Older workers experienced higher unemployment than mid-career workers in the pandemic recession: Percentage-point difference in average unemployment rate between older workers (age 55+) and mid-career workers (ages 35–54), 1975–2020 recessions
Months of peak unemployment | Gap between mid-career (35–54) and older workers (55+) |
---|---|
May–Oct 1975 | -0.8 |
Jul–Dec 1980 | -1.2 |
Dec 1982–May 1983 | -1.7 |
Jun–Nov 1992 | -0.6 |
Jun–Nov 2003 | -0.5 |
Oct 2009–Mar 2010 | -1.2 |
Apr–Sep 2020 | 1.1 |
Notes: Chart shows the percentage-point difference (how much higher or lower the average unemployment rate of older workers age 55+ is relative to that of mid-career workers ages 35–54) over six-month periods beginning in the month of peak unemployment in each recession.
Source: Economic Policy Institute (EPI) and Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis (SCEPA) analysis of Current Population Survey microdata (Flood et al. 2021).