For release 10:00 a.m. (EDT) Thursday, March 24, 2011 USDL-11-0396 

Technical information: (202) 691-6378 • cpsinfo@bls.gov • www.bls.gov/cps 

Media contact: (202) 691-5902 • PressOffice@bls.gov 

EMPLOYMENT CHARACTERISTICS OF FAMILIES — 2010 

In 2010, 12.4 percent of families included an unemployed person, up from 12.0 percent in 2009, the U.S. 

Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The proportion of families with an unemployed member in 

2010 was at its highest level since the data series began in 1994. Of the nation's 78.2 million families, 

80.0 percent had at least one employed member in 2010, down from 80.4 percent in 2009. 

These data on employment, unemployment, and family relationships are collected as part of the Current 

Population Survey (CPS), a monthly sample survey of approximately 60,000 households. Families are 

classified either as married-couple families or as families maintained by women or men without spouses. 

For further information about the CPS, see the Technical Note. 

Families and Unemployment 

The number of families with at least one unemployed member edged up to 9.7 million in 2010. The 

proportion of families with an unemployed member was 12.4 percent in 2010, up from 12.0 percent in 

2009 and nearly double the 6.3 percent in 2007. (The most recent recession began in December 2007 

and ended in June 2009 according to the National Bureau of Economic Research.) In 2010, black and 

Hispanic families remained more likely to have an unemployed member (19.2 and 17.4 percent, respectively) than white and Asian families (11.3 percent each). (See table 1.) 

Most families with an unemployed member also have at least one family member who is employed. 

Among families with an unemployed member in 2010, 67.7 percent also had an employed member, 

down from 68.6 percent in 2009 and 71.2 percent in 2007. (See table 1.) 

Among married-couple families with an unemployed member in 2010, 79.4 percent contained at least 

one employed member. Among families maintained by men (no spouse present) with an unemployed 

member, 53.3 percent had an employed member in 2010; for families maintained by women (no spouse 

present), the proportion was 44.7 percent. These proportions were little changed from 2009 for the three 

family types. (See table 3.) 

Families and Employment 

The share of families with an employed member fell from 80.4 percent in 2009 to 80.0 percent in 2010. 

In 2007, 82.6 percent of families had an employed member. The likelihood of having an employed family member declined from 2009 to 2010 for white and Asian families, to 80.3 and 87.3 percent, respec-
- 2 - 

tively, and edged lower for black families to 74.8 percent. There was little change in the likelihood of 

employment among Hispanic families (84.2 percent). (See table 1.) 

In 2010, families maintained by women with no spouse present remained less likely to have an employed member (71.9 percent) than married-couple families (82.1 percent) or families maintained by 

men with no spouse present (79.3 percent). For all three family types, the likelihood of having an employed member has fallen since 2007. (See table 2.) 

Both the husband and wife were employed in 47.8 percent of married-couple families in 2010, compared 

with 48.5 percent in 2009. The husband was the only worker in 19.7 percent of married-couple families 

in 2010, and the wife was the only worker in 8.6 percent. Both measures were little changed over the 

year. (See table 2.) 

Families with Children 

Forty-four percent of all families included children (sons, daughters, step-children, and adopted children) under age 18. Among the 34.5 million families with children, 87.4 percent had an employed parent in 2010, down from 87.8 percent in 2009. The 2010 proportion is the lowest since the data series 

began in 1994. The mother was employed in 67.0 percent of families maintained by women with no 

spouse present in 2010, down from 67.8 percent in 2009. The father was employed in 75.8 percent of 

families maintained by men with no spouse present in 2010, little changed over the year. Among married-couple families with children, 95.7 percent had an employed parent in 2010, unchanged from the 

prior year. The share of married-couple families where both parents worked fell to 58.1 percent in 2010 

from 58.9 percent in 2009. (See table 4.) 

