South Dakota Labor Force: Composition, Participation Rates, and Demographics, Study notes of Statistics

Download South Dakota Labor Force: Composition, Participation Rates, and Demographics and more Study notes Statistics in PDF only on Docsity! Who is in our labor force? Introduction Many data users are familiar with South Dakota's labor force statistics, which include total labor force, employment, unemployment and unemployment rate. During periods of rough economic times this statistical series is widely talked about, especially the unemployment ratewhich measures the number of people in the labor force who are currently unemployed and looking for a job. Labor force statistics are a valuable economic indicator for determining the health of the economy. Not only can we determine the number of employed and unemployed, we can also get a sense of the number of people participating in the labor force and learn some demographic characteristics of these participants. Background Before we get into this too far, let's get a little background on the subject. Don't worry; we'll try not to put you to sleep before we get to the good stuff. National labor force data is all derived from the monthly Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS is conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau on behalf of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and gives detailed demographic data at the national level. Some statewide data is also available, but because this household survey has a small sample of only 60,000 households, data below the national level is subject to high sampling errors and does not have as much detail. To alleviate some of the sampling error, data is produced at the statewide level annually or in 12-month moving averages. Official statewide and substate labor force estimates are produced using the Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) program run by the Labor Market Information Center in cooperation with the BLS. The LAUS program uses CPS, Current Employment Statistics (CES) and unemployment claims data to produce seasonally adjusted and not seasonally adjusted monthly estimates. (continued on next page) May 2016 Labor Market Information Center SD Department of Labor & Regulation South Dakota e-Labor Bulletin May 2016 Page 1 of 26 South Dakota Labor Force As mentioned above the seasonally adjusted and not seasonally adjusted labor force estimates (which include total labor force, employed, unemployed and unemployment rate) at the statewide level come from the LAUS program. South Dakota's seasonally adjusted labor force has been steadily increasing since rebounding in 2011 after the 2008-2009 recession. The labor force peaked at 448,900 in March 2009 before shrinking to 440,600 by July 2011. Currently (April 2015 is the most current data available), South Dakota's labor force is at 454,800, an increase of 14,200 or 3.2 percent from its lowest point in 2011. (continued on next page) South Dakota e-Labor Bulletin May 2016 Page 2 of 26 Educational Attainment Educational attainment data from the CPS contains data for the population 25 years and older and is broken out into four categories: less than a high school diploma, high school diploma or equivalent, some college or an associate's degree, and bachelor's degree or higher. Labor force participation rates in South Dakota decreased between 2005 and 2015 in all four categories. The labor force participation rate for those with less than a high school diploma decreased the least, by 3.3 percent, while the largest decrease was 4.8 percent for those with a bachelor's degree or higher. (continued on next page) South Dakota e-Labor Bulletin May 2016 Page 5 of 26 Although South Dakota's labor force has decreased over the past 10 years, the educational attainment levels of the labor force has increased. The percent of the labor force with some college and bachelor's degree or higher increased over this time period, whereas the percentage of those with high school or less has decreased. Labor Force Data Readily Available South Dakota, like many other states across the nation, is battling worker shortages. This means many companies are not able to find qualified workers to fill open positions, causing reduced productivity and prohibiting growth. Knowing who makes up the labor force can give insight to policy makers tasked with establishing programs aimed at getting workers back into the labor force, determining what skill sets workers need and how to get them those skills. Labor force data, including employment, unemployment and unemployment rate is available from the Labor Market Information Center's (LMIC) website at http://dlr.sd.gov/lmic through the new virtual labor market data system. Click on 'Labor Force' link in the blue box on the right side of the page. From the labor force menu page, users are able to access national, state, county, metropolitan statistical area, micropolitan statistical area and city labor force data. The virtual labor market data system displays interactive maps, charts and area profiles, which allow users to gain a better understanding of South Dakota's labor market. South Dakota e-Labor Bulletin May 2016 Page 6 of 26