Monthly Labor Review June 2001 13

Displaced Workers

Worker displacement

in a strong labor market

As economic growth continued in 1997 and 1998,

job losses declined, and the displacement rate

was the lowest of the 1990s;

many displaced workers were able to find

new jobs with little or no change in weekly earnings

Ryan T. Helwig

Ryan T. Helwig is an

economist in the

Division of Labor Force

Statistics, Bureau of

Labor Statistics.

e-mail:

Helwig_R@bls.gov

The U.S. economy continued to expand in

1997 and 1998, experiencing its seventh

and eighth consecutive years of economic

growth. During this 2-year period, payroll employment rose by 6.4 million jobs, and the unemployment rate averaged less than 5 percent for

the first time since the early 1970s.1 As a result

of these improved labor market conditions, both

the level and incidence of job displacement continued to decline.

While many workers benefited from an expanding economy in the late 1990s, job loss

continued to affect a substantial number of

workers. During the 1997–98 period, 1.9 million workers permanently lost jobs they had

held for 3 or more years because their plant or

company closed down or moved, their positions or shifts were abolished, or there was

insufficient work.2

 This compares with 2.2 million workers displaced during 1995–96, and 2.4

million during 1993–94. As the displacement

decline suggests, the likelihood of losing a job

also fell. The displacement rate—the proportion of long-tenured workers who were displaced from their jobs—was 2.5 percent in

1997–98, down from 2.9 percent in 1995–96,

and the lowest in nearly a decade.3

Of long-tenured workers who lost jobs in

1997–98, more than three-fourths were reemployed when surveyed in February 2000.

While this percentage remained relatively

high, it was down slightly from the 1995–96

period. Workers displaced during 1997–98

found new jobs more quickly than did those in

the early and mid-1990s. Furthermore, displaced workers who were reemployed in fulltime jobs had essentially no change in their

median weekly earnings.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration sponsors

biennial surveys of displaced workers as

supplements to the Current Population Survey

(CPS). Using the survey data, this article examines job loss and reemployment in the late

1990s, focusing on characteristics of workers

displaced in 1997–98 and their experiences following a job loss. A time series has been constructed using 2 years of data from each survey, beginning with the 1981–82 period (from

the first survey in 1984) and ending with the

1997–98 period (from the 2000 survey). (See

appendix for a description of the Displaced

Worker Survey.)

The following discussion focuses on longtenured workers—displaced workers who lost

or left jobs they had held for 3 years or more.

The basis for restricting the analysis to these

workers is the assumption that at least 3 years

with the same employer denotes a nontrivial

employment relationship. In other words,

displaced workers are more likely to be those

who lost their jobs due to labor market conditions—not as a result of a “bad match” with

their employer.
14 Monthly Labor Review June 2001

Displaced Workers

Characteristics of the displaced

Age, sex, race, and Hispanic origin. Displacement rates for

adults (aged 20 and older), whites, blacks, and Hispanics

continued to decline in 1997–98. Their rates were the lowest

since the late 1980s, which also was a period of strong labor

market conditions.4 Although lower than the rate from the

1998 survey, the displacement rate for those aged 55 and

older (3.1 percent) was again higher than those aged 25–54

(2.3 percent). In fact, the 0.8-percent gap between these two

groups was the widest since the survey was first conducted.

(See table 1.)

Displacement rates for men and women—2.4 percent and

2.5 percent, respectively—were virtually identical in 1997–

98. Displacement rates for whites (2.5 percent) and blacks

(2.3 percent) were somewhat lower than those for Hispanics

(3.1 percent).

Educational attainment. Workers with higher education

tend to fare better in the labor market than their less-educated

counterparts. For instance, among persons aged 20 and older,

the unemployment rate during the 1997–98 period averaged

8.7 percent for high school dropouts, compared with 2.0 percent for college graduates. Educational differences in displacement rates, however, are not as large as those for unemployment rates; the 1997–98 displacement rates were remarkably similar. As the following tabulation shows, displacement rates declined across all education groups during the

1997–98 period:

 Displacement rates

1995–96 1997–98

Total, 20 years and older ............. 2.9 2.5

Less than a high school diploma ...... 3.7 2.5

High school graduate, no college ...... 3.0 2.5

Some college, no degree .................... 3.22.9

Associate’s degree ............................ 3.0 2.6

College graduates ............................. 2.5 2.0

Although college graduates (at 2.0 percent) had slightly lower

rates than individuals with less education, all rates were below 3.0 percent.

Displacement rates of long-tenured workers by age, sex, race, and Hispanic origin, 1981–98

[Percent]

Characteristic 1981–82 1983–84 1985–86 1987–88 1989–90 1991–921 1993–941 1995–961 1997–981

Total

Total, 20 years and older .............. 3.9 3.1 3.1 2.4 3.1 3.9 3.3 2.9 2.5

 20 to 24 years ........................... 4.0 2.0 1.8 2.0 2.2 2.0 2.5 1.9 1.7

 25 to 54 years ........................... 4.0 3.3 3.3 2.5 3.1 3.9 3.4 2.9 2.3

 25 to 34 years ...................... 5.0 3.9 3.5 2.5 3.1 3.9 3.5 2.9 2.2

 35 to 44 years ...................... 3.8 3.1 3.3 2.7 3.2 4.0 3.4 3.0 2.4

 45 to 54 years ...................... 3.0 2.6 3.0 2.2 3.1 3.9 3.4 3.0 2.4

 55 years and older .................... 3.6 3.1 2.9 2.2 3.1 4.4 3.1 3.3 3.1

 55 to 64 years ...................... 3.8 3.1 3.0 2.3 3.3 4.5 3.0 3.3 3.2

 65 years and older ............... 3.2 2.9 2.3 1.9 2.4 3.8 3.2 3.5 2.9

 Men, 20 years and older ............. 4.3 3.2 3.3 2.4 3.2 4.1 3.4 2.8 2.4

 Women, 20 years and older ........ 3.4 2.9 2.8 2.4 2.8 3.5 3.2 3.2 2.5

White

Total, 20 years and older .............. 3.8 3.1 3.1 2.4 3.0 3.8 3.3 3.0 2.5

 Men .......................................... 4.2 3.2 3.3 2.4 3.2 4.1 3.4 2.8 2.4

 Women ..................................... 3.3 2.9 2.8 2.4 2.8 3.4 3.2 3.2 2.6

Black

Total, 20 years and older .............. 4.8 3.9 3.4 2.0 3.5 3.8 3.5 2.7 2.3

 Men .......................................... 5.3 4.0 4.1 1.6 3.9 3.9 4.2 2.6 2.6

 Women ..................................... 4.3 3.8 2.6 2.4 3.2 3.7 2.9 2.8 2.0

Total, 20 years and older .............. 4.3 3.9 3.9 2.9 4.3 4.7 3.6 4.0 3.1

 Men .......................................... 4.3 3.9 4.1 2.6 4.1 5.2 3.9 3.2 2.7

 Women ..................................... 4.4 3.8 3.5 3.3 4.7 3.8 3.1 5.3 3.7

NOTE: Displacement rates are calculated by dividing the number of displaced workers in a specified worker group by a tenure-adjusted, 2-year

Table 1.

1Data, beginning with the 1991–92 period, are not directly comparable with

earlier periods due to differences in estimation methodology.

Hispanic origin

average estimate of employment for the same worker group. Employment

estimates for each year were adjusted, using job-tenure data from the January 1983, 1987, 1991, and February 1996 and 1998 CPS supplements, to

include only those workers with 3 years of tenure or more. A 2-year average

was then computed using those adjusted employment estimates.
Monthly Labor Review June 2001 15

Displacement rates of long-tenured workers by industry, class of worker, and occupation of lost job,

1981–98

[Percent]

Characteristic 1981–82 1983–84 1985–86 1987–88 1989–90 1991–921 1993–941 1995–961 1997–981

Total, 20 years and older .............. 3.9 3.1 3.1 2.4 3.1 3.9 3.3 2.9 2.5

Industry and class of worker

Nonagricultural private wage and

salary workers .......................... 5.3 4.2 4.3 3.2 4.1 5.1 4.4 3.8 3.2

Mining ........................................ 13.6 9.2 17.8 6.1 10.0 7.4 7.2 4.5 10.1

Construction .............................. 7.6 5.5 7.0 4.2 5.9 8.4 4.3 3.4 3.4

Manufacturing ........................... 8.2 6.5 5.2 3.9 5.0 7.1 5.8 5.1 4.2

Durable goods ....................... 9.3 7.0 5.8 4.0 5.1 8.4 6.3 4.6 4.3

Nondurable goods .................. 6.4 5.6 4.1 3.7 4.9 5.2 5.1 5.8 4.1

Transportation and

public utilities ......................... 4.1 3.8 3.1 1.8 3.6 4.4 4.3 3.8 2.5

Wholesale and retail trade ........ 3.7 3.1 4.3 3.6 3.9 4.7 4.6 4.3 3.4

Finance, insurance, and real

estate .................................... 1.4 1.3 3.5 2.8 3.5 5.5 4.7 3.5 3.3

Services .................................... 2.3 2.1 2.3 1.7 2.1 2.9 2.8 2.5 2.2

