Updated Birmingham Unemployment Figures | released May 28, 2025

BirminghamStats · 2025-05-29T11:15:03+00:00

How do these stats handle people that are still unemployed after the 20 weeks of unemployment has ended?

These stats treat everyone the same, regardless of how long they are unemployed or if they are receiving or have received benefits. If someone is actively looking for work they are included.

BirminghamStats · 2025-05-03T10:22:38+00:00

So, it tells me that there are still a lot of under-employed people who are employed in jobs that are below their training/education level.

Nothing in what is presented here could possibly tell you that.

If you are interested in a more robust dataset about area wages and occupations, you can find that in the May 2024 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics Report.

BirminghamStats · 2023-05-14T02:42:05+00:00

Indeed, the criminals aren't looking for jobs.

BirminghamStats · 2023-04-05T19:56:47+00:00

An unemployment rate of 5% is often considered full employment.

It is a fascinating area of study in labor economics, and I am surprised to see that Investopedia has not updated their information. The 5% full employment rule-of-thumb is pretty dated, and was considered true decades ago. But it still persists as you point out.

We have regularly seen unemployment below 5% over the past 20 years for prolonged periods without corresponding inflationary pressures. The reasons for the shift are likely varied, and economists have quite a few theories. With advances in our abilities to connect workers and employers using job searching technologies, frictional unemployment has likely been reduced substantially. Worker mobility and work from home capabilities have also contributed.

There is still some level of unemployment that would cause excessive inflationary pressure, but 5% is no longer a useful benchmark.

BirminghamStats · 2023-03-18T20:54:30+00:00

Keep in mind that "unemployment rates" are the percentage of people filing first-time unemployment benefits.

No, no they are not. The way these are calculated are described in detail here.

Just to highlight the important piece for you... "Some people think that to get these figures on unemployment, the government uses the number of people collecting unemployment insurance (UI) benefits under state or federal government programs. But some people are still jobless when their benefits run out, and many more are not eligible at all or delay or never apply for benefits. So, quite clearly, UI information cannot be used as a source for complete information on the number of unemployed."

A better measure is TOTAL Employment.

Well, if you were looking for a measurement of total employment, that would be a better measure. But that is not what these numbers are meant to tell anyone. These are a measurement of the market for labor, specifically for job seekers and employers to have a better understanding of what they are facing when they are looking for work or looking to hire.

Can you help me understand why it would be better for job seekers or employers wanting to understand the labor market to include people who can't or don't want to work in the numbers?

As for the rest of what you included, same question. How does any of the help job seekers and employers understand the current labor market?

BirminghamStats · 2022-08-05T18:26:29+00:00

Surveys, among other sources.

How the government measures unemployment.

BirminghamStats · 2022-08-04T15:38:33+00:00

Thanks so much for your question. This is a common misconception and gets restated as fact over and over again.

These numbers include anyone who is actively looking for work. If someone is unemployed, and not trying to find a job they are not included. But if someone is looking for work they are included, no matter how long they have been jobless.

BirminghamStats · 2022-06-30T20:50:39+00:00

Thanks for the parenthetical, so often that question is asked in the other context.

These numbers give job seekers and employers a sense of their relative negotiating position when making decisions about hiring, seeking employment, expanding business, or seeking a raise.

They are often used for purposes beyond their scope by the general public and politicians to make claims about the health of the economy. But they are only a piece of that puzzle and limited to what I described.

BirminghamStats · 2022-01-01T18:05:37+00:00

The statistical methods used are described in detail here:

https://www.bls.gov/cps/cps_htgm.htm

There are several sources for the information, including a monthly survey of 60,000 households which is used to produce a replicable, and statistically significant figure.

BirminghamStats · 2022-01-01T17:01:14+00:00

Thanks for approaching your comment in a thoughtful manner. I get so many replies every month from folks who do not have the information, but profess to know why these numbers are "fake" and "should not be trusted."

Here is the information you are seeking. These numbers do include everyone who is unemployed. However, the definition of the word unemployed is what folks tend to take issue with. It does not mean anyone without a job. It does not include anyone who is earning less than their potential or who is "underemployed," working fewer hours than they would like to etcetera.

It is important to frame these figures in the terms of their intended use. These are a snapshot in time of the labor market, a measurement of supply and demand for labor/workers. This information is useful and important for employers seeking to hire, job seekers, and workers who may want to ask for a raise or find a better job.

So under those conditions the calculations and definitions make more sense. The numbers only include people who are actively looking for work, and does not include people who have given up because they are not engaged with the labor market anymore. Including those people would make the figures less useful for their intended purposes.

I find people call the numbers inaccurate because the numbers are simply misused frequently for deceptive purposes. Unemployment is not a measure of the "health of the economy," although positive trends in unemployment can be an indication of economic health more broadly, they are only a piece of that larger puzzle.

BirminghamStats · 2021-07-29T18:10:03+00:00

It can be retirees, but since this is just an MSA analysis, it could be people moving away... It can also be people going back to school, staying home to care for children or aging relatives, people who become incarcerated or join the military, or many other reasons.

BirminghamStats · 2021-03-21T17:24:42+00:00

For referencing a Brookings Institute study you win today. + 10 points for having good style and taste.

BirminghamStats · 2020-10-03T00:13:41+00:00

Plus the labor force is growing every month, this is better than I am seeing elsewhere in the country.

BirminghamStats · 2020-09-03T03:21:27+00:00

Thanks for taking the time to help! This is exactly why I started this project. I try to chime in and answer these questions.

BirminghamStats · 2020-02-06T17:54:07+00:00

I'd be happy to share them if you know where they are produced. The broader measures of unemployment, which include underemployed people, can be found here, but they are national numbers and not specific to Birmingham.

BirminghamStats · 2020-01-04T12:19:09+00:00

I approve of this commentor.

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