2020 Work Experience of the Population — 2021-12-09

The number of persons who experienced unemployment at some point during 2020 was 26.4 million, up by 12.9 million from 2019, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The proportion of the civilian noninstitutional population age 16 and over who worked at some time during 2020 was 63.5 percent, a decrease of 1.4 percentage points from 2019. These changes reflect the effect of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on the labor market. These data are based on information collected in the Annual Social and Economic Supplement (ASEC) to the Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS is a monthly survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau for the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The ASEC collects information on employment and unemployment experienced during the prior calendar year. Additional information about the CPS and the ASEC, including concepts and definitions, is provided in the Technical Note.