Why is Involuntary Part-Time Work Elevated? - Accessible Data

Accessible version of figures

Chart 1: Involuntary part-time by reason

Source: Current Population Survey

Part-time for economic reasons since 2000

Date Unemployment rate (percent of labor force) Slack work/business conditions (percent of labor force) Could only find part-time work (percent of labor force) Average workweek (hours)
UNRATE.Q SLACKRATE.Q FINRATE.Q WORKWEEK.Q
2000Q1 4.0 1.3 0.7 39.7
2000Q2 3.9 1.3 0.7 39.7
2000Q3 4.0 1.4 0.6 39.8
2000Q4 3.9 1.4 0.6 39.7
2001Q1 4.2 1.4 0.6 39.4
2001Q2 4.4 1.5 0.7 39.2
2001Q3 4.8 1.6 0.7 39.2
2001Q4 5.5 2.0 0.8 39.2
2002Q1 5.7 1.9 0.7 39.2
2002Q2 5.8 1.8 0.8 39.2
2002Q3 5.7 1.9 0.8 39.1
2002Q4 5.8 2.0 0.8 39.1
2003Q1 5.9 2.1 0.8 39.0
2003Q2 6.2 2.1 0.8 39.0
2003Q3 6.1 2.1 0.9 39.0
2003Q4 5.8 2.1 0.9 39.0
2004Q1 5.7 2.0 1.0 39.1
2004Q2 5.6 1.9 1.0 39.0
2004Q3 5.4 1.8 0.9 39.0
2004Q4 5.4 1.9 0.9 39.1
2005Q1 5.3 1.8 0.9 39.1
2005Q2 5.1 1.7 0.9 39.2
2005Q3 5.0 1.8 0.9 39.2
2005Q4 5.0 1.7 0.8 39.2
2006Q1 4.7 1.7 0.8 39.2
2006Q2 4.7 1.7 0.8 39.0
2006Q3 4.6 1.7 0.8 39.3
2006Q4 4.5 1.8 0.8 39.3
2007Q1 4.5 1.8 0.8 39.1
2007Q2 4.5 1.8 0.8 39.1
2007Q3 4.7 1.9 0.8 39.1
2007Q4 4.8 1.9 0.8 39.3
2008Q1 5.0 2.1 0.8 39.1
2008Q2 5.3 2.4 0.9 39.1
2008Q3 6.0 2.7 0.9 38.9
2008Q4 6.9 3.5 1.0 38.6
2009Q1 8.3 4.2 1.1 38.3
2009Q2 9.3 4.3 1.2 38.0
2009Q3 9.6 4.3 1.3 37.9
2009Q4 9.9 4.2 1.4 38.0
2010Q1 9.8 4.0 1.5 38.0
2010Q2 9.7 4.0 1.5 38.3
2010Q3 9.5 4.0 1.5 38.2
2010Q4 9.5 3.8 1.6 38.2
2011Q1 9.0 3.7 1.6 38.1
2011Q2 9.1 3.7 1.6 38.4
2011Q3 9.0 3.7 1.7 38.3
2011Q4 8.7 3.6 1.6 38.4
2012Q1 8.2 3.4 1.6 38.4
2012Q2 8.2 3.3 1.6 38.3
2012Q3 8.0 3.4 1.6 38.5
2012Q4 7.8 3.2 1.7 38.6
2013Q1 7.7 3.2 1.7 38.5
2013Q2 7.5 3.2 1.7 38.6
2013Q3 7.3 3.2 1.7 38.6
2013Q4 7.0 3.1 1.6 38.7
2014Q1 6.7 2.8 1.7 38.4

