor Market (1959–1975) As a Complement of the INSEE’s Time Series (1975–2021)," Computational Economics, Springer;Society for Computational Economics, vol. 65(1), pages 507-542, January.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    unemployment rate; participation rate; discouraged worker; learned helplessness;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J21 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure

    Statistics

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