Understated Unemployment

While the official unemployment rate is 5.9%, that’s an underestimate. Adding up persons receiving regular unemployment insurance, pandemic extended benefits, and those collecting pandemic assistance, totals 15 million. That divided by the labor force of 161 million gives an unemployment rate of 9.3%. Alternatively, there are 145.8 million working adults, dividing that by the labor force gives a 9.4% unemployment rate. The labor shortage will largely end in the fall.