Question

Consider four individuals: John, Patty, Cole, and Betsy. Each individual's situation is described below: John is a 50-year-old auto worker who was laid off from his job six months ago. He is frustrated with his inability to find a full-time position. Last week he took a part-time job, but could work only three hours. Patty is a 35-year-old professional basketball player. She finished her last season as a player three weeks ago, and is currently interviewing for a coaching position. Cole is a 27-year-old graphic designer who is taking two years off work to care for his young daughter. Betsy is an 18-year-old who is currently serving in the army. When she leaves the army, she plans to work in the family business. Based on the criteria used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, classify each:_____.

Answer 1

John is EMPLOYED.

Even though it is only a part time job that John has, this qualifies him to be classified as employed because part time workers are considered employed.

Patty is UNEMPLOYED.

Unemployed people are those who at that point do not have employment but are actively looking for it. Patty is interviewing for a coaching job so is looking for work which makes her unemployed.

Cole is NOT IN LABOR FORCE.

Cole has decided not to work or look for work in these two years which means that he is not in the labor force as only those who are looking for work or working are considered part of the labor force.

Betsy is NOT IN CIVILIAN POPULATION.

Betsy is not in the civilian population as she is in the army. Those in the armed forces are not considered in the calculation of the labor force as they are not civilian.