Agricultural wage and salary

workers ..................................... 5.4 9.7 4.1 2.5 3.2 3.8 3.4 2.2 4.0

Government workers .................... 1.2 .6 .4 .4 .4 1.1 1.3 1.4 .7

Occupation

White-collar occupations2 ............. 2.6 2.1 2.6 2.1 2.7 3.7 3.3 2.9 2.4

Managerial and professional

specialty ................................ 2.1 1.8 2.1 1.8 2.3 3.6 2.9 2.3 2.3

Executive, administrative and

managerial .......................... 2.5 2.4 2.8 2.5 3.4 4.8 3.5 2.7 2.9

Professional specialty ........... 1.7 1.2 1.4 1.1 1.3 2.4 2.4 2.0 1.6

Technical, sales, and

administrative support ........... 3.0 2.4 3.1 2.5 3.1 3.7 3.7 3.6 2.5

Technicians and related

support ............................... 3.3 2.9 3.0 2.2 3.2 3.7 3.4 3.6 2.5

Sales occupations ................. 3.7 2.8 3.2 2.7 2.9 3.6 3.4 3.8 2.7

Administrative support,

including clerical................. 2.5 2.0 3.1 2.4 3.2 3.8 3.9 3.5 2.3

Service occupations ..................... 2.0 1.8 1.9 1.5 1.6 2.1 1.8 2.1 1.4

Protective services ................... 1.3 1.9 .5 .6 1.2 .8 0.6 2.0 .8

Other service occupations ........ 2.1 1.7 2.2 1.6 1.7 2.3 2.1 2.2 1.6

Blue-collar occupations3 ............... 7.3 5.7 4.7 3.3 4.5 5.3 4.2 3.5 3.1

Precision production, craft,

and repair .............................. 6.2 4.5 3.9 2.7 4.2 5.1 3.4 3.1 2.7

Mechanics and repairers ....... 4.8 3.8 2.1 2.1 3.4 3.7 3.3 3.1 2.0

Construction trades ............... 5.3 4.0 4.1 2.4 4.2 5.5 2.2 2.4 2.8

Other precision production

occupations ....................... 8.5 5.6 5.5 3.7 5.1 6.4 4.7 3.8 3.6

Operators, fabricators, and

laborers ................................. 8.2 6.7 5.5 3.8 4.8 5.5 5.0 3.8 3.5

Machine operators,

assemblers, and inspectors 9.6 8.1 5.9 4.5 6.2 6.7 5.5 4.9 4.0

Transportation and material

moving occupations ........... 5.7 3.7 4.8 3.1 3.6 4.1 4.1 2.1 2.1

Handlers, equipment cleaners,

helpers, and laborers ......... 8.0 7.6 5.2 3.0 3.0 4.9 5.4 3.9 4.3

Farming, forestry, and fishing ....... .9 2.1 1.6 .8 1.5 1.4 .8 1.4 1.8

Table 2.

1Data, beginning with the 1991–92 period, are not directly comparable

with earlier periods due to differences in estimation methodology. 2 White-collar occupations are made up of the “managerial and professional

specialty” and “technical, sales, and administrative support” categories. 3 Blue-collar occupations are the sum of the “precision production, craft,

and repair,” and “operators, fabricators, and laborers” categories.

NOTE: Displacement rates are calculated by dividing the number of displaced workers in a specified worker group by a tenure-adjusted, 2-year

average estimate of employment for the same worker group. Employment

estimates for each year were adjusted, using job-tenure data from the January 1983, 1987, 1991, and February 1996 and 1998 CPS supplements, to

include only those workers with 3 years of tenure or more. A 2-year average

was then computed using those adjusted employment estimates.

Industry and occupation. Displacement rates declined for

most major industry groups between the 1998 and 2000 Displaced Worker surveys, although mining and agriculture experienced rate increases. (See table 2.)
16 Monthly Labor Review June 2001

Displaced Workers

Displacement rates by tenure on the lost job, 1981–98

[Percent]

Tenure on the lost job 1981–82 1983–84 1985–86 1987–88 1989–90 1991–921 1993–941 1995–961 1997–981

Total displaced, 20 years

and older ......................................... 5.7 4.1 4.0 3.2 4.3 4.9 4.4 3.9 3.4

 Less than 3 years ......................... 8.9 5.7 5.4 4.7 6.5 6.6 6.5 5.5 5.0

 3 years or more ............................. 3.9 3.1 3.1 2.4 3.1 3.9 3.3 2.9 2.5

3 to 4 years ................................ 5.8 4.3 4.0 3.5 4.4 5.7 5.0 3.7 3.1

5 to 9 years ................................ 4.4 3.5 3.6 2.6 3.3 4.3 3.2 3.3 2.5

10 years or more ........................ 2.6 2.2 2.3 1.7 2.2 2.8 2.5 2.3 2.1

10 to 14 years ......................... 3.1 2.7 2.6 1.9 2.5 3.0 2.6 2.4 2.0

15 to 19 years ......................... 2.5 2.1 2.2 1.6 2.5 2.7 2.5 2.5 2.4

20 years or more ..................... 2.0 1.7 2.1 1.5 1.7 2.7 2.4 2.1 1.9

Table 3.

NOTE: Displacement rates are calculated by dividing the number of displaced workers in a specified worker group by a tenure-adjusted 2-year average estimate of employment for the same worker group. Employment estimates for each year were adjusted, using job-tenure data from the January

1983, 1987, 1991, and February 1996 and 1998 CPS supplements, to include

only those workers with 3 years of tenure or more. A 2-year average was then

computed using those adjusted employment estimates.

 1 Data, beginning with the 1991–92 period, are not directly comparable with

earlier periods due to differences in estimation methodology.

Long-tenured displaced workers who lost jobs in 1997 or 1998 by age, sex, educational attainment, and reason

for job loss

[Numbers in thousands]

Percent distribution

Total, 20 years and older .................................. 1,920 50.3 20.8 29.0

 20 to 24 years ............................................. 48 (1) (1) (1)

 25 to 54 years ............................................. 1,453 48.0 21.5 30.5

 25 to 34 years .......................................... 344 51.2 25.6 23.3

 35 to 44 years .......................................... 602 47.2 23.4 29.4

 45 to 54 years .......................................... 507 46.7 16.6 36.7

 55 years and older ....................................... 420 55.5 18.8 25.7

 55 to 64 years .......................................... 331 57.7 15.7 26.6

 65 years and older ................................... 89 47.2 30.3 22.5

Men, 20 years and older ................................... 1,045 48.9 22.0 29.1

Women, 20 years and older .............................. 875 51.9 19.4 28.8

Educational attainment

Less than a high school diploma ...................... 191 57.6 34.0 8.4

High school graduate, no college ..................... 640 56.4 22.7 20.9

Some college, no degree .................................. 441 52.4 20.6 27.0

Associate's degree ........................................... 177 48.6 22.0 28.8

Bachelor’s degree ............................................. 319 36.7 11.3 52.0

Advanced degree ............................................. 152 38.8 15.1 46.1

Table 4.

Age, sex, and

educational attainment

Displaced

workers

Plant or

company closed

down or moved

Insufficient

work

Position or

shift abolished

1 Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.

NOTE: Data refer to persons who had 3 or more years of tenure on a job

they had lost or left between January 1997 and December 1998 because their

plant or company closed or moved; there was insufficient work for them to do;

or their position or shift was abolished.

Although the gap in displacement rates between goodsproducing and service-producing industry workers has narrowed since the early 1980s, workers in goods-producing industries—mining, construction, and manufacturing—continued to be more likely to be displaced from their job than those

in service-producing industries. Among goods-producing

industries, construction continued to post the lowest displacement rate (3.4 percent). Workers in both durable and

nondurable goods manufacturing experienced their lowest

risk of job loss in a decade. During the 1997–98 period, the

displacement rate declined more for nondurable goods manufacturing than for any other major industry (4.1 percent in

1997–98, down from 5.8 percent in the mid-1990s).

