Question

2009 Labor Data for Wrexington

Number of adults	20,000
Number of adults who are paid employees	8,000
Number of adults who work in their own businesses	1,600
Number of adults who are unpaid workers in a family member’s business	1,000
Number of adults who were temporarily absent from their jobs because of an earthquake	400
Number of adults who were waiting to be recalled to a job from which they had been laid off	200
Number of adults who do not have a job, are available for work, and have tried to find a job within the past four weeks	1,400
Number of adults who do not have a job, are available for work, but have not tried to find a job within the past four weeks	780
Number of adults who are full-time students	3,000
Number of adults who are homemakers or retirees	3,620

Refer to Table 28-2. What was Wrexington’s unemployment rate in 2009?

Answer 1

Unemployment rate is = (no of unemployed people) /(labour force)

Here labour force= total adult- (no of adult who are unpaid workers in a family member business + no of adults who are full-time student + no of adults who are home maker or retired)

= 20000-7,620

= 12600

Unemployed person =Number of adults who were waiting to be recalled to a job from which they had been laid off + no of adults who do not have a job are available for work and have tried to get job in last 4 weeks

= 200+1400

=1600

Therefore wrexinton's unemployment rate in 2009 is

= 1600/12600

= .127 or 12.7%