The labor force is the number of people aged 16 or older who are either working or looking for work. It does not include active-duty military personnel or institutionalized people, such as prison inmates. Quantifying this total supply of labor is a way of determining how big the economy can get. Labor force participation rates vary significantly…

The purpose of this study is to explain the changing and increasing participation of females in the American labor force during this century, especially since 1940. Although the pre-1940 changes are smaller and may be attributable to improvements in census enumeration techniques, there has been a significant increase since 1940 in participation…

Uses data from the National Longitudinal Surveys to examine the relationship between local area unemployment rates and the labor supply behavior of youths, aged 18 to 24, in 1970. (PR)

This paper examines the growing college premium for younger men and the earnings patterns for other groups that developed between 1973 and 1987. At first glance, the rapidly increasing college premium for young men seems to confirm several frequently cited economic trends, including a massive restructuring of the economy that displaces all less…

Results from analyses of census data for 997 immigrant Mexican wives, 347 Puerto Ricans, and 405 other Hispanics in comparison with 1,210 native-born counterparts and 8,766 white wives indicate that the labor force behavior of Hispanic wives is highly responsive to their earning potential. (SLD)

Income predictions that provide some indication of the potential value of attending college are considered. Standard multiple regression analysis of data describing the income experiences of men 25 years old and older were used to determine differences in incomes of high school and college graduates. Information on the gross national product was…

There has been a rapid increase in Mississippi women's participation in the labor force, but female participation still lags behind male participation. The 1960s witnessed dramatic increases in younger women's participation. The trend is expected to continue into the late 1970s. Annual 1977 averages showed women made up almost 40% of Mississippi's…