How many households are used in the survey for the unemployment rate?
National Data As it is impractical to actually count every person in the nation each month, the BLS contracts with the U.S. Census Bureau to conduct the Current Population Survey (CPS), a monthly sampling of about 60,000 households used to estimate the extent of employment and unemployment in the country.
What does US Census data include?
Every year, the Census Bureau publishes population estimates and demographic components of change, such as births, deaths, and migration. This data can be sorted by characteristics such as age, sex, and race, as well as by national, state, and county location.
How we can measure unemployment?
Unemployment is measured in order to determine the unemployment rate. The unemployment rate is the percentage of unemployment calculated by dividing the number of unemployed individuals by the number of individuals currently employed in the labor force.
How is unemployment counted?
In general, the unemployment rate in the United States is obtained by dividing the number of unemployed persons by the number of persons in the labor force (employed or unemployed) and multiplying that figure by 100.
How does the household survey define unemployment?
There is only one official definition of unemployment—people who are jobless, actively seeking work, and available to take a job, as discussed above. The official unemployment rate for the nation is the number of unemployed as a percentage of the labor force (the sum of the employed and unemployed).
How frequently is unemployment survey released?
BLS adds new businesses to the survey twice a year. 6. Is the count of unemployed persons limited to just those people receiving unemployment insurance benefits? No; the estimate of unemployment is based on a monthly sample survey of households.
What Can Census data be used for?
The data collected by the census determine the number of seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives (a process called apportionment) and is also used to adjust or redraw electoral districts based on where populations have increased or decreased.