Mothers 

The labor force participation rate—the percent of the population working or looking for work—for all 

mothers with children under 18 was 70.8 percent in 2010, down from 71.4 percent in 2009. In 2010, the 

participation rate for married mothers with a spouse present (68.9 percent) remained lower than the rate 

for mothers with other marital statuses (75.0 percent). Married mothers were about as likely to be employed as mothers with other marital statuses in 2010, but their unemployment rate was substantially 

lower—6.3 percent, compared with 14.6 percent for mothers with other marital statuses. Unemployment rates increased from 2009 to 2010 for mothers of all marital statuses. (See table 5.) 

Mothers with younger children are less likely to be in the labor force than mothers with older children. 

In 2010, the labor force participation rate of mothers with children under 6 years old (63.9 percent) was 

lower than the rate of those whose youngest child was 6 to 17 years old (76.5 percent). The participation 

rate of mothers with infants under a year old was 56.5 percent. Among mothers with infants, there was 

little difference in the participation rate of married mothers (56.3 percent) and those with other marital 

statuses (57.0 percent). However, the unemployment rate for married mothers of infants, at 7.1 percent, 

was significantly lower than the rate for mothers with other marital statuses (22.5 percent). (See tables 

5 and 6.) 
Technical Note 

The estimates in this release are based on annual average 

data from the Current Population Survey (CPS), a national 

sample survey of about 60,000 households conducted monthly 

for the Bureau of Labor Statistics by the U.S. Census Bureau. 

The information relates to the labor force status of persons 16 

years old and over in the civilian noninstitutional population 

during an "average" week of the year. 

The data for 2010 presented in this release are not strictly 

comparable with data for 2009 and earlier years because of the 

introduction in January 2010 of revised population controls used 

in the CPS. The effect of the revised population controls on the 

family estimates is unknown. However, the effect of the new 

controls on the monthly CPS estimates was to decrease the 

December 2009 employment level by 243,000 and the 

unemployment level by 5,000. The updated controls had little or 

no effect on unemployment rates and other ratios. Additional 

information is available on the BLS Web site at 

www.bls.gov/cps/documentation.htm#pop. 

Information in this release will be made available to sensory 

impaired individuals upon request: Voice phone: (202) 691-

5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339. 

Reliability of the estimates 

Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both sampling and 

nonsampling error. When a sample, rather than the entire 

population, is surveyed, there is a chance that the sample 

estimates may differ from the "true" population values they 

represent. The exact difference, or sampling error, varies depending on the particular sample selected, and this variability is 

measured by the standard error of the estimate. There is about a 

90-percent chance, or level of confidence, that an estimate based 

on a sample will differ by no more than 1.6 standard errors from 

the "true" population value because of sampling error. BLS 

analyses are generally conducted at the 90-percent level of 

confidence. 

The CPS data also are affected by nonsampling error. 

Nonsampling error can occur for many reasons, including the 

failure to sample a segment of the population, inability to obtain 

information for all respondents in the sample, inability or 

unwillingness of respondents to provide correct information, 

and errors made in the collection or processing of the data. 

A full discussion of the reliability of data from the CPS and 

information on estimating standard errors is available at 

www.bls.gov/cps/documentation.htm#reliability. 

Definitions 

Definitions of the principal terms used in this release are 

presented below. 

Family. A family is a group of two or more persons residing 

together who are related by birth, marriage, or adoption. The 

count of families is for "primary" families only, that is, the 

householder and all other persons related to and residing with 

the householder. Families are classified either as marriedcouple families or as families maintained by women or men 

without spouses. 

Householder. The householder is the family reference 

person. This is the person (or one of the persons) in whose 

name the housing unit is owned or rented. The relationship of 

other individuals in the household is defined in terms of 

relationship to the householder. The race or ethnicity of the 

family is determined by that of the householder. 

Married, spouse present; other marital status. These terms 

denote the marital status of individuals at the time of interview. 