Displacement rates in the service-producing industries fell

for the third consecutive 2-year period. At 2.2 percent, the

services industry, which includes business, health, and educational services, continued to have the lowest rate of job

loss. Transportation and public utilities, and the wholesale
Monthly Labor Review June 2001 17

Long-tenured displaced workers who found new jobs by weeks without work, age, sex, educational attainment,

and employment status in February 2000

[Numbers in thousands]

Weeks without work before finding a job

Less than 5 to 14 15 to 26 27 to 52 52 weeks Median weeks

5 weeks weeks weeks weeks or more without work

Total, 20 years and older ................... 1,541 757 340 200 184 60 5.3

 25 to 54 years ............................... 1,241 605 282 173 134 47 5.4

 25 to 34 years ............................. 301 183 60 34 18 6 3.0

 35 to 44 years ............................. 503 219 124 73 68 19 6.3

 45 to 54 years ............................. 437 204 97 66 47 23 6.2

 55 years and older ......................... 258 127 53 22 43 13 5.7

Employed ...................................... 1,421 721 308 180 161 51 4.4

Unemployed .................................. 53 15 11 9 12 6 (1)

Not in the labor force .................... 68 21 21 12 11 3 (1)

Men

 Men, 20 years and older ................ 879 461 187 105 103 23 4.2

Employed ...................................... 816 439 168 100 87 22 4.1

Unemployed .................................. 25 12 5 1 7 0 (1)

 Not in the labor force .................. 36 10 13 4 8 1 (1)

Women

 Women, 20 years and older ........... 663 296 153 96 81 37 6.4

Employed ...................................... 605 283 140 80 74 28 5.9

Unemployed .................................. 26 3 5 8 4 6 (1)

 Not in the labor force .................. 31 11 8 8 2 2 (1)

Educational attainment

Less than a high school diploma ....... 140 71 36 6 25 2 4.4

High school graduate, no college ...... 499 217 120 88 55 19 7.0

Some college, no degree ................... 336 162 65 50 56 3 6.0

Associate's degree ............................ 151 68 27 18 20 18 6.1

Bachelor’s degree .............................. 289 161 71 30 14 13 4.0

Advanced degree .............................. 125 77 22 8 14 4 1.0

Characteristic Total who

found jobs

1Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.

NOTE: Data refer to persons who had 3 or more years of tenure on a job

they had lost or left between January 1997 and December 1998 because their

plant or company closed or moved; there was insufficient work for them to do;

or their position or shift was abolished.

Table 5.

and retail trade industries had lower displacement rates in

1997–98, after having the highest among service-producing

industries in 1995–96.

Compared with the 1995–96 period, the risk of displacement fell for most major occupational groups. Although whitecollar workers continued to be less likely than blue-collar

workers to lose their jobs, the gap in displacement rates between the two groups has narrowed considerably since the

early 1980s.5 In 1981–82, the displacement rate for blue-collar

workers was 7.3 percent, compared with 2.6 percent for whitecollar workers. In 1997–98, the displacement rates were 3.1

percent and 2.4 percent, respectively.

Tenure on the lost job. During the 1997–98 period, 4.2 million

workers were displaced, regardless of their tenure on the lost

job. While a substantial number had been with their employer

for 10 years or more, the risk of job loss generally declined

with increasing tenure. (See table 3.)

Employees with less than 3 years of experience with their

employer made up half of all displaced workers, and their risk

of displacement was 5 percent—twice as high as that for their

 Percent

Distribution

Displacement

 rate

more experienced counterparts (2.5 percent). Unlike in earlier

years, experience has generally had less influence on displacement rates. For example, the displacement rate for employees

with 3 to 4 years of experience with their employer was only

about two-fifths higher in each of the last 2 surveys than for

people with 15 to 19 years experience. Prior to that, the rate

was generally at least twice as high. As in past surveys,

workers with at least 20 years of tenure had the lowest risk of

job loss—only a 1.9 percent displacement rate in 1997–98.

 Tenure on the lost job

Total displaced, age 20 years and older . 100.0 3.4

 Less than 3 years ................................ 51.5 5.0

 3 years or more ................................... 45.6 2.5

 3 to 4 years ....................................... 13.6 3.1

 5 to 9 years ....................................... 13.8 2.5

 10 years or more ............................... 17.9 2.1

 10 to 14 years ................................. 7.0 2.0

 15 to 19 years ................................. 4.9 2.4

 20 years or more ............................. 6.0 1.9

Tenure not available ............................. 2.9 –
18 Monthly Labor Review June 2001

Displaced Workers

Long-tenured displaced workers who found new jobs by weeks without work, industry, class of worker,

and occupation of the lost job

Weeks without work before finding a job

Less than 5 to 14 15 to 26 27 to 52 52 weeks Median weeks

5 weeks weeks weeks weeks or more without work

 Total, 20 years and older ....................................... 1,541 757 340 200 184 60 5.3

Industry and class of worker

Nonagricultural private wage and salary workers .... 1,403 679 310 186 176 52 5.6

 Mining ................................................................. 27 8 3 0 12 4 (1)

 Construction ....................................................... 95 50 20 11 14 0 2.7

 Manufacturing ..................................................... 454 204 87 62 79 22 7.6

 Durable goods ................................................. 288 139 51 34 46 18 5.6

 Nondurable goods ........................................... 167 65 36 28 33 5 8.4

 Transportation and public utilities ....................... 95 56 22 7 9 1 3.8

 Wholesale trade .................................................. 83 36 20 22 4 1 7.7

 Retail trade ......................................................... 222 120 51 27 19 5 4.1

 Finance, insurance, and real estate ................... 109 61 22 9 11 6 3.6

 Services ............................................................. 320 144 86 49 28 13 6.2

Professional services .................................... 184 90 52 16 15 11 5.5

Agricultural wage and salary workers ................... 38 27 10 1 0 0 (1)

Government workers ............................................. 79 47 14 8 7 3 3.5

Occupation

Managerial and professional specialty .................... 487 254 108 50 58 17 4.1

Executive, administrative, and managerial ........... 319 171 67 33 37 11 3.6

Professional specialty........................................... 170 83 42 17 21 7 5.6

 Technical, sales, and administrative support ......... 424 208 86 65 43 22 5.4

Total who

found jobs Characteristic

 Technicians and related support ......................... 62 30 14 10 5 3 4.9

 Sales occupations .............................................. 175 90 31 29 20 5 4.3

 Administrative support, including clerical ........... 185 88 40 26 17 14 6.1

 Service occupations ............................................... 94 47 27 4 6 10.0 4.5

 Protective services ............................................ 9 6 0 0 0 3 (1)

 Other service occupations ................................. 85 41 27 4 6 7.0 5.7

 Precision production, craft, and repair ................... 206 113 35 28 30 0 3.0

 Mechanics and repairers .................................... 51 30 11 9 1 0 (1)

 Construction trades ............................................ 78 46 16 9 7 0 2.3

 Other precision production occupations ............. 76 37 8 10 21 0 5.7

 Operators, fabricators, and laborers ...................... 279 112 66 44 47 10 7.8

 Machine operators, assemblers, and

inspectors ........................................................ 153 62 27 22 33 9 8.0

 Transportation and material-moving

occupations ..................................................... 54 15 16 14 9 0 (1

)

 Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers,

and laborers ..................................................... 73 35 24 8 5 1 (1)

Farming, forestry, and fishing ............................... 35 21 10 4 0 0 (1

)

Table 6.

[Numbers in thousands]

The displacement experience

Reason for job loss. One-half of the 1.9 million long-tenured

workers displaced during 1997–98 had lost their job because

their plant or company closed or moved. (See table 4, page 16)

About 1 in 3 reported that their position or shift was abolished.

The remaining one-fifth lost their job because of insufficient

work. These proportions differed little from the 1998 survey.

Displaced workers without a college degree were much

more likely to cite plant or company closings as the reason for

losing their job. More than one-half of displaced workers

with a college degree reported that their position or shift had

been abolished. By contrast, fewer than 10 percent of high

school dropouts cited this reason.

Weeks without work. Displaced workers who found new

jobs were asked how long they went without work. In the

2000 survey, the median period between jobs for these 1.5

million long-tenured displaced workers was 5.3 weeks. (See

table 5, page 17.) This duration was lower than the median

7.6 weeks measured in 1995–96, down considerably from the

median 8.3 weeks in 1993–94. Many workers displaced dur-

1 Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.

