Why Do We Have Reduced Participation in a Labor Shortage Environment? – Mish Talk

Participation Rate Chart Notes

• The Labor Force Participation Rate is the calculated as the labor force divided by the working-age population.
• The Labor force is the number of people working or actively looking for work. Unemployed persons are in the labor force.
• Participation rates have generally been declining except for age group 60-64 and 65+ (the latter declining since 2019).
• In December 2019, the LFPR for those aged 25-54 was 82.9% and is 82.4% as of December 2022.
• That 0.5 percent drop represents 636,000 people.