Married, spouse present, refers to husbands and wives living 

together in the same household, even though one may be 

temporarily absent on business, on vacation, on a visit, in a 

hospital, or for other reasons. Other marital status includes 

persons who are never-married; married, spouse absent; separated; widowed; or divorced. Separated includes persons with 

legal separations, those living apart with intentions of obtaining 

a divorce, and other people permanently or temporarily 

separated because of marital discord. Married, spouse absent, 

includes married people living apart because either the husband 

or wife was employed and living at a considerable distance from 

home, was serving away from home in the Armed Forces, had 

moved to another area, or had a different place of residence for 

any other reason except separation as defined above. 

Children. Data on children refer to own children and 

include sons, daughters, step-children, and adopted children, of 

the husband, wife, or person maintaining the family. Not included are nieces, nephews, grandchildren, other related children, and all unrelated children living in the household. 

Employed. Employed persons are (a) all those who, during 

the survey reference week, did any work at all as paid employees, worked in their own business, profession, or on their 

own farm, or who worked 15 hours or more as unpaid workers 

in a family-operated enterprise; and (b) all those who did not 

work but had jobs or businesses from which they were temporarily absent due to illness, bad weather, vacation, child-care 

problems, labor disputes, or personal reasons, whether or not 

they were paid for the time off and whether or not they were 

seeking other jobs. 

Unemployed. The unemployed are persons who had no 

employment during the reference week, were available for work 

at that time, and had made specific efforts to find employment 

sometime during the 4-week period ending with the reference 

week. Persons who were waiting to be recalled to a job from 

which they had been laid off need not be looking for work to be 

classified as unemployed. 

Civilian labor force. The civilian labor force comprises all 

persons classified as employed or unemployed. 

Unemployment rate. The unemployment rate is the number 

unemployed as a percent of the civilian labor force. 

Labor force participation rate. The labor force participation 

rate is the labor force as a percent of the population. 
Table 1. Employment and unemployment in families by race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, 2009-10

annual averages

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic 2009 2010

TOTAL

Total families ................................................................................................................ 78,361 78,246

 With employed member(s) ......................................................................................... 63,010 62,560

 As percent of total families ................................................................................... 80.4 80.0

 Some usually work full time 1 ............................................................................ 57,037 56,471

 With no employed member ........................................................................................ 15,351 15,686

 As percent of total families ................................................................................... 19.6 20.0

 With unemployed member(s) .................................................................................... 9,381 9,695

 As percent of total families ................................................................................... 12.0 12.4

 Some member(s) employed .................................................................................... 6,438 6,566

 As percent of families with unemployed member(s) .......................................... 68.6 67.7

 Some usually work full time 1 ................................................................................. 5,460 5,572

 As percent of families with unemployed member(s) ....................................... 58.2 57.5

White 

Total families ................................................................................................................ 63,774 63,551

 With employed member(s) ......................................................................................... 51,494 51,048

 As percent of total families ................................................................................... 80.7 80.3

 Some usually work full time 1 ............................................................................ 46,629 46,150

 With no employed member ........................................................................................ 12,280 12,502

 As percent of total families ................................................................................... 19.3 19.7

 With unemployed member(s) .................................................................................... 7,089 7,202

 As percent of total families ................................................................................... 11.1 11.3

 Some member(s) employed .................................................................................... 5,072 5,069

 As percent of families with unemployed member(s) .......................................... 71.5 70.4

 Some usually work full time 1 ................................................................................. 4,294 4,289

 As percent of families with unemployed member(s) ....................................... 60.6 59.6

Black or African American 

Total families ................................................................................................................ 9,318 9,404

 With employed member(s) ......................................................................................... 7,022 7,030

 As percent of total families ................................................................................... 75.4 74.8

 Some usually work full time 1 ............................................................................ 6,265 6,222

 With no employed member ........................................................................................ 2,296 2,374

 As percent of total families ................................................................................... 24.6 25.2

 With unemployed member(s) .................................................................................... 1,624 1,807

 As percent of total families ................................................................................... 17.4 19.2

 Some member(s) employed .................................................................................... 886 1,009