NOTE: Data refer to persons who had 3 or more years of tenure on a job

they had lost or left between January 1997 and December 1998 because their

plant or company closed down or moved; there was insufficient work for

them to do; or their position or shift was abolished.
Monthly Labor Review June 2001 19

Long-tenured displaced workers by receipt and exhaustion of unemployment insurance benefits and

employment status at the time of the survey

[Numbers in thousands]

1981–82 1983–84 1985–86 1987–88 1989–90 1991–921 1993–941 1995–961 1997–981

Dis- Dis- Dis- Dis- Dis- Dis- Dis- Dis- Displac- plac- plac- plac- plac- plac- plac- plac- placed ed ed ed ed ed ed ed ed

work- work- work- work- work- work- work- work- workers ers ers ers ers ers ers ers ers

Total, 20 years

and older ............... 2,361 100.0 1,920 100.0 1,996 100.0 1,623 100.0 2,192 100.0 2,816 100.0 2,445 100.0 2,238 100.0 1,920 100.0

 Received

benefits2 .......... 1,725 73.1 1,223 63.7 1,239 62.1 929 57.2 1,301 59.4 1,746 62.0 1,302 53.3 1,142 51.0 883 46.0

 Exhausted

benefits .......... 980 41.5 – – 668 33.5 451 27.8 733 33.4 878 31.2 687 28.1 619 27.7 437 22.8

Employed .............. 1,517 100.0 1,363 100.0 1,533 100.0 1,278 100.0 1,600 100.0 2,113 100.0 1,920 100.0 1,846 100.0 1,496 100.0

 Received

benefits2 ......... 1,072 70.7 851 62.4 931 60.7 701 54.9 902 56.4 1,267 60.0 1,002 52.2 911 49.3 636 42.5

 Exhausted

benefits ....... 469 30.9 – – 443 28.9 277 21.7 424 26.5 499 23.6 468 24.4 448 24.3 251 16.8

Unemployed .......... 480 100.0 240 100.0 192 100.0 124 100.0 293 100.0 313 100.0 177 100.0 114 100.0 108 100.0

 Received

benefits2 ......... 405 84.4 176 73.3 146 76.0 88 71.0 210 71.7 241 77.0 117 66.1 74 64.9 75 69.4

 Exhausted

benefits ....... 326 67.9 – – 105 54.7 60 48.4 161 54.9 185 59.1 79 44.6 43 37.7 52 48.1

 Not in the labor

force ................. 364 100.0 317 100.0 271 100.0 221 100.0 299 100.0 390 100.0 348 100.0 278 100.0 316 100.0

 Received

 benefits2 ........ 248 68.1 196 61.8 162 59.8 140 63.3 189 63.2 238 61.0 183 52.6 157 56.5 172 54.4

 Exhausted

benefits ....... 185 50.8 – – 120 44.3 114 51.6 148 49.5 194 49.7 140 40.2 128 46.0 134 42.4

1

Data, beginning with the 1991–92 period, are not directly comparable with

earlier periods due to differences in estimation methodology. 2

Data will not sum to totals or 100 percent because the numbers of displaced workers who reported that they did not receive benefits or did not

answer are not shown separately.

NOTE: Data refer to persons who had 3 or more years of tenure on a job

they had lost or left because their plant or company closed or moved; there

was insufficient work for them to do; or their position or shift was abolished.

Dash indicates data not available.

Characterisic

Table 7.

Percent

PercentPercentPercent

Percent

PercentPercent

PercentPercent

ing 1997–98 obviously benefited from the strong labor market.

Other findings from the 2000 survey indicated that persons aged 25 to 34 spent the least time without work—3 weeks,

compared with roughly 6 weeks for their counterparts aged 35

and older. The median duration for women (6.4 weeks) was

slightly more than 2 weeks longer than that for men (4.2 weeks).

Job losers with more education typically spend less time

without a job. Of those who found jobs, individuals with a

bachelor’s degree only and those with advanced degrees were

without work for the shortest time period—4 weeks and 1

week, respectively. Interestingly, the median number of weeks

high school dropouts spent without work also was relatively

low—4.4 weeks.

In terms of industry, displaced construction workers spent

the least time without work—2.7 weeks. By contrast, displaced workers whose last job was in manufacturing or wholesale trade went the longest time jobless—nearly 8 weeks.

(See table 6.) With regard to occupation, individuals displaced from precision production and managerial occupations spent the fewest weeks without work—3.0 and 4.1

weeks, respectively. In comparison, the median number of

jobless weeks was greatest for operators, fabricators, and

laborers—7.8 weeks.

Receipt of unemployment insurance. Nearly half of the 1.9

million long-tenured displaced workers used unemployment

insurance to replace some lost income following job loss,

and about one-fifth had exhausted their benefits. These proportions were roughly the same as in the 1993–94 and 1995–

96 periods, although the share of workers who exhausted

benefits during 1997–98 decreased almost 5 percentage

points from the prior period. Nearly 7 in 10 unemployed individuals at the time of the survey had received unemployment

insurance benefits, and nearly one-half had exhausted their

benefits. (See table 7.)

Displaced workers who spent more time between jobs, in

general, were more likely to exhaust unemployment insurance benefits. In fact, one-half of those who spent a year or

more between their old and new jobs exhausted their benefits. (See table 8.)

The receipt of unemployment insurance during the last 2

decades appeared to vary with the economy’s overall condi-
20 Monthly Labor Review June 2001

Displaced Workers

Long-tenured displaced workers by receipt

and exhaustion of unemployment insurance

benefits, and weeks without work

[Numbers in thousands]

Percent distribution

 Total who found

jobs .................... 1,522 43.3 17.9 56.7

Less than 5 weeks ... 750 16.9 4.5 83.1

5 to 14 weeks ........... 340 65.9 12.1 34.1

15 to 26 weeks ......... 200 71.0 32.0 29.0

27 to 51 weeks ......... 95 75.8 65.3 24.2

52 weeks or more ..... 137 68.6 51.8 31.4

NOTE: Data refer to persons who had 3 or more years of tenure on a job

they had lost or left between January 1997 and December 1998 because their

plant or company closed or moved; there was insufficient work for them to do;

or their position or shift was abolished.

Total Weeks

without work

Total

Received benefits Did not receive

unemployment

insurance

benefits

Exhausted

benefits

Table 8. tion. That is, when economic conditions were generally

good—as in the late 1980s and late 1990s—fewer job losers

collected unemployment insurance. When conditions were

relatively bad—as in the early 1980s and early 1990s—more

job losers received benefits. Both the receipt and exhaustion

of unemployment insurance benefits among workers displaced in 1997–98 reached the lowest levels since the Displaced Worker Survey began—46 percent and 23 percent,

respectively. (See table 7.)

Loss of health insurance. Many workers rely on, and participate in, group health insurance plans offered by their employer. As a result, those who lose or leave a job may experience a period without health insurance coverage. About 70

percent of workers displaced during 1997–98 had participated

in an employer-provided health plan. (See table 9.)

The likelihood of displaced workers having health insurance in February 2000 depended on their employment status.6 For example, nearly 86 percent of the employed were

covered by some group insurance plan, whereas the unemployed and those who had left the labor force had lower

coverage rates—73 and 74 percent, respectively. However,

these groups were more likely to be insured in February 2000

than in past surveys. In fact, the unemployed had more than

doubled their coverage rate since the prior survey.

After displacement

Employment status. The reemployment rate—the proportion

of displaced workers employed at the time of the survey—

was 78 percent in February 2000, down from 83 percent in the

prior survey. The share of displaced workers who were unemployed was nearly 6 percent, about the same as in February

1998. (See table 10.)

More job losers had moved out of the labor force in the

February 2000 survey compared with the prior survey. Nearly

17 percent were neither employed nor actively looking for

work, compared with 12 percent in the prior survey. A higher

share of older displaced workers leaving the labor force largely

attributed to this increase. Among displaced workers aged 55

and older, 40 percent were out of the labor force. This, in part,

also explained the decline in the overall reemployment rate of

displaced workers.7

Compared with the prior survey, reemployment rates declined for all major demographic groups, despite improving

economic conditions in the late 1990s. However, these rates

were still relatively high. The reemployment rate for displaced

workers aged 25 to 54 was 84 percent. As in past surveys,

men were more likely than women to be reemployed. The

reemployment rate for men, 82 percent, was 9 percentage

points higher than for women.

Whites and Hispanics who had lost a job in 1997 or 1998

had about the same reemployment rates in February 2000 (77

percent). Among blacks, 86 percent of displaced workers were

reemployed, and less than 5 percent were unemployed. These

post-displacement outcomes were big improvements from the

prior two surveys—unemployment rates of 11 to 12 percent,

and reemployment rates of 74 and 81 percent, respectively.

Moving to another area. Following a job loss, some workers

might move to another area to look for work or take another

job. Only 9 percent of workers displaced in 1997 or 1998 had

moved for one of these reasons. Those who had moved were

more likely to be reemployed in February 2000—91 percent of

them were reemployed, compared with 77 percent of

nonmovers. (See table 11.)

The new jobs

Switching industries and occupations. Many displaced

workers must enter a new industry or pursue an entirely new

line of work in order to find a new job. Nearly half of all

workers displaced in 1997 or 1998, and who were reemployed

in February 2000 had found a new job in a different major

industry. (See table 12.) However, industry switching was

less prevalent in this most recent survey than in the past.

