1996 Work Experience of the Population — 1997-11-10

The number of persons who worked at some time during the year increased by more than 2 million in 1996 to 141.4 million, according to data from the annual survey of work experience released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor. At the same time, the number who experienced some unemployment declined by 1.3 million to 16.8 million. These data are derived from supplemental questions asked each March as part of the Current Population Survey (CPS), a monthly survey of about 50,000 households conducted by the Bureau of the Census for the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Additional information on the annual survey on work experience, including concepts and definitions, and a discussion on data comparability is provided in the Explanatory Note beginning on page 3.