 As percent of families with unemployed member(s) .......................................... 54.5 55.8

 Some usually work full time 1 ................................................................................. 748 862

 As percent of families with unemployed member(s) ....................................... 46.0 47.7

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 1. Employment and unemployment in families by race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, 2009-10

annual averages—Continued

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic 2009 2010

Asian 

Total families ................................................................................................................ 3,471 3,531

 With employed member(s) ......................................................................................... 3,057 3,081

 As percent of total families ................................................................................... 88.1 87.3

 Some usually work full time 1 ............................................................................ 2,857 2,863

 With no employed member ........................................................................................ 414 450

 As percent of total families ................................................................................... 11.9 12.7

 With unemployed member(s) .................................................................................... 394 400

 As percent of total families ................................................................................... 11.4 11.3

 Some member(s) employed .................................................................................... 306 308

 As percent of families with unemployed member(s) .......................................... 77.8 76.8

 Some usually work full time 1 ................................................................................. 272 267

 As percent of families with unemployed member(s) ....................................... 69.0 66.7

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity 

Total families ................................................................................................................ 10,489 10,561

 With employed member(s) ......................................................................................... 8,852 8,897

 As percent of total families ................................................................................... 84.4 84.2

 Some usually work full time 1 ............................................................................ 7,923 7,934

 With no employed member ........................................................................................ 1,637 1,664

 As percent of total families ................................................................................... 15.6 15.8

 With unemployed member(s) .................................................................................... 1,770 1,841

 As percent of total families ................................................................................... 16.9 17.4

 Some member(s) employed .................................................................................... 1,228 1,262

 As percent of families with unemployed member(s) .......................................... 69.3 68.6

 Some usually work full time 1 ................................................................................. 1,021 1,060

 As percent of families with unemployed member(s) ....................................... 57.7 57.6

1 Usually work 35 hours or more a week at all jobs.

NOTE: The race or ethnicity of the family is determined by that of

the householder. Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or

African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not

presented for all races. Persons whose ethnicity is identified as

Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. Updated population controls

are introduced annually with the release of January data.
Table 2. Families by presence and relationship of employed members and family type, 2009-10 annual averages

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

Number Percent distribution

2009 2010 2009 2010

MARRIED-COUPLE FAMILIES 

 Total ...................................................................................... 58,124 57,524 100.0 100.0

 Member(s) employed, total ......................................................... 47,876 47,238 82.4 82.1

 Husband only .......................................................................... 11,371 11,311 19.6 19.7

 Wife only ................................................................................. 4,909 4,937 8.4 8.6

 Husband and wife ................................................................... 28,211 27,501 48.5 47.8

 Other employment combinations ............................................ 3,384 3,489 5.8 6.1

 No member(s) employed .......................................................... 10,248 10,286 17.6 17.9

FAMILIES MAINTAINED BY WOMEN 1

 Total ...................................................................................... 14,610 14,913 100.0 100.0

 Member(s) employed, total ......................................................... 10,642 10,715 72.8 71.9

 Householder only .................................................................... 6,135 6,189 42.0 41.5

 Householder and other member(s) ......................................... 2,642 2,603 18.1 17.5

 Other member(s), not householder ........................................ 1,866 1,923 12.8 12.9

 No member(s) employed .......................................................... 3,968 4,198 27.2 28.1

FAMILIES MAINTAINED BY MEN 1

 Total ...................................................................................... 5,627 5,809 100.0 100.0

 Member(s) employed, total ......................................................... 4,492 4,607 79.8 79.3

 Householder only .................................................................... 2,104 2,215 37.4 38.1

 Householder and other member(s) ......................................... 1,557 1,525 27.7 26.2

 Other member(s), not householder ........................................ 831 867 14.8 14.9

 No member(s) employed .......................................................... 1,135 1,202 20.2 20.7