The shares of displaced workers who found jobs in the

same industry varied significantly in February 2000. For example, less than one-quarter who lost wholesale trade jobs

were reemployed in the same industry. By contrast, nearly 7

in 10 workers displaced from finance, insurance, and real estate, and more than 6 in 10 from the services industry, were

reemployed in those same industries.

In 1997–98, U.S. employment growth continued to be concentrated in the services industry.8 The industry accounted
Monthly Labor Review June 2001 21

Long-tenured displaced workers by incidence of group health insurance coverage on lost and current job, and

by sex, race, Hispanic origin, and employment status in February 2000

[Numbers in thousands]

Total, 20 years and older ................................ 1,920 1,353 83.1 15.8 551

 Employed ................................................... 1,496 1,057 85.8 13.1 423

 Unemployed ............................................... 108 85 72.9 27.1 23

 Not in the labor force ................................. 316 211 73.9 25.1 105

Men, 20 years and older ................................. 1,045 756 81.3 18.0 282

 Employed ................................................... 855 614 84.4 14.8 234

 Unemployed ............................................... 54 42 (2) (2) 12

 Not in the labor force ................................. 136 100 70.0 30.0 36

Women, 20 years and older ............................ 875 597 85.4 13.1 269

 Employed ................................................... 641 443 87.8 10.6 189

 Unemployed ............................................... 54 43 (2) (2) 11

 Not in the labor force ................................. 181 112 76.8 21.4 69

White3

Total, 20 years and older ................................ 1,662 1,158 85.2 14.1 490

 Men .............................................................. 911 648 81.9 17.3 257

 Women ......................................................... 751 509 89.6 10.0 233

Black3

Total, 20 years and older ................................ 190 147 66.0 29.3 41

 Men .............................................................. 104 80 80.0 20.0 22

 Women ......................................................... 86 67 (2) (2) 18

Hispanic origin 3

Total, 20 years and older ................................ 212 127 82.7 17.3 84

 Men .............................................................. 115 61 (2) (2) 54

Characteristic Percent covered by any

group health insurance plan

in February 2000

Not covered

on lost job

Yes No

Total

Total

Covered by a group health

insurance plan on lost job1

Table 9.

 Women ......................................................... 96 67 (2) (2) 30

included in both the white and black population groups.

NOTE: Data refer to persons who had 3 or more years of tenure on a job

they had lost or left between January 1997 and December 1998 because their

plant or company closed or moved; there was insufficient work for them to do;

or their position or shift was abolished.

for more than one-half of the 5.8 million increase in private

nonagricultural employment. More than one-quarter of all

reemployed displaced workers in February 2000 had taken a

job in this industry. Manufacturing workers were most likely

to have switched to a service-industry job.

Following a job loss, workers were less likely to change

occupations than industries. Sixty-one percent of the reemployed in February 2000 worked in the same broad occupational category. (See table 13.) Across industries, many occupations often require job-specific knowledge or skills. A

majority of displaced workers generally find new jobs within

the same major occupation group. Displaced white-collar workers were more likely to have remained in the same occupation

than blue-collar workers—67 and 53 percent, respectively.

Of the 1.5 million workers displaced in 1997 or 1998 and

reemployed in February 2000, 10 percent had taken service

jobs. Such occupations include private household workers,

food preparation and service, cleaning and building service,

healthcare, and personal service. These jobs were generally

the lowest paid and offered the fewest employee benefits.9

Displaced blue-collar workers were twice as likely as whitecollar workers to hold service jobs at the time of the survey.

Earnings. More than 90 percent of the 1.9 million long-tenured workers displaced in 1997–98 had been employed in fulltime wage and salary jobs. When surveyed in February 2000,

67 percent were once again working in full-time wage and salary jobs, 6 percent held part-time jobs, and 5 percent were selfemployed or working as unpaid family workers. The remaining 21 percent were either unemployed or no longer in the

labor force. (See table 14.)

Workers who lost a full-time wage and salary job in 1997–

98 were just as likely to be reemployed in such jobs as those

displaced in the prior 2-year period. However, displaced work1

Health insurance coverage excludes Medicare or Medicaid. Detail will not

sum to totals or 100 percent because a small number of respondents did not

know about their coverage on their past and/or current job.

2Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.

3

Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals

because data for the “other races” group are not presented, and Hispanics are
22 Monthly Labor Review June 2001

Displaced Workers

Long-tenured displaced workers by age, sex, and whether they moved to a different city or county to find or

take another job, February 2000

[Numbers in thousands]

Nonmovers Movers

Total

Total, 20 years and older ............................. 1,769 1,358 76.8 151 138 91.4

 25 to 54 years ........................................... 1,316 1,097 83.4 137 127 92.7

 55 years and older .................................... 409 218 53.3 11 8 (1)

Men

Total, 20 years and older ............................. 941 757 80.4 104 99 95.2

 25 to 54 years ........................................... 679 600 88.4 96 91 94.8

 55 years and older .................................... 228 123 53.9 5 5 (1)

Women

Total, 20 years and older ............................. 828 601 72.6 48 39 (1)

 25 to 54 years ........................................... 637 496 77.9 41 36 (1)

 55 years and older .................................... 180 95 52.8 7 3 (1)

Table 11.

Age and sex

Percent Percent Employed in

February 2000 Total Employed in

February 2000 Total

1

Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.

NOTE: Data refer to persons who had 3 or more years of tenure on a job

they had lost or left between January 1997 and December 1998 because their

plant or company closed or moved; there was insufficient work for them to do;

or their position or shift was abolished.

Long-tenured displaced workers by age, sex, race, Hispanic origin, and employment status in February 2000

[Numbers in thousands]

Total, 20 years and older ................................... 1,920 77.9 5.6 16.5

 20 to 24 years ................................................ 48 (1) (1

) (1)

 25 to 54 years ................................................ 1,453 84.2 5.5 10.2

 25 to 34 years ........................................... 344 86.5 4.6 9.0

 35 to 44 years ........................................... 602 83.4 5.0 11.6

 45 to 54 years ........................................... 507 83.7 6.9 9.5

 55 years and older ........................................ 420 53.8 6.3 40.0

 55 to 64 years ........................................... 331 60.7 6.3 32.9

 65 years and older .................................... 89 27.9 5.9 66.3

Men, 20 years and older .................................... 1,045 81.9 5.2 13.0

Women, 20 years and older ............................... 875 73.2 6.2 20.7

White2

Total, 20 years and older ................................... 1,662 77.0 5.5 17.5

Men ................................................................ 911 81.0 4.9 14.2

Women ........................................................... 751 72.3 6.2 21.5

Black2

Total, 20 years and older ................................... 190 86.2 4.8 9.0

Men ................................................................ 104 90.8 5.8 3.4

Women ........................................................... 86 80.6 3.6 15.8

Hispanic origin2

Total, 20 years and older ................................... 212 76.6 6.7 16.7

 Men ............................................................... 115 87.2 5.8 7.0

 Women .......................................................... 96 63.9 7.7 28.4

Percent distribution

Employed Unemployed

Displaced

workers Not in the

labor force

by employment status in February 2000 Characteristic

Table 10.

1

Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.

2Detail for the race and Hispanic-origin groups may not sum to totals

because data for the “other races” group are not presented, and Hispanics are

included in both the white and black population groups.

NOTE: Data refer to persons who had 3 or more years of tenure on a job

they had lost or left between January 1997 and December 1998 because their

plant or company closed or moved; there was insufficient work for them to do;

or their position or shift was abolished.
Monthly Labor Review June 2001 23

Long-tenured displaced workers by industry of lost job and percent reemployed in the same industry

or in the services industry, February 2000

Total, nonagricultural private wage and

salary workers .......................................................... 1,753 1,357 52.8 26.6

 Mining ........................................................................ 40 23 (1) (1)

 Construction .............................................................. 111 90 56.7 3.3

 Manufacturing ............................................................ 571 453 54.3 21.9

 Durable goods ......................................................... 348 290 47.2 20.0

 Nondurable goods ................................................... 223 163 45.4 25.8

 Transportation and public utilities .............................. 116 91 34.1 7.7

 Wholesale trade ........................................................ 105 79 24.1 16.5

 Retail trade ................................................................ 280 214 48.6 17.8

 Finance, insurance, and real estate .......................... 148 111 68.5 11.7

 Services .................................................................... 381 296 62.5 62.5

Industry of lost job Total Total

reemployed

Percent in

the same

industry

Percent in

the services

industry

1Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.

NOTE: Data refer to persons who had 3 or more years of tenure on a job

they had lost or left between January 1997 and December 1998 because their

plant or company closed down or moved; there was insufficient work for them

to do; or their position or shift was abolished.

