Labor Force Participation Rate
The labor force participation rate is the share of the civilian working-age population that is either employed or actively looking for work. It is the essential context for the unemployment rate: a falling jobless rate can mean more people are working, or simply that discouraged workers have given up and dropped out of the labor force entirely.
Participation rate
Next release: Oct 2, 2026
Latest reading
As of August 2026, Participation (Participation rate) stands at 61.6% — up from 61.4% the prior reading, 5.7 pp below the January 2000 record of 67.3%. The level reflects deep structural forces — aging demographics, college enrollment, retirement patterns — so the prime-age (25-54) rate is the cleaner cyclical read and should sit above 80% in a healthy economy. The headline rate peaked at 67.3% in 2000 and has trended lower since; participation fell sharply in 2020 and was slow to recover, fueling labor shortages. Series history runs from 1948 to present.
Sources, methodology & freshnessLast updated 2026-09-04 · Open ↓Close ↑
Full history
Methodology & data
Participation is sourced from BLS via the Federal Reserve's FRED service (BLS via FRED (CIVPART), monthly, seasonally adjusted). We pull the complete history, chart it on a monthly basis, overlay SPY for context, and generate a dated plain-English reading from the latest release — with no smoothing or adjustment beyond what the chart legend states.
Every reading is stamped with its release date, last updated 2026-09-04. Maintained and reviewed by Yuriy Matso; see our methodology for the standards every series on the site is held to.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Labor Force Participation Rate?
The labor force participation rate is the share of the civilian working-age population that is either employed or actively looking for work. It is the essential context for the unemployment rate: a falling jobless rate can mean more people are working, or simply that discouraged workers have given up and dropped out of the labor force entirely.
How do you read Participation?
The level reflects deep structural forces — aging demographics, college enrollment, retirement patterns — so the prime-age (25-54) rate is the cleaner cyclical read and should sit above 80% in a healthy economy. The headline rate peaked at 67.3% in 2000 and has trended lower since; participation fell sharply in 2020 and was slow to recover, fueling labor shortages.
Where does the Participation data come from?
BLS via FRED (CIVPART), monthly, seasonally adjusted. We chart the full history and publish a dated, plain-English reading with every release; the raw series is downloadable as CSV at /data/indicators/labor-force.csv.
How often is Participation updated?
Participation is a monthly series from BLS, refreshed here as soon as a new release posts to FRED.
Participation rate
Next release: Oct 2, 2026