The answer is unemployment rate. It is the share of the labor force that is jobless, conveyed as a percentage. It is a lagging pointer, meaning that it normally rises or falls in the wake of changing economic conditions, rather than expecting them. When the economy is in poor shape and jobs are limited, the unemployment rate can be expected to rise. When the economy is growing at a healthy rate and jobs are relatively plentiful, it can be expected to drop. The official unemployment rate is identified as U3. It describes unemployed people as those who are willing and available to work, and who have actively wanted work within the past four weeks.