Technical information:  (202) 691-6378     USDL 01-275
        http://www.bls.gov/cpshome.htm
                                           For release:  10:00 A.M. EDT
Media contact:                691-5902     Tuesday, August 21, 2001


            EMPLOYMENT AND UNEMPLOYMENT AMONG YOUTH--SUMMER 2001


   The number of employed youth 16 to 24 years old increased by about 
2.4 million from April to July, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S.
Department of Labor reported today.  This year's seasonal expansion in
youth employment was slightly larger than last year's growth of 2.2 million.
The number of unemployed youth, which also normally grows at this time of
year, rose by about 450,000 between April and July, about the same as the
increase in the prior 2 years.  (Because this analysis focuses on the seasonal
changes in youth employment and unemployment that occur every spring and sum-
mer, the data used are not seasonally adjusted.)
   
Labor Force
   
   The youth labor force--16- to 24-year olds working or actively looking
for work--grows sharply between April and July each year as large numbers of
high school and college students take or search for summer employment and
as many recent graduates begin or look for permanent jobs.  This summer,
the youth labor force rose by about 2.9 million from April to July, to a
total of 24.8 million.  (See table 1.)  This year's seasonal growth was
slightly larger than the growth in 2000 (2.6 million).  However, the
seasonal gains of 2000 and 2001 were smaller than those that occurred
during the prior 6 years.
   
   The labor force participation rate for youth--the proportion of the youth
population working or looking for work--was 70.8 percent in July.  This was
the lowest July labor force participation rate for youth since 1972.  The
decline may reflect, in part, an increase in school enrollment during the
summer.  This July, 24.4 percent of 16- to 24-year olds were enrolled in
school, up from 16.3 percent in July 1994.  About half of the youth in
school in July were in the labor force compared with three-fourths of those
not in school.  The July participation rate for young men has been trending
down since 1990 and reached its lowest point on record (74.2 percent) in
2001.  The participation rates for young women (67.5 percent), young whites
(73.9 percent), and young blacks (60.4 percent), all edged lower from their
2000 values.  (See table 2.)
   
Employment
   
   Nearly 22.3 million youth were employed in July 2001.  The proportion of
the youth civilian noninstitutional population employed (63.5 percent) was
lower than in 2000 (65.0 percent).  The employment-population ratios were
higher for young men (66.4 percent) than for young women (60.5 percent)
and higher for young whites (67.3 percent) than for young blacks (48.4
percent).

                                  - 2 -

   In July 2001, 35 percent of employed youth worked in retail trade
(including fast food restaurants) and 27 percent worked in services.  Also,
sizable numbers of youth were employed in construction, manufacturing, and
government.  (See table 3.)
   
Unemployment
   
   About 2.6 million youth were unemployed in July 2001; these persons were
not working, but they were actively looking for work and were available to
take a job.  The youth unemployment rate was 10.4 percent, slightly higher
than last year's rate--which was the lowest for July since 1969.  In July
2001, the 8.9 percent jobless rate for whites was marginally higher than it
had been in July 2000, but the rates for young men (10.5 percent), women
(10.3 percent), and blacks (19.9 percent) were little changed.  (See table 2.)
   
  ------------------------------------------------------------------
 |        Expansion of the Current Population Survey Sample         |
 |                                                                  |
 |   Beginning in July 2001, the Current Population Survey sample   |
 |size was increased to about 60,000 households; previously, the    |
 |sample size was about 50,000 households.  The sample expansion had|
 |no major impact on the data.  For more information on the sample  |
 |expansion, see "Expansion of the Current Population Survey Sample |
 |Effective July 2001" in the August 2001 issue of Employment and   |
 |Earnings.                                                         |
  ------------------------------------------------------------------
Technical Note


     The estimates in this release were obtained from the Current Population
Survey (CPS), a national sample survey of 60,000 households conducted monthly
for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) by the U.S. Census Bureau.  The data
in this release relate to the employment status of youth (16- to 24-year-olds)
during the months of April-July.  This period was selected as being the most
representative time frame in which to measure the full summertime transition
from school to work.  July is the peak summer month of youth employment.

     Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired
individuals upon request.  Voice phone:  202-691-5200; TDD message referral
phone: 1-800-877-8339.

Reliability

     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 upon 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.

     For a full discussion of the reliability of data from the CPS and
information on estimating standard errors, see the "Explanatory Notes and
Estimates of Error" section of Employment and Earnings.

                                  - 2 -

Definitions

     The principal definitions used in this release are described briefly
below.

     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 by their employers for the
time off and whether or not they were seeking other jobs.

     Unemployed persons are all persons who had no employment during the
reference week, were available for work, except for temporary illness, and
had made specific efforts to find employment sometime during the 4 weeks
preceding the survey.  Persons who were waiting to be recalled to a job from
which they had been laid off need not have been looking for work to be
classified as unemployed.

     Civilian labor force comprises all persons classified as employed or
unemployed.

     Unemployment rate represents the number of unemployed persons as a
percent of the civilian labor force.

     Not in the labor force includes all persons who are not classified as
employed or unemployed.

     Industry and class of worker for the employed relate to the job held in
the survey reference week.  Persons with two or more jobs are classified in
the job at which they worked the greatest number of hours.  In terms of class-
of-worker categories, wage and salary workers are those who receive wages,
salaries, commissions, tips, or pay-in-kind from a private employer or from a
government unit; self-employed persons are those who work for profit or fees
in their own business, profession, or trade, or operate a farm; and unpaid
family workers are persons working without pay for 15 hours a week or more in
an enterprise operated by a member of their family.
     Table 1.  Employment status of the civilian population 16 to 24 years of age by sex and race, April-July 2001

     (Numbers in thousands.  Data are not seasonally adjusted.)
                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                          April-July    
                                                                                                          changes(1)    
                Employment status, sex, and race               April      May       June      July                      
                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                       Number    Percent 
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                        
                              TOTAL                                                                                     
                                                                                                                        
     Civilian noninstitutional population...................   34,869    34,871    34,961    35,066       197       0.1    
       Civilian labor force.................................   21,984    21,934    24,210    24,842     2,858      13.0 
             Participation rate.............................     63.0      62.9      69.2      70.8       7.8      12.4 
         Employed...........................................   19,866    19,749    21,413    22,252     2,386      12.0 
             Employment-population ratio (2)................     57.0      56.6      61.2      63.5       6.5      11.4 
         Unemployed.........................................    2,118     2,185     2,797     2,591       473      22.3 
           Looking for full-time work.......................    1,299     1,564     2,004     1,896       597      46.0 
           Looking for part-time work.......................      819       620       793       694      -125     -15.2 
             Unemployment rate..............................      9.6      10.0      11.6      10.4        .8       8.2 
       Not in labor force...................................   12,885    12,937    10,751    10,224    -2,661     -20.7 
                                                                                                                        
                               Men                                                                                      
                                                                                                                        
     Civilian noninstitutional population...................   17,508    17,492    17,528    17,560        52        .3 
       Civilian labor force.................................   11,414    11,396    12,619    13,030     1,617      14.2 
             Participation rate.............................     65.2      65.1      72.0      74.2       9.0      13.8 
         Employed...........................................   10,238    10,169    11,053    11,659     1,420      13.9 
             Employment-population ratio (2)................     58.5      58.1      63.1      66.4       7.9      13.5 
         Unemployed.........................................    1,175     1,227     1,566     1,372       196      16.7 
           Looking for full-time work.......................      740       929     1,182     1,045       305      41.2 
           Looking for part-time work.......................      435       298       384       327      -109     -25.0 
             Unemployment rate..............................     10.3      10.8      12.4      10.5        .2       2.2 
       Not in labor force...................................    6,094     6,097     4,908     4,530    -1,564     -25.7 
                                                                                                                        
