Chart: When unemployment is 4.4 percent, the prime-age employment-to-population ratio is historically much higher: Average prime-age employment-to-population ratio when the unemployment rate was 4.4 percent in last two business cycles

When unemployment is 4.4 percent, the prime-age employment-to-population ratio is historically much higher: Average prime-age employment-to-population ratio when the unemployment rate was 4.4 percent in last two business cycles

Year	Average prime-age EPOP during months that unemployment rate was 4.4
1998/1999	81.2
2006/2007	80.1
2017	78.6

Note: The unemployment rate hit 4.4% in "1998/1999" (May 1998, November 1998, December 1998, February of 1999, and April 2001), "2006/2007" (October 2006, December 2006, March 2007, and May 2007), and "2017" (April 2017). The vertical axis is scaled to the minimum and maximum values (74.8 and 81.9) of the prime-age (25-54) employment-to-population ratio over the last two decades.

Source: EPI analysis of BLS Current Population Survey public data series.

View the underlying data on epi.org.