June 04, 2008 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Labor force participation of mothers with infants in 2007

Of the 3.3 million mothers with children under a year old, 55.1 percent were in the labor force in 2007, little changed from 2006.

Labor force participation of mothers with children under 1 year old, 2006-07
[Chart data—TXT]

The labor force participation rate for unmarried mothers with children under a year old in 2007 was 56.5 percent. The participation rate for married mothers with children under a year old was 54.6 percent in 2007.

These data on the labor force participation of mothers are produced by the Current Population Survey. "Infants" refers to children under 1 year. "Unmarried mothers" include never-married, divorced, separated, and widowed mothers. More information can be found in "Employment Characteristics of Families in 2007," news release USDL 08-0731.

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