                              Women                                                                                     
                                                                                                                        
     Civilian noninstitutional population...................   17,361    17,379    17,433    17,506       145        .8 
       Civilian labor force.................................   10,570    10,538    11,590    11,812     1,242      11.7 
             Participation rate.............................     60.9      60.6      66.5      67.5       6.6      10.8 
         Employed...........................................    9,628     9,580    10,359    10,593       965      10.0 
             Employment-population ratio (2)................     55.5      55.1      59.4      60.5       5.1       9.1 
         Unemployed.........................................      943       958     1,231     1,219       276      29.3 
           Looking for full-time work.......................      559       635       822       851       292      52.3 
           Looking for part-time work.......................      383       323       409       368       -16      -4.1 
             Unemployment rate..............................      8.9       9.1      10.6      10.3       1.4      15.7 
       Not in labor force...................................    6,791     6,841     5,843     5,694    -1,097     -16.2 
                                                                                                                        
                              White                                                                                     
                                                                                                                        
     Civilian noninstitutional population...................   27,757    27,801    27,853    27,892       135        .5 
       Civilian labor force.................................   18,274    18,259    20,156    20,606     2,332      12.8 
             Participation rate.............................     65.8      65.7      72.4      73.9       8.0      12.2 
         Employed...........................................   16,799    16,672    18,161    18,781     1,983      11.8 
             Employment-population ratio (2)................     60.5      60.0      65.2      67.3       6.8      11.3 
         Unemployed.........................................    1,475     1,587     1,994     1,824       349      23.7 
           Looking for full-time work.......................      875     1,111     1,390     1,322       448      51.2 
           Looking for part-time work.......................      601       476       604       502       -99     -16.4 
             Unemployment rate..............................      8.1       8.7       9.9       8.9        .8       9.7 
       Not in labor force...................................    9,483     9,542     7,697     7,287    -2,197     -23.2 
                                                                                                                        
                              Black                                                                                     
                                                                                                                        
     Civilian noninstitutional population...................    5,205     5,213     5,223     5,231        26        .5 
       Civilian labor force.................................    2,738     2,703     3,047     3,158       420      15.3 
             Participation rate.............................     52.6      51.8      58.3      60.4       7.8      14.8 
         Employed...........................................    2,184     2,194     2,354     2,530       347      15.9 
             Employment-population ratio (2)................     42.0      42.1      45.1      48.4       6.4      15.3 
         Unemployed.........................................      554       509       693       627        73      13.2 
           Looking for full-time work.......................      360       381       531       473       113      31.3 
           Looking for part-time work.......................      194       128       162       154       -40     -20.4 
             Unemployment rate..............................     20.2      18.8      22.7      19.9       -.4      -1.9 
       Not in labor force...................................    2,467     2,511     2,175     2,073      -394     -16.0 

       1 Changes are calculated using unrounded data.
       2 Employment as a percent of the civilian noninstitutional population.
     Table 2.  Employment status of the civilian population 16 to 24 years of age by sex and race, July 1998-2001

     (Numbers in thousands.  Data are not seasonally adjusted.)
                                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                  
                     Employment status, sex, and race                        1998           1999           2000           2001     
                                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                  
                                   TOTAL                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                  
     Civilian noninstitutional population.............................      33,266         34,000         34,422         35,066   
       Civilian labor force...........................................      24,225         24,672         24,748         24,842   
             Participation rate.......................................        72.8           72.6           71.9           70.8   
         Employed.....................................................      21,599         22,178         22,368         22,252   
             Employment-population ratio (1)..........................        64.9           65.2           65.0           63.5   
         Unemployed...................................................       2,626          2,494          2,379          2,591   
           Looking for full-time work.................................       1,910          1,888          1,746          1,896   
           Looking for part-time work.................................         716            607            633            694   
             Unemployment rate........................................        10.8           10.1            9.6           10.4   
       Not in labor force.............................................       9,041          9,327          9,674         10,224   
                                                                                                                                  
                                    Men                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                  
     Civilian noninstitutional population.............................      16,779         17,076         17,286         17,560   
       Civilian labor force...........................................      12,807         12,975         13,030         13,030   
             Participation rate.......................................        76.3           76.0           75.4           74.2   
         Employed.....................................................      11,370         11,638         11,766         11,659   
             Employment-population ratio (1)..........................        67.8           68.2           68.1           66.4   
         Unemployed...................................................       1,436          1,337          1,264          1,372   
           Looking for full-time work.................................       1,083          1,053            995          1,045   
           Looking for part-time work.................................         353            284            269            327   
             Unemployment rate........................................        11.2           10.3            9.7           10.5   
       Not in labor force.............................................       3,973          4,102          4,256          4,530   
                                                                                                                                  
