RELAB REPORT | In the ever-evolving U.S. labor market landscape, the plight of older workers often remains overlooked.

RELAB WORKING PAPER | When we examine unemployment and discouraged workers, are we getting the full picture? A deeper dive into the data suggests that official rates of unemployment are missing millions of people.

RELAB POLICY NOTE | Contrary to the hope that technology and machines have made work easier for most, more than 25 percent of older white workers and over 40 percent of older Black and Hispanic workers toil in physically demanding jobs.

RELAB POLICY NOTE | During the pandemic, many older workers did not leave their jobs voluntarily but got pushed out of the labor force. Since March 2020, the size of the retired population between ages 55 and 74 expanded beyond its normal trend by an additional 1.1 million people.

RESEARCH | New research shows that even before the COVID-19 recession, 55.3 percent of workers age 55 and up in the bottom half of the income distribution were forced to leave the workforce and 32.4 percent in the next 40% of the income distribution – the middle class – were forced out of work in old age.

POLICY NOTE | Since March 2020, the size of the retired population in the U.S. expanded beyond its normal trend by an additional 1.7 million people.¹

RELAB POLICY NOTE | After a partial recovery between May and August, older workers’ labor force participation rate fell continuously, reaching its lowest point of the recession in January.

RELAB POLICY NOTE | COVID-19 and the resulting recession has made older workers — especially older people of color and low-income seniors — even more vulnerable to the systemic flaws of our failed retirement system.

RELAB POLICY NOTE | Unemployment rates for workers 55 and older exceeded those of mid-career workers for the length of the pandemic — the first time since 1973 such an unemployment gap has persisted for six months or longer.

RELAB POLICY NOTE | Older workers have higher levels of financial fragility than in 2006, before the Great Recession.

RELAB POLICY NOTE | Over the past three decades, older workers’ wages declined and lagged behind younger workers’ wages.

RELAB POLICY NOTE | Older workers experienced almost no real wage growth since 2007, despite record low unemployment rates

RELAB POLICY NOTE | Despite the low headline unemployment rate, changes in job tenure over the last 30 years have reduced older workers’ bargaining power, especially older men.

RELAB POLICY NOTE | The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) today reporteda 2.8% unemployment rate for workers age 55 and older in October, which reflects no change from September.

RELAB POLICY NOTE | The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) today reported a 2.8% unemployment rate for workers age 55 and older in September, a decrease of 0.3 percentage points from August.

RELAB POLICY NOTE | The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) today reporteda 3.1% unemployment rate for workers age 55 and older in August, which represents no change from July.

RELAB POLICY NOTE | The Bureau of Labor Statistics reportedan unemployment rate of 3.1% for workers age 55 and older for the month of July, which represents no change from June.

RELAB POLICY NOTE | The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) today reported a headline unemployment rate (U-3) for workers 55 and over of 3.1%  in June, up 0.3 percentage points from May.

RELAB POLICY NOTE | The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) today reported a 3.2% unemployment rate for workers age 55 and older in March, a rate unchanged since February.