1 No spouse present.

NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals due to rounding. Updated population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data.
Table 3. Unemployment in families by presence and relationship of employed members and family type, 2009-10

annual averages

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

Number Percent distribution

2009 2010 2009 2010

MARRIED-COUPLE FAMILIES

With unemployed member(s), total ....................................... 6,056 6,147 100.0 100.0

No member employed ...................................................... 1,218 1,263 20.1 20.6

Some member(s) employed ............................................. 4,838 4,884 79.9 79.4

Husband unemployed ....................................................... 2,808 2,813 46.4 45.8

Wife employed ................................................................ 1,799 1,783 29.7 29.0

Wife unemployed .............................................................. 1,630 1,697 26.9 27.6

Husband employed ......................................................... 1,397 1,455 23.1 23.7

Other family member unemployed ................................... 1,618 1,637 26.7 26.6

FAMILIES MAINTAINED BY WOMEN 1

With unemployed member(s), total ....................................... 2,309 2,446 100.0 100.0

No member employed ...................................................... 1,244 1,351 53.9 55.3

Some member(s) employed ............................................. 1,065 1,094 46.1 44.7

Householder unemployed ................................................. 1,141 1,227 49.4 50.2

Other member(s) employed ............................................ 225 254 9.7 10.4

Other member(s) unemployed .......................................... 1,168 1,218 50.6 49.8

FAMILIES MAINTAINED BY MEN 1

With unemployed member(s), total ....................................... 1,016 1,102 100.0 100.0

No member employed ...................................................... 482 515 47.4 46.7

Some member(s) employed ............................................. 535 587 52.6 53.3

Householder unemployed ................................................. 626 680 61.6 61.7

Other member(s) employed ............................................ 239 259 23.5 23.5

Other member(s) unemployed .......................................... 391 422 38.4 38.3

1 No spouse present.

NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals due to rounding. Updated population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data.
Table 4. Families with own children: Employment status of parents by age of youngest child and family type, 2009-10 annual

averages

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

Number Percent distribution

2009 2010 2009 2010

WITH OWN CHILDREN UNDER 18 YEARS

 Total ............................................................................................. 34,762 34,513 100.0 100.0

Parent(s) employed ........................................................................ 30,521 30,153 87.8 87.4

No parent employed ....................................................................... 4,241 4,359 12.2 12.6

Married-couple families .................................................................. 24,223 23,804 100.0 100.0

 Parent(s) employed ..................................................................... 23,179 22,776 95.7 95.7

 Mother employed ....................................................................... 16,055 15,577 66.3 65.4

 Both parents employed ............................................................ 14,269 13,822 58.9 58.1

 Mother employed, not father .................................................... 1,786 1,755 7.4 7.4

 Father employed, not mother .................................................... 7,124 7,199 29.4 30.2

 Neither parent employed ............................................................. 1,044 1,028 4.3 4.3

Families maintained by women 1 .................................................... 8,308 8,401 100.0 100.0

 Mother employed ......................................................................... 5,632 5,627 67.8 67.0

 Mother not employed ................................................................... 2,677 2,774 32.2 33.0

Families maintained by men 1 ........................................................ 2,231 2,308 100.0 100.0

 Father employed .......................................................................... 1,710 1,750 76.6 75.8

 Father not employed .................................................................... 521 557 23.4 24.2

WITH OWN CHILDREN 6 TO 17 YEARS, NONE YOUNGER

 Total ............................................................................................. 19,699 19,480 100.0 100.0

Parent(s) employed ........................................................................ 17,465 17,224 88.7 88.4

No parent employed ....................................................................... 2,234 2,257 11.3 11.6

Married-couple families .................................................................. 13,449 13,203 100.0 100.0

 Parent(s) employed ..................................................................... 12,867 12,650 95.7 95.8

 Mother employed ....................................................................... 9,691 9,333 72.1 70.7

 Both parents employed ............................................................ 8,582 8,256 63.8 62.5

 Mother employed, not father .................................................... 1,109 1,076 8.2 8.2

