Tracking Youth Unemployment During the COVID-19 Pandemic

With many states introducing shelter-in-place orders in the beginning of March 2020, the unemployment rate in the United States jumped from a decade-low 3.5 percent in February to 14.7 percent in April, far exceeding the level of unemployment experienced during the Great Recession.

The situation for youth has been particularly alarming—within two months, unemployment increased from 7.7 to 27.4 percent. The Tracking Youth Unemployment During the COVID-19 Pandemic project, funded by the Schultz Family Foundation, provides publicly available and timely data on youth unemployment in selected metro areas, at the state level, and at the national level by population subgroups. These geographic- and population-specific data can help policymakers, foundations, and other key stakeholders who directly serve youth to target their resources and programs more effectively.

Using micro-level data from the monthly Current Population Surveys and compiling monthly statistics from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Labor Force Surveys, this project is developing monthly, semi-annual, and annual data series on youth unemployment beginning with 2010 and disseminating findings via monthly infographics.

• National youth unemployment rates: This series covers monthly and annual national youth unemployment rates, disaggregated by age, race and ethnicity, and gender.
• State level youth unemployment rates: This series covers annual youth unemployment rates at the state level, and three-monthly average youth unemployment rates in 30 selected states.
• Metro level youth unemployment rates: This series covers three-monthly averages for youth unemployment in six selected large metro areas, semi-annual youth unemployment rates in 25 selected metro areas, and annual youth unemployment rates in 50 selected metro areas.