Alternate unemployment Rate is 18.6%

Some figures about the February's unemployment rate:


How many who don't have jobs would be working? How many aren't working by choice?"

The following are unadjusted numbers for February 2011: 

• There are 100,758,00­0 in the civilian noninstitu­tional population (over age 16) who aren't working. Of these people, 14,542,000 are unemployed and actively looking (in the last four weeks). There are in addition 6,405,000 who are unemployed and want work but haven't looked in the last four weeks for some reason. 

• That's a grand total of 20,947,000 unemployed people who want to work. leaving 79,811,000 who aren't working because they don't want to work. This would include people taking care of their kids, retirees, trust fund babies, students, etc.

• Additional­ly, there are 8,633,000 people who are working part-time jobs but want to work full-time jobs. Therefore the total of unemployed and underemplo­yed is now 29,580,000­. 

That's 29,580,000 out of a population out of a potential civilian labor force of 159,040,00­0, or 18.6% unofficial employment rate.


(The potential civilian labor force includes those who are working, whether full or part time, (138,093,000) and those who are unemployed, either officially unemployed (14,542,000) or who "want work" (6,405,000) for a grand total of 159,040,000.)

We haven't included people who are working temporary jobs but want permanent jobs, people who have taken big cuts in pay and benefits in their new jobs, and small business owners who are working micro-busi­nesses earning a few hundreds a month.


To add a bit of perspective, in mid-February, only 9,236,000 were receiving any kind of unemployment benefits.  That means that less than 64% of the "official" unemployed are receiving benefits, and less than 44% of the "alternate" unemployed are receiving benefits.  


That should put to bed the right-wing talking point that extended unemployment benefits are keeping people from working.  Over half of the people who are unemployed and "want work" aren't getting a dime in benefits!