Long-tenured displaced workers by occupation of lost job and percent reemployed in the same occupation

or in service occupations, February 2000

Total, 20 years and older ................................................... 1,920 1,496 60.6 9.8

White-collar occupations1 ................................................ 1,128 892 67.2 5.2

Managerial and professional specialty ............................. 590 477 67.3 3.8

Executive, administrative, and managerial ................... 384 316 57.9 3.8

Professional specialty ................................................. 205 161 63.4 3.7

 Technical, sales, and administrative support ................ 538 415 67.0 6.7

Technicians and related support .................................. 68 60 (2

) (2)

Sales occupations ....................................................... 219 171 53.8 9.9

Administrative support, including clerical ..................... 250 185 60.5 5.9

Service occupations .......................................................... 118 88 53.4 53.4

Blue-collar occupations1 .................................................... 613 469 53.3 11.5

 Precision production, craft, and repair .......................... 258 199 53.8 7.5

 Operators, fabricators, and laborers ............................. 355 270 53.0 14.4

Farming, forestry, and fishing ............................................ 42 31 (2

) (2)

Table 13.

Occupation of lost job Total Total

reemployed

Percent in

the same

occupation

Percent in

service

occupations

1

See text endnote for a definition of the white- and blue-collar occupations.

2

Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.

NOTE: Data refer to persons who had 3 or more years of tenure on a job

they had lost or left between January 1997 and December 1998 because their

plant or company closed down or moved; there was insufficient work for them

to do; or their position or shift was abolished.

[Numbers in thousands]

[Numbers in thousands]

ers in the more recent survey reported almost no loss in median weekly earnings, compared with a 4.1 percent earnings loss

for those displaced in 1995–96.1 0 (See table 14.) In February

2000, 61 percent of reemployed full-time wage and salary workers earned as much or more than they had on their lost job.

This proportion rose throughout the mid- and late 1990s, and

stands at its highest level to date. Although more displaced

workers earned at least what they did previously, 24 percent of

the reemployed earned at least 20 percent less than they had on

their lost job.

In a recent analysis of the February 2000 Displaced Worker

Survey, Professor Henry Farber of Princeton University notes

that, on average, earnings losses for displaced workers were

indeed less severe.11 However, Farber finds that workers who

remained employed during the full survey reference period

(1997–99) experienced an average increase of 10 percent in

weekly earnings. Thus while it may appear that displaced

workers suffered little in earnings losses, many actually missed

out on the increased wages they would have received had

they not been displaced.

In the 2000 survey, median weekly earnings declined for

older displaced workers on their new jobs. Persons aged 45–

64 were, in fact, the only age group that suffered an earnings

loss.12 (See table 15.) Younger displaced workers fared better

on their new jobs, earning almost 8 percent more in weekly

earnings. Men and women had similar declines in median

Table 12.
24 Monthly Labor Review June 2001

Displaced Workers

Median weekly earnings of long-tenured displaced full-time wage and salary workers on their lost jobs and on

jobs held at the time of the survey

[Numbers in thousands]

Reemployed in full-time wage and salary jobs

January:

1984, 1981–82 ........... 2,157 151 1,135 1,023 33.7 17.5 27.0 21.8 $340 $293 –13.8 114 446 309

1986, 1983–84 ........... 1,798 122 1,087 1,086 26.5 13.9 27.1 32.5 329 330 0.3 90 233 266

1988, 1985–86 ........... 1,855 111 1,187 1,105 32.9 14.8 29.3 23.0 412 353 –14.3 143 179 235

1990, 1987–88 ........... 1,464 83 995 878 27.2 18.8 25.1 28.9 416 391 –6.0 92 115 179

1992, 1989–90 ........... 2,011 131 1,201 1,088 31.1 17.1 28.1 23.7 439 410 –6.6 149 275 252

February:

1994, 1991–921 .......... 2,563 201 1,536 1,386 34.4 17.8 28.4 19.4 553 473 –14.5 210 295 322

1996, 1993–941 .......... 2,167 143 1,396 1,245 33.7 19.8 25.2 21.3 539 461 –14.5 184 156 288

1998, 1995–961 .......... 2,011 188 1,358 1,192 26.1 19.3 30.2 24.4 558 535 –4.1 122 104 240

2000, 1997–981 .......... 1,738 109 1,171 1,005 23.7 15.7 34.5 26.1 567 565 –.4 89 101 269

Table 14.

Unemployed

Not in

the

labor

force

Survey date,

and reference

period for job loss

Median weekly

earnings on:

Part

time

Earnings relative

to those of lost job

Displaced

full-time

wage

and

salary

workers

Selfemployed

and

unpaid

family

workers

Total2

Percent

change

Total

who

reported

earnings

At least

20

percent

below

Lost

job

At least

20

percent

above

Below,

but

within

20

percent

Job

held at

survey

date

Equal or

above,

but

within

20

percent

earnings following job loss. Earnings were essentially unchanged for both whites and blacks. For reemployed Hispanics, however, weekly earnings increased 27 percent. Many

Hispanics benefited from this large gain—73 percent reported

equal or higher earnings at their new job.

Weekly earnings for workers displaced from most industries showed little change. However, displaced workers from

retail trade and other services experienced relatively large pay

increases following displacement. Median weekly earnings

for displaced retail trade workers rose 10 percent, while earnings for those who lost jobs in other services rose 16 percent.

Thirty-one percent of displaced workers from both industries

reported new job earnings of at least 20 percent more than

those on their lost job. (See table 16.)

Regions

Workers in all four census regions were less likely to lose their

jobs in 1997–98 than 2 years earlier.13 Displacement rates fell

below 3.0 percent in each region. As in previous surveys,

these rates were highest in the Northeast and West. (See

table 17.)

Following displacement, workers in the four census regions

had similar success in finding a new job. Reemployment rates

in the Northeast, Midwest, and West regions centered around

80 percent, while nearly 73 percent of workers in the South

found work following job loss.

IN THE LATE 1990s, a downward trend continued in both the

incidence and likelihood of job loss. An expanding economy

and continued job growth led not only to lower unemployment, but also to greater job security. Workers in all major

demographic groups, and in most industries and occupations,

reaped the benefits of greater job security.

In 1997 and 1998, 1.9 million long-tenured workers were

displaced from their jobs, down from 2.2 million reported in

1995–96 (also a period of rising employment). Displacement

rates declined among all major demographic groups. For workers aged 20 and older, the displacement rate declined to 2.5

percent in the 2000 survey—the lowest rate of the 1990s—

down from 2.9 percent in the prior survey.

Of long-tenured workers who lost jobs in the late 1990s, 78

percent were reemployed in February 2000. This proportion

declined from 83 percent in the prior survey, but remained

relatively high. Displaced workers who found new jobs spent

a median 5.3 weeks without work—at least 2 weeks less than

those displaced in the mid-1990s. During this spell without

work, workers displaced in 1997–98 were less likely to use or

exhaust unemployment insurance benefits than any other time

since the survey’s inception. Moreover, on average, reemployed full-time workers had essentially no change in median

weekly earnings.

1Data, beginning with the 1991–92 period, are not directly comparable with

earlier periods due to differences in estimation methodology. 2Includes some workers who did not report earnings.

NOTE: Data refer to persons who had 3 or more years of tenure on a job

they had lost or left because their plant or company closed or moved; there

was insufficient work for them to do; or their position or shift was abolished.
Monthly Labor Review June 2001 25

Median weekly earnings of long-tenured displaced full-time wage and salary workers on their lost jobs and on

jobs held in February 2000, by age, sex, race, Hispanic origin, and educational attainment

[Numbers in thousands]

Total, 20 years and

older ........................... 1,738 109 1,171 1,005 23.7 15.7 34.5 26.1 $567 $565 –.4 89 101 269

 20 to 24 years ............. 30 3 26 26 (2

) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2)010

 25 to 54 years ............. 1,339 64 1,000 861 23.9 16.1 33.7 26.2 581 581 0.0 79 73 124

 25 to 34 years .......... 314 15 255 217 29.0 17.1 16.6 37.3 508 548 7.9 11 11 22

 35 to 44 years .......... 548 30 389 347 18.7 19.0 36.0 26.2 619 621 .3 36 30 63

 45 to 54 years .......... 477 19 356 297 26.3 12.1 43.4 18.2 608 575 –5.4 31 33 38

 55 to 64 years ............. 297 40 131 109 25.7 11.0 44.0 19.3 551 506 –8.2 10 21 95

 65 years and older ...... 72 3 15 11 (2

) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) 0 5 50

Men, 20 years and

older ........................... 1,003 39 713 616 23.9 15.4 32.0 28.7 602 592 –1.7 73 53 125

Women, 20 years and

older ........................... 735 71 458 390 23.3 16.2 38.7 21.8 515 509 –1.2 16 47 143

White3

Total, 20 years and

older ........................... 1,494 98 984 871 21.9 16.5 36.4 25.1 573 572 –.2 82 84 247

 Men ............................. 871 33 604 540 22.4 16.5 33.9 27.2 606 584 –3.6 70 44 120

 Women ........................ 623 65 380 332 21.4 16.6 40.4 21.7 522 545 4.4 12 40 126

Black3

Total, 20 years and

older ........................... 179 3 145 103 41.7 10.7 20.4 27.2 539 540 .2 7 9 16

 Men ............................. 104 2 90 65 (2

) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2)364

 Women ........................ 75 1 55 39 (2

) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) 4 3 12

Total, 20 years and

older ........................... 194 5 145 127 12.6 14.2 40.2 33.1 403 510 26.6 6 14 23

 Men ............................. 112 5 89 79 6.3 19.0 32.9 41.8 393 510 29.8 6 7 5

 Women ........................ 82 0 56 48 (2

) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) 0 7 19

Educational

attainment

Less than a high school

diploma ....................... 170 12 97 89 13.5 5.6 46.1 34.8 354 400 13.0 7 18 37

High school graduate,

Table 15.