                                   Women                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                  
     Civilian noninstitutional population.............................      16,487         16,923         17,136         17,506   
       Civilian labor force...........................................      11,418         11,697         11,718         11,812   
             Participation rate.......................................        69.3           69.1           68.4           67.5   
         Employed.....................................................      10,228         10,540         10,603         10,593   
             Employment-population ratio (1)..........................        62.0           62.3           61.9           60.5   
         Unemployed...................................................       1,190          1,157          1,115          1,219   
           Looking for full-time work.................................         827            834            751            851   
           Looking for part-time work.................................         363            323            364            368   
             Unemployment rate........................................        10.4            9.9            9.5           10.3   
       Not in labor force.............................................       5,068          5,226          5,419          5,694   
                                                                                                                                  
                                   White                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                  
     Civilian noninstitutional population.............................      26,606         27,138         27,431         27,892   
       Civilian labor force...........................................      20,028         20,425         20,519         20,606   
             Participation rate.......................................        75.3           75.3           74.8           73.9   
         Employed.....................................................      18,343         18,763         18,913         18,781   
             Employment-population ratio (1)..........................        68.9           69.1           68.9           67.3   
         Unemployed...................................................       1,685          1,662          1,606          1,824   
           Looking for full-time work.................................       1,178          1,244          1,146          1,322   
           Looking for part-time work.................................         507            417            459            502   
             Unemployment rate........................................         8.4            8.1            7.8            8.9   
       Not in labor force.............................................       6,578          6,713          6,913          7,287   
                                                                                                                                  
                                   Black                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                  
     Civilian noninstitutional population.............................       4,993          5,102          5,158          5,231   
       Civilian labor force...........................................       3,216          3,242          3,200          3,158   
             Participation rate.......................................        64.4           63.5           62.0           60.4   
         Employed.....................................................       2,419          2,532          2,549          2,530   
             Employment-population ratio (1)..........................        48.4           49.6           49.4           48.4   
         Unemployed...................................................         797            709            651            627   
           Looking for full-time work.................................         636            581            519            473   
           Looking for part-time work.................................         161            128            132            154   
             Unemployment rate........................................        24.8           21.9           20.3           19.9   
       Not in labor force.............................................       1,777          1,860          1,959          2,073   

       1 Employment as a percent of the civilian noninstitutional population.
     Table 3.  Employed persons 16 to 24 years of age by industry, class of worker, and race, July 2000-01

     (Numbers in thousands.  Data are not seasonally adjusted.)
                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                        
                                                                    Total               White                Black       
                  Industry and class of worker                                                                          
                                                                                                                        
                                                                2000      2001      2000      2001       2000      2001  
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                
           Total employed...................................   22,368    22,252    18,913    18,781     2,549     2,530 
                                                                                                                        
       Agriculture .........................................      688       703       653       678        19        15 
       Nonagricultural industries...........................   21,680    21,549    18,260    18,103     2,529     2,516 
         Private wage and salary workers....................   19,896    19,625    16,783    16,556     2,337     2,250 
           Mining...........................................       38        58        38        52         -         3 
           Construction.....................................    1,547     1,539     1,473     1,471        52        37 
           Manufacturing....................................    2,088     1,851     1,793     1,597       210       181 
           Transportation and public utilities..............    1,018       872       777       691       200       147 
           Wholesale trade..................................      669       509       576       441        63        57 
           Retail trade.....................................    7,387     7,828     6,201     6,541       901       958 
           Finance, insurance, and real estate..............      868     1,028       707       861       119       119 
           Services.........................................    6,281     5,941     5,217     4,901       793       749 
                                                                                                                        
         Government.........................................    1,514     1,617     1,249     1,289       168       240 
           Federal..........................................      193       203       136       160        38        31 
           State............................................      547       609       456       471        49       101 
           Local............................................      775       805       657       658        81       108 
                                                                                                                        
         Self-employed and unpaid family workers............      270       307       228       258        24        25 

     NOTE:  Dash represents zero.