Change since 2007

Date Unemployment rate (Index, 2007=100) Slack work/business conditions (Index, 2007=100) Could only find part-time work (Index, 2007=100)
D.UNRATE.Q D.SLACKRATE.Q D.FINRATE.Q
2007Q1 97.9 95.2 98.1
2007Q2 97.3 99.5 101.8
2007Q3 100.8 101.7 100.1
2007Q4 103.9 103.6 100.0
2008Q1 107.9 114.2 101.4
2008Q2 115.2 128.4 109.9
2008Q3 130.1 146.5 118.4
2008Q4 148.8 186.9 127.7
2009Q1 179.5 226.4 146.9
2009Q2 200.9 234.5 159.3
2009Q3 207.9 232.1 162.6
2009Q4 214.6 228.3 178.9
2010Q1 212.6 216.0 193.3
2010Q2 209.2 215.0 192.4
2010Q3 205.2 217.7 190.9
2010Q4 206.4 207.9 205.7
2011Q1 195.4 200.2 202.6
2011Q2 196.5 200.4 203.6
2011Q3 194.9 198.1 220.1
2011Q4 187.6 193.1 203.2
2012Q1 178.6 183.7 200.9
2012Q2 177.0 180.9 205.6
2012Q3 173.5 184.4 209.5
2012Q4 169.3 174.7 215.5
2013Q1 167.5 173.3 211.0
2013Q2 162.9 173.2 213.2
2013Q3 157.1 170.7 215.7
2013Q4 150.6 169.8 210.7
2014Q1 144.4 150.5 216.0

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Chart 2: Involuntary part-time by major industry

Source: Current Population Survey microdata.

Note: Seasonally adjusted by authors.

Private service-providing industries

Date Unemployment rate (percent of labor force) Slack work/business conditions (percent of labor force) Could only find part-time work (percent of labor force) Average workweek (hours)
SERVICES_URATE.Q SERVICES_SLACK_RATE.Q SERVICES_FIND_RATE.Q SERVICES_MEANHOURS.Q
2000Q1 4.2 1.6 1.0 39.3
2000Q2 3.9 1.5 1.0 39.4
2000Q3 4.0 1.6 0.9 39.6
2000Q4 3.7 1.6 0.9 39.4
2001Q1 4.2 1.7 0.9 39.2
2001Q2 4.4 1.9 1.0 39.0
2001Q3 4.6 2.0 1.0 38.9
2001Q4 5.3 2.4 1.1 38.9
2002Q1 5.6 2.2 1.0 39.0
2002Q2 5.9 2.2 1.1 38.9
2002Q3 5.6 2.2 1.2 38.8
2002Q4 5.8 2.2 1.2 38.8
2003Q1 5.2 2.3 1.2 38.2
2003Q2 5.5 2.4 1.1 38.2
2003Q3 5.4 2.3 1.1 38.2
2003Q4 5.1 2.3 1.2 38.1
2004Q1 5.1 2.3 1.3 38.2
2004Q2 4.9 2.2 1.3 38.0
2004Q3 4.8 2.1 1.3 38.0
2004Q4 4.6 2.1 1.3 38.2
2005Q1 4.6 2.1 1.2 38.2
2005Q2 4.6 2.0 1.2 38.3
2005Q3 4.5 2.1 1.2 38.3
2005Q4 4.4 1.9 1.1 38.3
2006Q1 4.3 1.9 1.1 38.3
2006Q2 4.2 1.9 1.0 38.2
2006Q3 4.1 1.9 1.0 38.4
2006Q4 4.0 1.9 1.1 38.4
2007Q1 4.0 1.9 1.0 38.2
2007Q2 3.9 2.0 1.1 38.3
2007Q3 4.2 2.1 1.0 38.2
2007Q4 4.2 2.1 1.0 38.3
2008Q1 4.3 2.3 1.1 38.2
2008Q2 4.5 2.5 1.1 38.2
2008Q3 5.2 2.8 1.2 38.1
2008Q4 5.9 3.6 1.3 37.8
2009Q1 6.9 4.2 1.5 37.6
2009Q2 7.6 4.3 1.6 37.4
2009Q3 7.8 4.3 1.7 37.2
2009Q4 8.1 4.4 1.8 37.2
2010Q1 8.2 4.2 1.9 37.2
2010Q2 8.1 4.2 1.9 37.5
2010Q3 7.9 4.2 1.9 37.4
2010Q4 8.0 4.2 2.1 37.4
2011Q1 7.7 4.1 2.0 37.3
2011Q2 7.7 4.1 2.1 37.5
2011Q3 7.7 4.1 2.2 37.5
2011Q4 7.5 4.0 2.0 37.5
2012Q1 7.1 3.9 2.0 37.5
2012Q2 7.0 3.8 2.1 37.4
2012Q3 6.9 3.8 2.1 37.6
2012Q4 6.8 3.7 2.1 37.7
2013Q1 6.9 3.7 2.1 37.7
2013Q2 6.6 3.7 2.1 37.7
2013Q3 6.3 3.6 2.2 37.7
2013Q4 6.1 3.6 2.1 37.9
2014Q1 ND ND ND ND