Unemployed

Not in

the

labor

force

Characteristic

Median weekly

earnings on:

Part

time

Earnings relative

to those of lost job

Displaced

full-time

wage

and

salary

workers

Selfemployed

and

unpaid

family

workers

Total1

Percent

change

Total

who

reported

earnings

At least

20

percent

below

Lost

job

At least

20

percent

above

Below,

but

within

20

percent

Job

held in

February

2000

Equal or

above,

but

within

20

percent

no college ................... 584 29 436 359 27.6 17.5 24.5 30.4 466 490 5.2 8 38 72

Some college, no

degree ........................ 389 28 236 203 22.2 16.7 36.5 24.6 608 623 2.5 31 15 79

Associate's degree ........ 163 18 110 100 33.0 18.0 32.0 17.0 611 570 –6.7 7 12 16

Bachelor’s degree .......... 295 20 209 182 24.2 17.6 39.0 19.2 728 718 –1.4 22 5 40

Advanced degree .......... 137 3 83 71 (2

) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) 13 13 26

NOTE: Data refer to persons who had 3 or more years of tenure on a job

they had lost or left between January 1997 and December 1998 because their

plant or company closed or moved; there was insufficient work for them to do;

or their position or shift was abolished.

Reemployed in full-time wage and salary jobs in February 2000

Hispanic origin3

1Includes 166,000 who did not report earnings on their lost job.

2

Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.

3

Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals

because data for the “other races” group are not presented and Hispanics are

included in both the white and black population groups.
26 Monthly Labor Review June 2001

Displaced Workers

Median weekly earnings of long-tenured displaced full-time wage and salary workers on their lost jobs and on

jobs held in February 2000, by industry and class of worker of lost job

[Numbers in thousands]

Total, 20 years

and older ............... 1,738 109 1,171 1,005 23.7 15.7 34.5 26.1 $567 $565 –0.4 89 101 269

Nonagricultural private

wage and salary

workers ...................... 1,608 97 1,080 941 24.0 15.4 35.1 25.5 572 563 –1.6 83 93 255

 Mining ......................... 40 2 15 8 (2

) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) 6 12 5

 Construction ............... 106 5 76 72 (2

) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) 5 6 13

 Manufacturing ............ 548 24 396 332 22.9 15.4 38.3 23.5 588 572 –2.7 17 31 81

 Durable goods .......... 330 11 252 204 17.6 15.2 40.7 26.5 588 573 –2.6 14 14 39

 Nondurable goods .... 218 12 144 128 31.3 15.6 33.6 19.5 589 570 –3.2 2 18 42

 Transportation and

public utilities .......... 113 1 78 73 (2

) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) 10 8 16

Transportation .......... 51 1 36 37 (2

) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2)752

 Communications

and other public

utilities .................. 62 0 41 36 (2

) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) 3 3 14

 Wholesale and retail

trade ....................... 333 16 224 205 24.4 12.7 33.2 29.8 454 492 8.4 15 12 66

 Wholesale trade ....... 105 0 67 60 (2

) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) 12 3 23

 Retail trade .............. 228 16 158 144 22.2 13.9 33.3 30.6 427 470 10.1 2 9 43

Finance, insurance,

and real estate ..... 134 17 77 64 (2

) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) 9 6 25

Services ..................... 334 32 214 187 23.5 25.1 33.7 17.6 648 637 –1.7 21 18 49

Professional

services .............. 193 28 121 109 28.4 28.4 34.9 8.3 683 623 –8.8 9 7 27

Other services ........ 134 1 91 78 16.7 20.5 32.1 30.8 575 667 16.0 12 7 22

Agricultural wage

and salary workers ..... 36 0 33 33 (2

) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2)040

Government workers ..... 79 12 45 27 (2

) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) 6 4 12

Table 16.

Unemployed

Not in

the

labor

force

Industry and class

of worker

of lost job

Median weekly

earnings on:

Part

time

Earnings relative

to those of lost job

Displaced

full-time

wage

and

salary

workers

Selfemployed

and

unpaid

family

workers

Total1

Percent

change

Total

who

reported

earnings

At least

20

percent

below

Lost

job

At least

20

percent

above

Below,

but

within

20

percent

Job

held in

February

2000

Equal or

above,

but

within

20

percent

Reemployed in full-time wage and salary jobs in February 2000

1

Includes 166,000 who did not report earnings on their lost job.

2

Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.

NOTE: Data refer to persons who had 3 or more years of tenure on a job

they had lost or left between January 1997 and December 1998 because their

plant or company closed or moved; there was insufficient work for them to do;

or their position or shift was abolished.

Notes

1

 Data on nonfarm payroll employment are derived from the Current

Employment Statistics (CES) Survey, a monthly sample survey that

collects information on employment, hours, and earnings from about

400,000 business establishments. The unemployment rate is derived

from the Current Population Survey (CPS), a sample survey of about

50,000 households, conducted monthly by the Census Bureau for the

Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The CPS collects information about

the demographic characteristics and employment status of the civilian

noninstitutional population aged 16 years and older.

2 In addition to those who lost jobs, the count of displacement includes

workers who left jobs in anticipation of losing them. Debriefing data

collected as part of the quality assessment research conducted on the

February 2000 Displaced Worker Survey indicate that 77 percent of

the displaced were job losers, 22 percent were job leavers, and 1 percent

retired. Thus, the group referred to as “job losers” includes some

workers who left or retired from their jobs prior to losing them.

3 Displacement rates are calculated by dividing the number of displaced

workers in a specified worker group by a tenure-adjusted, 2-year average estimate of employment for the same worker group. Employment

estimates for each year were adjusted, using job-tenure data from the

January 1983, 1987, 1991, and February 1996 and 1998 CPS supplements, to include only those workers with 3 years of tenure or more. A

2-year average was then computed using those adjusted employment

estimates.

4 For instance, the average unemployment rate during 1988–89 was 5.4

percent, compared with 4.7 percent during 1997–98. Nonfarm payroll

employment rose by 5.1 million during the 1989–90 period, compared

to 6.4 million during 1997–98.

5

 For the purposes of this analysis, blue-collar occupations are defined

as the sum of the “precision production, craft, and repair” and “operators, fabricators, and laborers” categories. The white-collar occupations are made up of the “managerial and professional specialty” and
Monthly Labor Review June 2001 27

Reemployment rates and displacement rates of long-tenured displaced workers, by census region and division,

1995–96 and 1997–98

[Numbers in thousands]

 1995–96 1997–98

Displaced Reemployment Displacement Displaced Reemployment Displacement

workers rate1 rate2 workers rate1 rate2

Total, 20 years and older ............ 2,238 82.5 2.9 1,920 77.9 2.5

Northeast .................................... 482 73.9 3.1 417 78.9 2.6

 New England ............................ 123 80.5 3.0 105 80.5 2.5

 Middle Atlantic .......................... 359 71.6 3.1 312 78.3 2.7

Midwest ...................................... 554 84.3 2.9 449 82.8 2.3

 East North Central .................... 405 82.0 3.0 333 81.2 2.4

 West North Central ................... 149 90.6 2.6 115 87.6 2.0

South .......................................... 656 84.9 2.5 589 72.5 2.2

South Atlantic ........................... 395 85.3 2.9 308 68.5 2.2

East South Central ................... 95 80.0 2.1 104 82.7 2.3

West South Cental .................... 166 86.7 2.1 177 73.6 2.2

West ........................................... 547 85.0 3.5 466 79.1 2.9

Mountain ................................... 142 84.5 3.4 105 75.2 2.4

Pacific ...................................... 405 85.2 3.6 360 80.2 3.0

1

Reemployment rates are calculated by dividing the number of displaced

workers in a specified worker group who were reemployed at the time of the

survey by the total number displaced in the same worker group. 2

Displacement rates are calculated by dividing the number of displaced

workers in a specified worker group by a tenure-adjusted, 2-year average

estimate of employment for the same worker group. Employment estimates

for each year were adjusted, using job-tenure data from the January 1983,

1987, 1991, and February 1996 and 1998 CPS supplements, to include only

Census designation

Table 17.

those workers with 3 years of tenure or more. A 2-year average was then

computed using those adjusted employment estimates.

