January 08, 2002 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Unemployment edged up in December

The unemployment rate edged up to 5.8 percent in December 2001. The number of unemployed persons continued to rise, reaching 8.3 million (after seasonal adjustment).

[Chart data—TXT]

The measure of persons unemployed 15 weeks or longer as a share of the civilian labor force, 1.7 percent in December, also edged up. The number of unemployed persons who were reentrants to the labor force increased in December, while the numbers of unemployed job losers, job leavers, and new entrants to the labor force were little changed.

The number of persons working part time despite their preference for full-time work rose over the year, from 3.2 to 4.3 million.

These data are products of the Current Population Survey (CPS). Seasonally adjusted CPS data have been revised using updated seasonal adjustment factors that incorporate 2001 data. Seasonally adjusted estimates back to January 1997 were subject to revision. For more information, see The Employment Situation: December 2001, news release USDL. 02-03.