 Father employed, not mother .................................................... 3,176 3,318 23.6 25.1

 Neither parent employed ............................................................. 582 553 4.3 4.2

Families maintained by women 1 .................................................... 4,928 4,987 100.0 100.0

 Mother employed ......................................................................... 3,578 3,594 72.6 72.1

 Mother not employed ................................................................... 1,350 1,393 27.4 27.9

Families maintained by men 1 ........................................................ 1,321 1,290 100.0 100.0

 Father employed .......................................................................... 1,019 979 77.1 75.9

 Father not employed .................................................................... 302 311 22.9 24.1

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 4. Families with own children: Employment status of parents by age of youngest child and family type, 2009-10 annual

averages—Continued

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

Number Percent distribution

2009 2010 2009 2010

WITH OWN CHILDREN UNDER 6 YEARS

 Total ............................................................................................. 15,063 15,032 100.0 100.0

Parent(s) employed ........................................................................ 13,056 12,930 86.7 86.0

No parent employed ....................................................................... 2,007 2,103 13.3 14.0

Married-couple families .................................................................. 10,774 10,601 100.0 100.0

 Parent(s) employed ..................................................................... 10,312 10,125 95.7 95.5

 Mother employed ....................................................................... 6,364 6,244 59.1 58.9

 Both parents employed ............................................................ 5,688 5,566 52.8 52.5

 Mother employed, not father .................................................... 676 678 6.3 6.4

 Father employed, not mother .................................................... 3,948 3,881 36.6 36.6

 Neither parent employed ............................................................. 462 475 4.3 4.5

Families maintained by women 1 .................................................... 3,380 3,414 100.0 100.0

 Mother employed ......................................................................... 2,053 2,033 60.8 59.6

 Mother not employed ................................................................... 1,327 1,381 39.2 40.4

Families maintained by men 1 ........................................................ 910 1,018 100.0 100.0

 Father employed .......................................................................... 691 771 75.9 75.8

 Father not employed .................................................................... 219 247 24.1 24.2

1 No spouse present.

NOTE: Own children include sons, daughters, step-children, and adopted

children. Not included are nieces, nephews, grandchildren, and other related and

unrelated children. Detail may not sum to totals due to rounding. Updated

population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data.
Table 5. Employment status of the population by sex, marital status, and presence and age of own children under 18,

 2009-10 annual averages

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

2009 2010

Total Men Women Total Men Women

WITH OWN CHILDREN UNDER 18 YEARS

Civilian noninstitutional population ................................................. 64,854 28,778 36,076 64,488 28,463 36,025

Civilian labor force ........................................................................ 52,748 26,985 25,763 52,159 26,661 25,499

Participation rate ....................................................................... 81.3 93.8 71.4 80.9 93.7 70.8

Employed .................................................................................... 48,621 24,989 23,632 47,863 24,653 23,210

Employment-population ratio .................................................... 75.0 86.8 65.5 74.2 86.6 64.4

Full-time workers 1 .............................................................. 41,003 23,583 17,419 40,282 23,176 17,106

Part-time workers 2 ............................................................. 7,618 1,406 6,212 7,581 1,477 6,104

Unemployed ............................................................................... 4,128 1,996 2,132 4,296 2,008 2,289

Unemployment rate .................................................................. 7.8 7.4 8.3 8.2 7.5 9.0

Married, spouse present

Civilian noninstitutional population ................................................. 51,634 26,249 25,385 50,868 25,820 25,049

Civilian labor force ........................................................................ 42,424 24,763 17,661 41,600 24,332 17,268

Participation rate ....................................................................... 82.2 94.3 69.6 81.8 94.2 68.9

Employed .................................................................................... 39,732 23,100 16,632 38,870 22,689 16,181

Employment-population ratio .................................................... 76.9 88.0 65.5 76.4 87.9 64.6

Full-time workers 1 .............................................................. 33,846 21,871 11,975 33,142 21,444 11,698

