July 31, 2020

From June 2019 to June 2020, 307 metropolitan areas had decreases in nonfarm payroll employment and 82 were essentially unchanged. Employment in Atlantic City-Hammonton and Ocean City, both in New Jersey, decreased by 29.2 percent and 28.7 percent, respectively. These were the largest over-the-year percentage losses in employment among metropolitan areas. Employment decreased 40,000 in the Atlantic City area and 15,600 in the Ocean City area.

July 30, 2020

A location quotient measures how concentrated an occupation is in a geographic area compared with the nation. For example, the location quotient for zoologists and wildlife biologists in Alaska was 17.9 in May 2019. That means zoologists and wildlife biologists were employed in Alaska at 18 times the national rate!

The Bureau of Labor Statistics added five questions to the Current Population Survey (CPS) to help gauge the effects of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on the labor market. These questions were asked beginning in May 2020 and will remain in the CPS until further notice.

These questions ask whether people teleworked or worked from home because of the pandemic; whether people were unable to work because their employers closed or lost business; whether they were paid for that missed work; and whether the pandemic prevented job-seeking activities. All of these supplemental questions refer to activities at any time during the "last 4 weeks" and follow the monthly labor force questions. (At the request of the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), an additional question asked whether people did not receive needed medical care because of the pandemic. Data from this question are not presented here.)

July 30, 2020

A location quotient measures how concentrated an occupation is in a geographic area compared with the nation. For example, the location quotient for zoologists and wildlife biologists in Alaska was 17.9 in May 2019. That means zoologists and wildlife biologists were employed in Alaska at 18 times the national rate!

July 29, 2020

The Americans with Disabilities Act became law in 1990 to help remove barriers in the workplace and in daily life for people with disabilities. As we celebrate the 30th anniversary of the law, let’s examine the barriers to employment for those with disabilities. In July 2019, 47.5 percent of people age 16 and older with a disability who were not employed (either unemployed or not in the labor force) reported at least one barrier to employment. This was down 2 percentage points from May 2012, when these data were last collected.

July 29, 2020

The Americans with Disabilities Act became law in 1990 to help remove barriers in the workplace and in daily life for people with disabilities. As we celebrate the 30th anniversary of the law, let’s examine the barriers to employment for those with disabilities. In July 2019, 47.5 percent of people age 16 and older with a disability who were not employed (either unemployed or not in the labor force) reported at least one barrier to employment. This was down 2 percentage points from May 2012, when these data were last collected.

For release 10:00 a.m. (ET), Wednesday, July 29, 2020 USDL-20-1463 Technical Information: (202) 691-6553 * BDMInfo@bls.gov * www.bls.gov/bdm Media Contact: (202) 691-5902 * PressOffice@bls.gov BUSINESS EMPLOYMENT DYNAMICS ? FOURTH QUARTER 2019 From September 2019 to December 2019, gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector establishments were 7.8 million, an increase of 490,000 jobs from the previous quarter, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over this period, gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector establishments were 7.0 million, a decrease of 291,000 jobs from the previous quarter. The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment gain of 792,000 jobs in the private sector during the fourth quarter of 2019. (See tables A and 1.) The change in the number of jobs over time is the net result of increases and...

July 28, 2020

The summer of COVID-19 might have many wishing for a vacation, so let’s take a look at the latest available data on paid vacation leave. In March 2019, paid vacation leave was available to 79 percent of private industry workers. Within occupational groups, 90 percent of workers in management, professional, and related occupations had access to paid vacation leave, the highest for any occupation group. Sixty-percent of workers in service occupations had paid vacation leave the lowest of any occupation group.

Under the current definitions of labor force status, one person can be working in a job (in retail sales, for example) and be counted as employed because he or she is being paid, while another person can be working in a nearly identical job (such as in retail sales for a charity organization’s consignment shop) and be counted as not in the labor force because he or she is not receiving pay. Retirees doing substantial amounts of volunteer work are classified as not in the labor force, even when their work is done in a traditional workplace. We do not suggest changes in the official statistical concepts of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; however, we discuss issues relating to an expanded measure of work to supplement the current definition to include volunteers, and we construct measures consistent with that definition from currently available surveys. These measures could be particularly useful for understanding the labor force activity of older...

July 28, 2020

The summer of COVID-19 might have many wishing for a vacation, so let’s take a look at the latest available data on paid vacation leave. In March 2019, paid vacation leave was available to 79 percent of private industry workers. Within occupational groups, 90 percent of workers in management, professional, and related occupations had access to paid vacation leave, the highest for any occupation group. Sixty-percent of workers in service occupations had paid vacation leave the lowest of any occupation group.

July 27, 2020

Labor force growth is an important component of economic growth. Two demographic shifts have affected the U.S. labor force: changes in women’s participation and the growth of older age groups.

Elka Torpey | July 2020

Note: This article is an update of one originally published in 2009.

Not sure what to do about a disruption to your original plan? Consider a gap year.

People take time off from school or other endeavors for different reasons—and at different points in their lives. This transitional period is often called a “gap year.” A gap year allows people to step off the usual educational or career path and reassess their future. And according to people who’ve taken a gap year, the time away can be well worth it.

This article can help you decide whether to take a gap year and how to make the most of your time off. It describes what a gap year is, including its pros and cons, and offers tips for planning a successful year off.

July 27, 2020

Labor force growth is an important component of economic growth. Two demographic shifts have affected the U.S. labor force: changes in women’s participation and the growth of older age groups.

July 24, 2020

There are three major labor market problems that can hinder a worker’s ability to earn an income that is above the poverty threshold: low earnings, periods of unemployment, and involuntary part-time employment. In 2018, 10.9 percent of families with only one member in the labor force for more than half the year were living below the poverty level. This compared with 1.3 percent for families with two or more members in the labor force.

Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment (Monthly)Wednesday, July 29, 2020 (10:00 AM)Quarterly Data Series on Business Employment DynamicsWednesday, July 29, 2020 (10:00 AM)Productivity and Costs by Industry: Wholesale Trade, Retail Trade, and Food Services and Drinking PlacesThursday, July 30, 2020 (10:00 AM)Employment Cost IndexFriday, July 31, 2020 (08:30 AM)Employment SituationFriday, August 07, 2020 (08:30 AM)Job Openings and Labor Turnover SurveyMonday, August 10, 2020 (10:00 AM)