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<v 0>Let's say you don't have a job.</v>

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You might not necessarily be considered unemployed.

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That's because the government's definition of unemployment may not be what you

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think it is.

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<v 1>Every month,</v>

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the Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics announces the number of

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employed and unemployed for the previous month.

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They do this by conducting a sample survey called the Current Population Survey.

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When this information is announced,

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the public may hear a lot about the unemployment rate,

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which is the number of unemployed people as a percentage of the labor force.

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The labor force is made up of the employed and the unemployed.

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The employed consists of people 16 and older working full-time and year-round

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and those working part-time and temporarily.

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The unemployed are people who don't have a job,

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are actively looking for a job and are currently available to work.

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You don't have to be laid off to be considered unemployed.

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<v 0>You could have quit,</v>

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left the workforce for a period of time or never even had a job before - as long

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as you're actively looking for a job in the last four weeks.

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<v 1>Outside of the employed and unemployed are people not in the labor force at all.</v>

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They may be retired, in school,

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staying home to parent or too discouraged about job prospects to look for work.

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When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020,

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the U.S. unemployment rate reached the highest level on record.

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That was just shortly after one of the lowest unemployment rates on record,

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when unemployment reached its lowest level in nearly 50 years.

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But unemployment doesn't paint a full picture of the economy.

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It doesn't take into account the underemployed -

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people working part-time who want to be working full-time or people performing a

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job well below their skillset.