LABOR FORCE: The total number of people willing and able to exert mental and/or physical efforts in productive activities. In principle, this is everyone 16 years of age and over who is willing and able to work. In practice, it includes the sum of anyone over 16 years who is employed or unemployed but actively seeking a job. The labor force is essentially a more technical term for the economy's labor supply. See also | labor | labor force participation rate | employment rate | civilian labor force | Bureau of Labor Statistics | employed persons | unemployed persons |