Goods-producting industries

Date Unemployment rate (percent of labor force) Slack work/business conditions (percent of labor force) Could only find part-time work (percent of labor force) Average workweek (hours)
GOODS_URATE.Q GOODS_SLACK_RATE.Q GOODS_FIND_RATE.Q GOODS_MEANHOURS.Q
2000Q1 4.2 1.9 0.2 42.5
2000Q2 4.2 2.1 0.2 42.4
2000Q3 4.1 2.1 0.2 42.3
2000Q4 4.4 2.3 0.2 42.0
2001Q1 5.0 2.3 0.2 41.7
2001Q2 5.3 2.5 0.2 41.5
2001Q3 5.8 2.6 0.2 41.8
2001Q4 7.0 2.9 0.3 41.5
2002Q1 7.4 3.0 0.3 41.4
2002Q2 7.4 2.9 0.3 41.7
2002Q3 7.2 2.7 0.2 41.8
2002Q4 7.5 3.0 0.2 41.5
2003Q1 7.0 3.1 0.3 41.5
2003Q2 7.4 3.1 0.3 41.4
2003Q3 7.3 3.1 0.3 41.4
2003Q4 6.7 2.9 0.3 41.7
2004Q1 6.4 2.8 0.3 41.9
2004Q2 6.5 2.8 0.3 41.7
2004Q3 6.1 2.8 0.3 41.6
2004Q4 6.2 2.8 0.4 41.7
2005Q1 6.1 2.6 0.3 41.7
2005Q2 5.3 2.7 0.3 41.7
2005Q3 5.4 2.9 0.3 41.7
2005Q4 5.4 2.5 0.3 41.9
2006Q1 4.8 2.6 0.3 41.8
2006Q2 5.0 2.6 0.3 41.6
2006Q3 5.2 2.6 0.3 42.0
2006Q4 4.7 2.9 0.2 41.7
2007Q1 5.2 2.9 0.3 41.5
2007Q2 5.2 2.7 0.3 41.9
2007Q3 5.0 2.8 0.3 41.8
2007Q4 5.5 2.9 0.3 41.8
2008Q1 6.1 3.3 0.2 41.7
2008Q2 6.5 3.9 0.3 41.6
2008Q3 7.3 4.3 0.3 41.2
2008Q4 9.2 5.3 0.3 40.6
2009Q1 12.2 6.8 0.4 40.3
2009Q2 14.3 7.2 0.4 39.8
2009Q3 15.0 6.8 0.3 40.0
2009Q4 15.1 6.3 0.4 40.1
2010Q1 14.2 5.8 0.4 40.4
2010Q2 13.7 5.7 0.5 40.6
2010Q3 13.3 5.8 0.5 40.8
2010Q4 13.0 5.1 0.5 40.8
2011Q1 11.7 4.9 0.5 40.8
2011Q2 11.6 5.0 0.5 41.0
2011Q3 11.1 4.8 0.6 41.2
2011Q4 10.1 4.6 0.5 41.2
2012Q1 9.7 4.3 0.5 41.3
2012Q2 9.1 4.0 0.5 41.4
2012Q3 9.2 4.1 0.5 41.2
2012Q4 8.8 3.9 0.6 41.5
2013Q1 8.6 3.8 0.6 41.5
2013Q2 8.2 3.7 0.6 41.5
2013Q3 7.9 3.6 0.5 41.5
2013Q4 7.4 3.6 0.5 41.3
2014Q1 ND ND ND ND

