UNEMPLOYMENT RATE: The proportion of the civilian labor force 16 years or older that is actively seeking employment, but is unemployed and not engaged in the production of goods and services. The unemployment rate is estimated and reported monthly by the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics. It is used not only as the prime measure of labor unemployment in the economy, but also as a key indicator of business-cycle instability. In principle, the unemployment rate measures the proportion of the labor that is willing and able to work, but employed. In practice, the official unemployment rate is simply the ratio of total unemployment to the total civilian labor force, in percentage terms. See also | unemployment | civilian labor force | employment | Bureau of Labor Statistics | business cycle | capacity utilization rate | unemployment rate, measurement problems | unemployment sources | unemployment sources | unemployment problems |
