Question

Suppose the labor force is 189 million of a possible 244 million working-age adults. The total number of unemployed is 15 million. What

is the standard unemployment rate?

Answer 1

The standard unemployment rate is of 0.0794 = 7.94%.

Explanation:

The standard unemployment rate, as a proportion, is the number of unemployed people divided by the size of the labor force.

In this question:

Labor force: 189 million

Number of unemployed people: 15 million

What is the standard unemployment rate?

15/189 = 0.0794

The standard unemployment rate is of 0.0794 = 7.94%.