Civilian Labor Force is the sum of civilian employment and civilian unemployment. Civilian Employment includes all individuals who worked at least one hour for a wage or salary, or were self-employed, or were working at least 15 unpaid hours in a family business or on a family farm, during the week including the 12th of the month. Those who were on vacation, other kinds of leave, or involved in a labor dispute, were also counted as employed. Civilian Unemployment includes those individuals who were not working but were able, available, and actively looking for work during the week including the 12th of the month. Individuals who were waiting to be recalled from a layoff, and individuals waiting to report to a new job within 30 days were also considered to be unemployed.
Unemployment Rate is the number of unemployed as a percentage of the labor force.
The data were revised using this method back to 1980. Actually, there is one model for Los Angeles County and another for the rest of the state. The results from the two models are added together to derive statewide data. From these data and estimates of population change, one can then calculate the employment, unemployment, and labor force. Flexible trend and seasonal components are also included in the model to account for movements in the CPS rate which are not reflected in the historical UI claims series.