According to Eye On Housing, A key indicator of the labor market is the labor force participation rate. This rate is the percentage of working-age adults in a population who are working or looking for work. The rate is a critical measure connected to both housing demand and housing supply (via the construction labor force).
According to the Employment Situation Summary reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the labor force participation rate remained at 62.5% for the third month in December 2024. After the labor force participation rate reached 67.3% at the beginning of 2000, it has been trending lower. When COVID-19 hit the labor market, the labor force participation rate dropped dramatically from 63.3% in February 2020 to 60.1% in April 2020. The latest labor force participation rate remains below its pre-pandemic levels of 63.3% at the beginning of 2020.
The participation rate is directly connected to the supply of labor. Labor supply varies across different demographic groups, such as age, gender, race, and educational attainment.