Part-time workers 2 ............................................................. 5,886 1,229 4,657 5,728 1,245 4,482

Unemployed ............................................................................... 2,692 1,663 1,029 2,730 1,643 1,087

Unemployment rate .................................................................. 6.3 6.7 5.8 6.6 6.8 6.3

Other marital status 3

Civilian noninstitutional population ................................................. 13,221 2,529 10,691 13,620 2,643 10,977

Civilian labor force ........................................................................ 10,325 2,223 8,102 10,559 2,329 8,230

Participation rate ....................................................................... 78.1 87.9 75.8 77.5 88.1 75.0

Employed .................................................................................... 8,889 1,889 7,000 8,994 1,964 7,029

Employment-population ratio .................................................... 67.2 74.7 65.5 66.0 74.3 64.0

Full-time workers 1 .............................................................. 7,157 1,712 5,445 7,140 1,732 5,408

Part-time workers 2 ............................................................. 1,732 177 1,555 1,853 232 1,621

Unemployed ............................................................................... 1,436 334 1,103 1,566 365 1,201

Unemployment rate .................................................................. 13.9 15.0 13.6 14.8 15.7 14.6

WITH OWN CHILDREN 6 TO 17 YEARS, NONE YOUNGER

Civilian noninstitutional population ................................................. 35,885 15,982 19,903 35,402 15,639 19,763

Civilian labor force ........................................................................ 30,200 14,821 15,379 29,625 14,515 15,110

Participation rate ....................................................................... 84.2 92.7 77.3 83.7 92.8 76.5

Employed .................................................................................... 28,059 13,775 14,284 27,421 13,482 13,939

Employment-population ratio .................................................... 78.2 86.2 71.8 77.5 86.2 70.5

Full-time workers 1 .............................................................. 23,864 13,067 10,798 23,239 12,725 10,514

Part-time workers 2 ............................................................. 4,194 708 3,486 4,182 757 3,425

Unemployed ............................................................................... 2,141 1,046 1,095 2,204 1,032 1,172

Unemployment rate .................................................................. 7.1 7.1 7.1 7.4 7.1 7.8

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 5. Employment status of the population by sex, marital status, and presence and age of own children under 18,

 2009-10 annual averages — Continued

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

2009 2010

Total Men Women Total Men Women

WITH OWN CHILDREN UNDER 6 YEARS

Civilian noninstitutional population ................................................. 28,969 12,796 16,173 29,086 12,824 16,262

Civilian labor force ........................................................................ 22,549 12,164 10,384 22,534 12,146 10,388

Participation rate ....................................................................... 77.8 95.1 64.2 77.5 94.7 63.9

Employed .................................................................................... 20,562 11,214 9,348 20,442 11,171 9,271

Employment-population ratio .................................................... 71.0 87.6 57.8 70.3 87.1 57.0

Full-time workers 1 .............................................................. 17,138 10,517 6,622 17,043 10,451 6,592

Part-time workers 2 ............................................................. 3,424 697 2,726 3,399 720 2,679

Unemployed ............................................................................... 1,987 950 1,036 2,092 975 1,117

Unemployment rate .................................................................. 8.8 7.8 10.0 9.3 8.0 10.8

WITH NO OWN CHILDREN UNDER 18 YEARS

Civilian noninstitutional population ................................................. 170,947 85,358 85,589 173,342 86,711 86,631

Civilian labor force ........................................................................ 101,394 55,138 46,256 101,729 55,324 46,405

Participation rate ....................................................................... 59.3 64.6 54.0 58.7 63.8 53.6

Employed .................................................................................... 91,257 48,681 42,576 91,201 48,706 42,495

Employment-population ratio .................................................... 53.4 57.0 49.7 52.6 56.2 49.1

Full-time workers 1 .............................................................. 71,631 40,368 31,263 71,432 40,325 31,108

Part-time workers 2 ............................................................. 19,626 8,313 11,313 19,769 8,381 11,387

Unemployed ............................................................................... 10,137 6,457 3,680 10,528 6,618 3,910

Unemployment rate .................................................................. 10.0 11.7 8.0 10.3 12.0 8.4

1 Usually work 35 hours or more a week at all jobs. 2 Usually work less than 35 hours a week at all jobs. 3 Includes never married; married, spouse absent; divorced; separated; and

widowed persons.

