February 12, 2007 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Work experience of men and women in 2005

In 2005, the proportion of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 years old and over that worked at some point during the year was 67.7 percent, essentially unchanged from 2004.

[Chart data—TXT]

The proportion of men who worked at some time during the year edged up to 74.4 percent in 2005; among women the proportion was about unchanged at 61.4 percent.

Among those with work experience during 2005, 77.4 percent were employed year round (either full or part time), up by 0.4 percentage point from 2004. Continuing a long-term growth trend, full-year employment among women edged up to 74.0 percent in 2005. The percentage of men employed year round also was up over the year, increasing to 80.5 percent from 80.0 percent in 2004.

About 4 out of 5 of those who were employed at some time during 2005 usually worked full time, about the same ratio as in 2004. Among both men and women, the proportion who worked full time was little changed in 2005 (87.0 and 72.7 percent, respectively).

These data are from the Current Population Survey. To learn more, see "Work Experience of the Population in 2005" (PDF) (TXT), USDL news release 07-0199. Time worked includes paid vacation and sick leave.