With an unemployment rate of 8.5 , a labor force participation rate of only 64 , and stagnant real wages, labor income has fallen to an historic low of 44 of national income. And labor income is the most important component of household earnings, the major driver of consumption spending.

Moreover, the decline in unemployment largely reflects persistently grim labor market conditions, which have discouraged many workers from remaining in the labor force. If the labor force participation rate was 66 , as it was in early 2008, rather than 62.8 , as it was in December 2013, the unemployment rate would be just over 11 , not 6.7 .

The problem stems from how unemployment is measured The adult unemployment rate is calculated by dividing the number of unemployed individuals by all individuals in the labor force. So if the labor force comprises 200 workers, and 20 are unemployed, the unemployment rate is 10 .

Many Puerto Ricans, unable to find jobs on the island, have migrated to the mainland, with the population and labor force estimated to be shrinking at a rate of 1.5 this year. Moreover, Puerto Rico s labor force participation rate is under 40 , compared to 62 on the mainland.

In recent years, the rate of women receiving this payment has decreased moderately, mostly due to changes in the rate of women's participation in the labor market whilst in their fertility phase.

Women who have completed secondary or tertiary education are more likely to enter and remain in the labor market than their less educated counterparts. The labor participation rate for women with post secondary education is 64 , far exceeding the 35 rate for those with only a primary or middle school education.

In the absence of large scale immigration, to which Japanese remain unamenable, one relatively simple solution would be to integrate more women into the labor force. A 10 increase in Japan s female labor force participation rate an entirely attainable goal would translate into an almost 5 gain in total labor force participation.

These raw figures on job losses, bad as they are, actually understate the weakness in world labor markets. If you include partially employed workers and discouraged workers who left the US labor force, for example, the unemployment rate is already 16.5 .

Labor markets have tightened significantly, with the overall unemployment rate down to 5.4 . The unemployment rate among those who have been unemployed for less than six months a key indicator of inflation pressure is down to 3.8 .

From 1992 to 2011, labor productivity grew at an average annual rate of 0.9 , the lowest in the OECD. Since 2001, unit labor costs have been growing faster than real GDP and employment, undermining the economy s competitiveness vis à vis developing countries.

Based on these trends and assuming a constant labor participation rate China s potential growth rate over the next decade is likely to hover around 6.9 7.6 , averaging 7.27 . This may be much lower than the 9.4 average growth rate in 1988 2013, but it is more than adequate by global standards.

The unemployment rate has dropped to 5 , just above the Fed s current median estimate for the non accelerating inflation rate of unemployment (NAIRU). While the true NAIRU level is probably lower, and we are likely witnessing a secular decline in the workforce participation rate, the US labor market should still tighten in 2016.

Labor Law

Forced labor!

Forced labor.

Using RMB appreciation as the primary tool to fight inflation implies accepting a temporarily higher unemployment rate now in exchange for a permanently lower unemployment rate in the future. This is because manufactured exports are typically more labor intensive than investment projects.

Likewise, labor market reform, improved education, and enhanced human capital could contribute an additional 4 to GDP growth in the next decade. Moreover, Italian policymakers should strive to boost the female labor force participation rate, which, at 49 , is one of the lowest in the OECD.

Similarly, the integration of emerging market countries into the global economy has brought with it a flood of labor. According to standard trade theory, a global labor glut ought to imply an increased rate of return on capital, which again pushes interest rates up, not down.

Labor market experts thus consider the unemployment rate a potentially misleading indicator, because a youth unemployment rate of 50 does not mean that half of the young population is unemployed. That is why one should look at the unemployment ratio the percentage of the unemployed in the reference population rather than at the unemployment rate.

The third arrow is not a traditional industrial policy based approach. On the contrary, it emphasizes reform of the labor market, deregulation, and a reduction in the corporate tax rate.

Labor Force Estimates

Because labor productivity...

According to OECD data, only 55 of South Korean women aged 15 64 are in the labor force, compared to an average of 65 in the advanced economies. South Korea s male labor force participation rate, by contrast, stands at about 77 close to the OECD average of 79 .

High unit labor costs and unemployment rates are responsible, in turn, for reducing the trend rate of economic growth, mainly owing to under utilized labor, while the combination of lackluster growth and an ever mounting welfare burden has resulted in chronic budget deficits. The last surplus was in 1974.

These countries had already lost export market shares to China and other low value added and labor intensive Asian economies. Then a decade of nominal wage growth that out paced productivity gains led to a rise in unit labor costs, real exchange rate appreciation, and large current account deficits.

Although large scale migration from labor surplus regions to deficit regions would benefit recipient economies, it would almost certainly trigger popular resistance, especially in Europe and East Asia, making it difficult to support. Increasing the labor force participation rate, especially among women and the elderly, might ease tight labor markets, but this alone would be insufficient to counter the decline in working age populations.

FI conducted a Training Workshop on UN and International Labor Organization Mechanisms on Trafficking, Bonded Labor and Forced Labor from June 5 7, 2002.

But China s investment rate is already too high, accounting for almost half of GDP. With capital intensity increasing significantly faster than labor productivity in China, the inefficiency of investment is clear.

A concomitant feature of South Korea s labor market is that women s labor force participation rate a paltry 33 for women aged 30 39 is among the lowest in the OECD. This partly reflects the difficulty of balancing child rearing with work in South Korea, compared to, say, Europe or the US.

These are economies that, even a decade ago, were losing market share to China and Asia, owing to their labor intensive and low value added exports. After a decade that saw wages grow faster than productivity, unit labor costs (and the real exchange rate based on those costs) appreciated sharply.

Scarce labor drives wages.

Labor Community Strategy Center

Labor Community Strategy Center

Are you in labor?

The Department of Supervision of Labor Laws in the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor

Labor force participation will be key to shaping this environment. As it stands, the low official unemployment rate can be explained partly by declining participation rates, especially among workers aged 25 54.

All they needed was labor.

Weak Labor, Strong Securities Markets

Another recommendation is the establishment of a committee to monitor the process and examine whether there are any improvements in women's position in the labor market, from the aspects of employment rate and wages.

The Department of Supervision of Labor Laws of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor supervises the enforcement of a number of labor laws, including the Employment of Women Law.

South Korea s female labor force participation rate is even lower than in Japan, where there are waiting lists for childcare. Moreover, South Korea has underinvested in day care centers, with firms rarely offering childcare support.

The path to recovery, though difficult and lengthy, has been relatively clear and specific. First, unit labor costs needed to decline toward productivity levels to restore competitiveness a painful process without the exchange rate mechanism.

Moreover, both the short term and long term unemployment rates underestimate the slack in the labor market caused by the significant and sustained decline in the labor force participation rate (LFPR) since the recession began. In 2007, 66 of Americans were working or actively seeking work today, that number stands at 63 , the lowest level since 1977.

So, they stopped having inexpensive labor.

But it was very labor intensive.