Appendix Table 1
Labor force participation rates by gender and demographic group, 1979, 2024, and percentage point change
| Men | Women | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Demographic group | 1979 | 2024 | Ppt. change | 1979 | 2024 | Ppt. change |
| Race | ||||||
| White | 95.2% | 89.9% | -5.3 | 62.4% | 80.0% | 17.6 |
| Black | 88.9% | 84.2% | -4.7 | 67.4% | 80.1% | 12.7 |
| Hispanic | 93.1% | 90.8% | -2.3 | 52.9% | 71.9% | 19 |
| Other | 91.0% | 89.6% | -1.4 | 65.1% | 75.8% | 10.7 |
| Nativity * | ||||||
| Native | 91.9% | 88.5% | -3.4 | 76.8% | 80.1% | 3.3 |
| Naturalized | 93.5% | 93.2% | -0.3 | 74.8% | 77.7% | 2.9 |
| Not a citizen | 89.6% | 91.5% | 1.9 | 58.4% | 63.6% | 5.2 |
| Education | ||||||
| Less than high school | 88.4% | 81.0% | -7.4 | 49.2% | 52.3% | 3.1 |
| High school | 95.9% | 85.5% | -10.4 | 63.1% | 68.8% | 5.7 |
| Some college | 95.4% | 89.1% | -6.3 | 66.8% | 78.2% | 11.4 |
| College | 97.5% | 93.7% | -3.8 | 70.8% | 83.8% | 13 |
| Advanced degree | 96.2% | 95.1% | -1.1 | 83.1% | 89.1% | 6 |
| College/Noncollege | ||||||
| College | 97.0% | 94.2% | -2.8 | 73.9% | 85.9% | 12 |
| Noncollege | 93.6% | 86.3% | -7.3 | 60.3% | 71.0% | 10.7 |
| Married | ||||||
| Married | 95.9% | 93.5% | -2.4 | 58.0% | 75.8% | 17.8 |
| Not married | 88.0% | 84.3% | -3.7 | 78.9% | 80.7% | 1.8 |
| Children * | ||||||
| Under 3 | 96.6% | 95.4% | -1.2 | 61.9% | 67.0% | 5.1 |
| Under 5 | 96.3% | 95.3% | -1.0 | 65.7% | 69.5% | 3.8 |
| Age | ||||||
| 25–29 | 94.8% | 87.9% | -6.9 | 65.9% | 78.1% | 12.2 |
| 30–34 | 96.2% | 90.6% | -5.6 | 62.2% | 78.2% | 16 |
| 35–39 | 96.2% | 91.1% | -5.1 | 63.6% | 78.7% | 15.1 |
| 40–44 | 95.2% | 90.3% | -4.9 | 64.1% | 78.7% | 14.6 |
| 45–49 | 93.3% | 89.1% | -4.2 | 60.5% | 78.0% | 17.5 |
| 50–54 | 89.6% | 86.6% | -3.0 | 56.5% | 75.6% | 19.1 |
| Region | ||||||
| Midwest | 95.5% | 90.5% | -5.0 | 62.3% | 81.2% | 18.9 |
| Northeast | 94.3% | 89.4% | -4.9 | 61.0% | 79.9% | 18.9 |
| South | 93.6% | 88.8% | -4.8 | 62.7% | 75.9% | 13.2 |
| West | 94.4% | 89.0% | -5.4 | 64.1% | 77.0% | 12.9 |
Notes: Nativity data begin in 1994. Data on children begin in 1999.
Source: EPI analysis of the Current Population Survey (CPS) basic monthly microdata, EPI Current Population Survey Extracts, Version 2025.6.11, https://microdata.epi.org.
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