NOTE: Own children include sons, daughters, step-children, and adopted

children. Not included are nieces, nephews, grandchildren, and other related and

unrelated children. Detail may not sum to totals due to rounding. Updated

population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data.
Table 6. Employment status of mothers with own children under 3 years old by single year of age of youngest child and

marital status, 2009-10 annual averages

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

Civilian

noninstitutional

population

Civilian labor force

Total

Percent

 of

population

Employed Unemployed

Total

Percent

 of

population

Full-time

workers 1

Part-time

workers 2 Number

Percent

of labor

force

2009

TOTAL MOTHERS

With own children under 3 years old ...... 9,476 5,787 61.1 5,191 54.8 3,626 1,565 595 10.3

 2 years ............................................... 2,848 1,855 65.1 1,693 59.4 1,195 498 162 8.7

 1 year ................................................. 3,398 2,104 61.9 1,880 55.3 1,314 566 224 10.6

 Under 1 year ....................................... 3,231 1,828 56.6 1,619 50.1 1,117 502 209 11.4

Married, spouse present

With own children under 3 years old ...... 6,784 4,047 59.7 3,780 55.7 2,657 1,123 267 6.6

 2 years ............................................... 2,053 1,288 62.7 1,208 58.8 858 350 80 6.2

 1 year ................................................. 2,425 1,465 60.4 1,369 56.4 963 406 96 6.6

 Under 1 year ....................................... 2,306 1,293 56.1 1,204 52.2 836 368 90 7.0

Other marital status 3

With own children under 3 years old ...... 2,693 1,740 64.6 1,411 52.4 969 442 328 18.9

 2 years ............................................... 795 567 71.3 485 61.0 337 148 82 14.4

 1 year ................................................. 973 639 65.6 511 52.5 351 160 127 20.0

 Under 1 year ....................................... 925 534 57.8 415 44.9 281 134 119 22.3

2010

TOTAL MOTHERS

With own children under 3 years old ...... 9,503 5,770 60.7 5,114 53.8 3,570 1,543 656 11.4

 2 years ............................................... 2,968 1,908 64.3 1,708 57.6 1,200 509 199 10.5

 1 year ................................................. 3,351 2,062 61.5 1,815 54.2 1,243 572 246 12.0

 Under 1 year ....................................... 3,184 1,800 56.5 1,590 49.9 1,128 462 210 11.7

Married, spouse present

With own children under 3 years old ...... 6,642 3,941 59.3 3,670 55.3 2,596 1,074 271 6.9

 2 years ............................................... 2,055 1,275 62.1 1,195 58.2 841 354 80 6.3

 1 year ................................................. 2,344 1,403 59.8 1,301 55.5 896 405 101 7.2

 Under 1 year ....................................... 2,243 1,263 56.3 1,174 52.3 859 315 89 7.1

Other marital status 3

With own children under 3 years old ...... 2,862 1,828 63.9 1,444 50.4 974 470 385 21.0

 2 years ............................................... 914 633 69.2 514 56.2 359 155 119 18.8

 1 year ................................................. 1,007 659 65.5 514 51.1 346 168 145 22.0

 Under 1 year ....................................... 941 537 57.0 416 44.2 269 147 121 22.5

1 Usually work 35 hours or more a week at all jobs. 2 Usually work less than 35 hours a week at all jobs. 3 Includes never married; married, spouse absent; divorced; separated; and

widowed persons.

NOTE: Own children include sons, daughters, step-children, and adopted

children. Not included are nieces, nephews, grandchildren, and other related and

unrelated children. Detail may not sum to totals due to rounding. Updated

population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data.