NOTE: Data refer to persons who had 3 or more years of tenure on a job they

had lost or left between January 1995 and December 1996 and January 1997

and December 1998 because their plant or company closed or moved; there

was insufficient work for them to do; or their position or shift was abolished.

“technical, sales, and administrative support” categories.

6

 In the survey, the question concerning health insurance on the lost job

specifically relates to receiving coverage from the former employer

and excludes any other sources. The question posed to respondents at

the time of the survey relates to health insurance coverage from any

source.

7

 By applying the age distribution of displaced workers from 1995–96

to the total number of displaced workers in 1997–98, and assigning the

reemployment rates for 1997–98, one can isolate the impact on reemployment rates of any change in the age composition of displaced

workers across the two surveys. This exercise shows that about onethird of the 4.6 percentage point decline in the reemployment rate for

all displaced workers aged 20 years and older can be attributed to a

change in the age distribution of displaced workers. Specifically, there

was a larger share of displaced workers in 1997–98 who were 55 years

or older. These older displaced workers generally have lower reemployment rates, and a larger share of older displaced workers will thus tend

to lower the overall rate of reemployment.

8

 For a comprehensive overview of jobs in the services industry, see

Joseph R. Meisenheimer II, “The services industry in the ‘good’ versus

‘bad’ jobs debate,” Monthly Labor Review, February 1998, pp. 22–47.

9

 Unlike the services industry, which is very large and diverse, the

service occupations tend to be concentrated in the lower end of the

earnings spectrum. For example, among full-time workers in 2000,

median weekly earnings for those with service jobs were $355, compared to $576 for all workers. In terms of health insurance and pensions in 1999, 38 percent of workers in service occupations had health

insurance from their employer, and 28 percent had an employer-provided pension. By contrast, for all workers in 1999, employer-provided health insurance and pension coverage rates were 60 and 50

percent, respectively.

10 Note that the impact of decreases are somewhat understated, and the

impact of increases overstated, as the earnings data are not adjusted for

inflation.

11 See Henry S. Farber, “Job Loss in the United States, 1981–1999,”

Working Paper 453 (Industrial Relations Section, Princeton University, June 2001).

12 Charles Schultze, in analyzing data on those displaced during 1993

through 1996 who were subsequently reemployed, found that earnings

losses were much greater for those workers who had longer tenure on

the lost job. Schultze found that displaced older workers with more

tenure experienced especially large earnings losses during this period.

He attributes this drop in earnings to the substantial “seniority premiums” earned on the lost job, and the perception of potential new employers that older workers will not remain with a job long enough to

justify the significant training costs associated with “promising jobs.”

See Charles Schultze, “Has Job Security Eroded for American Workers?” Margaret Blair and Thomas Kochan, ed., The New Relationship:

Human Capital in the American Corporation (Washington, DC, The

Brookings Institution, 2000).

13 The four census regions of the United States are the Northeast, South,

Midwest, and West. Within the Northeast, the New England division

includes Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode

Island, and Vermont; and the Middle Atlantic division includes New

Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. Within the South, the South Atlantic division includes Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia; the East South Central division includes Alabama, Kentucky,

Mississippi, and Tennessee; and the West South Central division includes Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas. Within the Midwest, the East North Central division includes Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin; the West North Central division includes

Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South

Dakota. Within the West, the Mountain division includes Arizona,

Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming; and the Pacific division includes Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington.
28 Monthly Labor Review June 2001

Displaced Workers

APPENDIX: Scope and method of the study

The data presented in this article were collected through a supplement to the February 2000 Current Population Survey (CPS), a

monthly survey of about 50,000 households that provides basic

data on employment and unemployment for the Nation. The

supplement’s purpose was to obtain information on the number and

characteristics of persons who had been displaced (as defined below) from their jobs during the prior 3 calendar years.

The first question asked of survey respondents aged 20 years

and older was, “During the last 3 calendar years, that is, January

1997 through December 1999, did (you/name) lose or leave a job

because a plant or company closed or moved, (your/his/her) position or shift was abolished, insufficient work, or another similar

reason?” If the answer to that question was “yes,” then the respondent was asked to identify which reason, among the following, best

described the reason for the job loss:

• Plant or company closed down or moved

• Plant or company operating but lost job because of:

Insufficient work

Position or shift abolished

Seasonal job completed

• Self-operated business failed

• Some other reason

Respondents who provided one of the first three reasons—plant

or company closed or moved, insufficient work, or position or shift

abolished—were classified as displaced and asked additional questions about the lost job, including how many years they had worked

for their employer; the year the job was lost; the earnings, industry,

and occupation of the lost job; and whether health insurance had

been provided. Other questions were asked to determine what occurred before and after the job loss, such as: Was the respondent

notified of the upcoming dismissal? How long did he/she go without

work? Did he/she receive unemployment benefits? And, if so, were

the benefits exhausted? Did the person move to another location

after the job loss to take or look for another job?

Information was also collected about current health insurance

coverage (other than medicare and medicaid) and current earnings for

those employed in February 2000. Most data presented here refer

to workers who lost or left jobs they had worked for 3 or more years.

There are several important differences between the February

1994, 1996, 1998, and 2000 surveys, and surveys conducted every

other January from 1984 to 1992, in the counting of displaced workers that render the data not strictly comparable:

1) In January 1994, there was a major change made to the CPS—

the implementation of a redesigned survey questionnaire and

collection methodology. (For more information on these

changes, see “Revisions in the Current Population Survey Effective January 1994” in the February 1994 issue of Employment and Earnings.)

2) The reference period used when asking questions about displacement was shortened from “the prior 5 years” in earlier

surveys to “the prior 3 calendar years” in surveys conducted

since February 1994. This was done because the data reliability appears to decrease as the reference period length increases.

For example, in the January 1992 survey, the number of displacements in the first 2 years—that is, 1987 and 1988—were

markedly lower than when those 2 years were the third and

fourth years in the January 1990 survey’s reference period, a

clear indication of recall problems in the years farthest from the

survey data.

3) This article also excludes displacements that occurred in the

year closest to the survey date. This was done to reduce the

likelihood of including persons who, having lost their jobs relatively recently, were counted as displaced when their job losses

eventually prove to be temporary rather than permanent.

4) Displaced workers who cited one of the three displacement

reasons for job loss, and then responded later in the questionnaire that their “class of worker” on their lost job was selfemployed, were excluded from the count of displaced workers

in the surveys conducted since 1994, whereas they had been

included in prior ones.

5) In the surveys conducted since February 1994, respondents

who reported that they had lost their jobs in the year closest to

the survey date (for example, 1999 in the February 2000 survey), and expected to be recalled within the next 6 months,

were left out of the displaced workers count. In earlier surveys,

respondents were not asked directly about their expectation of

recall.

6) Since 1994, displaced worker surveys have been conducted in

February, whereas the five previous surveys were conducted in

January. In 1994, the survey was postponed 1 month to help

ease the transition of the redesigned survey and collection methodology that occurred in January 1994. Also, the reference

periods in the 1994, 1996, 1998 and 2000 surveys were the

prior three calendar years (for example, 1997, 1998, and 1999

in the February 2000 survey.) Prior to the 1994 survey, those

losing jobs in the weeks of January prior to the survey were

counted as displaced.

7) Displaced worker surveys conducted prior to the February

1994 survey also are not completely comparable to those from

1994 forward because the earlier surveys were not adjusted for

supplement nonresponse. (It should be noted that supplement

nonresponse was much lower in Displaced Worker Surveys

conducted prior to 1996.) A proportion of the people who

complete the basic CPS questionnaire on labor force status do

not provide usable responses to the supplementary questions.

Respondents may choose to answer none of the supplement

questions, or they may not provide answers to key questions

within the supplement. Reweighting is one of the methods

historically used to adjust for such supplement nonresponse.

It accounts for missing information by increasing the weights

assigned to the individuals from whom information was obtained. Currently, the Census Bureau calculates supplement

weights for all CPS supplemental questionnaires.

During and after the administration of the February 1996 and

1998 Displaced Worker Surveys, quality assessment research was

conducted as part of the Bureau’s ongoing effort to improve the

quality of its surveys. For more information on the research conducted on the February 1996 survey, see James L. Esposito and

Sylvia Fisher, “A Summary of Quality-Assessment Research Conducted on the 1996 Displaced-Worker/Job-Tenure/OccupationalMobility Supplement,” BLS Statistical Note Number 43.