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Chart 3: Decomposition of yearly change in involuntary part-time work

Source: Current Population Survey microdata.

Note: Seasonally adjusted by authors.

Date Net full time ->involuntary part time (Thousands) Net voluntary part time ->involuntary part time (Thousands) Net unemployed ->involuntary part time (Thousands) Net not in the labor force ->involuntary part time (Thousands) Total involuntary part-time (Thousands)
NET1.A NET3.A NET4.A NET5.A PTFER.A
2000 -736.0 -335.5 660.2 292.0 3216.5
2001 86.2 334.0 531.6 127.5 4338.0
2002 -743.6 -305.3 623.9 284.9 4235.2
2003 -745.1 243.8 664.5 211.1 4760.9
2004 -976.5 -342.6 899.4 56.2 4443.8
2005 -997.5 -25.8 475.1 144.9 4090.8
2006 -696.0 -121.9 521.7 333.3 4176.8
2007 -443.2 37.6 630.7 182.6 4642.7
2008 1953.6 1038.2 56.2 297.8 8034.1
2009 131.1 462.5 368.1 17.3 9082.5
2010 -1639.1 -47.3 1093.4 378.2 8947.8
2011 -1899.6 129.5 824.6 89.8 8150.7
2012 -1017.7 -579.9 900.3 309.5 7891.5
2013 -1753.4 -8.5 1049.7 470.8 7726.3

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Chart 4: Transition rates from unemployment or nonparticipation to full-time or part-time employment

Source: Current Population Survey microdata.

Note: Seasonally adjusted by authors.

Transition rates from unemployment

Date P(Unemployed ->full time) (Percent) P(Unemployed ->involuntary part time) (Percent) P(Unemployed ->voluntary part time) (Percent)
PLOTP41 PLOTP42 PLOTP43
2000Q1 18.5 4.6 9.9
2000Q2 17.3 4.4 10.7
2000Q3 17.1 4.2 10.0
2000Q4 17.9 4.3 9.5
2001Q1 16.7 4.6 9.6
2001Q2 18.1 4.5 8.5
2001Q3 16.0 4.4 8.8
2001Q4 15.0 4.3 7.4
2002Q1 15.9 4.3 7.6
2002Q2 13.0 3.9 7.3
2002Q3 13.3 4.4 6.6
2002Q4 12.6 4.0 6.8
2003Q1 12.5 4.4 6.5
2003Q2 12.0 4.6 6.5
2003Q3 11.5 4.4 6.1
2003Q4 13.5 4.7 6.4
2004Q1 12.4 4.0 6.7
2004Q2 12.8 4.4 7.2
2004Q3 14.6 4.2 7.4
2004Q4 13.3 5.2 7.6
2005Q1 13.5 4.2 7.0
2005Q2 14.3 4.1 7.9
2005Q3 14.1 4.6 7.3
2005Q4 14.0 4.0 7.9
2006Q1 15.0 4.3 8.1
2006Q2 14.7 4.9 8.2
2006Q3 16.4 4.3 7.9
2006Q4 15.5 4.6 8.5
2007Q1 16.1 5.0 8.4
2007Q2 14.4 4.6 7.6
2007Q3 14.3 4.7 7.7
2007Q4 14.6 4.2 7.8
2008Q1 13.9 4.8 7.5
2008Q2 13.0 4.7 7.0
2008Q3 12.0 4.3 6.4
2008Q4 10.8 4.5 5.9
2009Q1 9.1 4.7 4.4
2009Q2 7.9 4.9 4.2
2009Q3 7.3 4.5 4.4
2009Q4 7.7 4.8 3.2
2010Q1 7.7 4.6 4.1
2010Q2 8.1 4.4 3.9
2010Q3 8.2 4.5 4.0
2010Q4 8.2 4.5 3.9
2011Q1 8.0 4.2 4.0
2011Q2 8.1 4.0 4.0
2011Q3 8.1 4.5 4.2
2011Q4 8.3 5.0 4.3
2012Q1 8.7 4.4 4.7
2012Q2 8.2 4.1 4.4
2012Q3 8.9 4.3 4.7
2012Q4 8.4 4.2 4.7
2013Q1 9.1 4.0 4.8
2013Q2 9.2 4.6 5.2
2013Q3 9.2 4.3 5.0
2013Q4 9.8 4.3 4.6
2014Q1 ND ND ND

