Question

Using the above data, what is the unemployment rate? These data are U.S. statistics from 2010. How does it compare to the February 2015 unemployment rate computed earlier?

Short answer

Unemployment would be higher.

Step-by-step solution

Step. 1  Introduction

Unemployment can be defined as the situation when a person who is able to work and is work, is also actively looking for jobs but is not able to find one. The percentage of working population that cannot find work is known as unemployment rate.

Step.2 Explanation

The unemployemnt rate is obtained as a ration of unemployed persons and total labor force.

$$\begin{gathered} Unemploymentrate \\ =\frac{Unemployedpersons}{Laborforce}\times 100 \\ =\frac{14.8}{153.9}\times 100 \\ =9.6\% \end{gathered}$$

So, the unemployment rate for 2010 is 9.6%.

The unemployment rate for February 2015 was computed as 5.5%. This means the 2010 unemployment rate is greater.