The unemployment rate for 16-19 YOs spiked to over 25% after the last recession, but has been dropping. However, I certainly wouldn't call this fatal, as this age group is probably now staying in school as opposed to working.
The 20-24 YO unemployment rate spiked to nearly 17.5%, but is also heading lower. This number is a bit more troubling than the 16-19 YP chart, but, again, this is an age group that would be in college/education at this age. However, the high number could also mean the job opportunities for recent graduates aren't that high, which is concerning.
Now we're moving into troubling areas, as the 25-24 age group should be fully engaged in the labor force. Instead, they are unemployed at a high rate -- the highest since the recession of the early 1980s.
The unemployment rate for the 35-44 age group spiked to about 9%, but has since moved lower to around 7%. However, again, this number is far too high.
This age group should be fully engaged as well, and they should be getting paid higher salaries as they are starting to hit their peak earnings potential. While 6.5% is not a bad unemployment rate, notice how this age group has historically been less prone to higher rates of unemployment.
The unemployment rate for the 55+ is also far too high.
I charted the larger age groups on the above chart for the last 10 years. Notice first that the 25-34 age group has experienced a higher rate of unemployment than other groups. Part of this is educationally related -- these are the age groups when most post college education occurs. Next, notice that he 35-44 experiences the next highest rate of unemployment on average, even during the last expansion. This is followed by the the 35054 age groups and finally the 55+ age group.
3 comments:
Pursuing education doesn't explain the spike in the 25-34 age group. By definition, if I'm in school fulltime, I'm not seeking employment so I wouldnt be counted in the labor force - and thus wouldnt impact the unemployment figures.
As a 32 yr old man who was laid off in the worst employment month of the recession (late jan 09), at the ripe old age of 29 at the time, I can tell you that my age group was inordinately affected by the layoffs. It's muh easier to lay off some kid you just hired, who has no dependents yet, than to lay off an older worker with kids who you've gotten to know over years of working together.
You can't compare post-1994 unemployment rates to pre-1994 rates. The definitions of unemployment were changed in that year. During the post-1994 period, U-5 is probably what is most comparable to what the pre-1994 unemployment rate was. In January U-5 was 10.5% NSA. The highest the official unemployment rate got in the early 1980s recessions was 10.8%.
What is the source for the data you use in this post? I am still having issues seeing any of your charts in my browser or RSS.
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