Transition rates from nonparticipation

Date P(Not in the labor force ->full time) (Percent) P(Not in the labor force ->involuntary part time) (Percent) P(Not in the labor force ->voluntary part time) (Percent)
PLOTP51 PLOTP52 PLOTP53
2000Q1 2.1 0.3 2.6
2000Q2 2.0 0.3 2.5
2000Q3 2.2 0.2 2.4
2000Q4 2.1 0.2 2.6
2001Q1 2.3 0.3 2.6
2001Q2 2.2 0.2 2.4
2001Q3 2.2 0.3 2.6
2001Q4 2.1 0.3 2.2
2002Q1 2.0 0.3 2.4
2002Q2 2.1 0.3 2.4
2002Q3 2.0 0.3 2.3
2002Q4 1.9 0.3 2.3
2003Q1 2.0 0.3 2.3
2003Q2 1.9 0.3 2.3
2003Q3 1.9 0.3 2.4
2003Q4 2.0 0.3 2.3
2004Q1 1.9 0.3 2.3
2004Q2 1.8 0.2 2.3
2004Q3 2.0 0.3 2.5
2004Q4 1.9 0.3 2.4
2005Q1 2.0 0.3 2.2
2005Q2 2.1 0.3 2.4
2005Q3 2.0 0.3 2.4
2005Q4 2.0 0.2 2.3
2006Q1 2.1 0.3 2.4
2006Q2 2.2 0.3 2.5
2006Q3 2.2 0.2 2.4
2006Q4 2.2 0.3 2.5
2007Q1 2.2 0.3 2.5
2007Q2 2.1 0.3 2.3
2007Q3 2.1 0.2 2.2
2007Q4 2.0 0.3 2.2
2008Q1 1.9 0.3 2.2
2008Q2 1.9 0.3 2.2
2008Q3 1.8 0.3 2.0
2008Q4 1.8 0.4 2.0
2009Q1 1.6 0.4 1.9
2009Q2 1.6 0.4 1.9
2009Q3 1.5 0.3 1.9
2009Q4 1.5 0.4 1.8
2010Q1 1.7 0.4 1.9
2010Q2 1.6 0.4 1.7
2010Q3 1.6 0.4 1.8
2010Q4 1.6 0.4 1.8
2011Q1 1.7 0.4 1.8
2011Q2 1.7 0.4 1.8
2011Q3 1.7 0.4 1.8
2011Q4 1.7 0.4 1.8
2012Q1 1.6 0.3 1.8
2012Q2 1.7 0.4 1.8
2012Q3 1.7 0.4 1.8
2012Q4 1.7 0.4 1.8
2013Q1 1.7 0.4 1.8
2013Q2 1.9 0.4 1.8
2013Q3 1.7 0.3 1.8
2013Q4 1.8 0.4 1.7
2014Q1 ND ND ND

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