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Hurricane Katrina Evacuees, October 2005

In October, evacuees identified in CPS-sampled households represented about 800,000 persons age 16 and over who had evacuated from where they were living in August due to Hurricane Katrina. About 4 in 10 of these persons had returned to the home from which they had evacuated. Of the 800,000 evacuees, just over half were in the labor force in October, and their unemployment rate was 24.5 percent. See table below.

[Numbers in thousands, not seasonally adjusted]
Employment status in October 2005 of persons 16 years and over who evacuated from their August residence, even temporarily, due to Hurricane Katrina 1/
Employment status in October 2005 Total Residence in October
Same as in August Different than in August

Civilian noninstitutional population

791 305 486

Civilian labor force

441 172 269

Participation rate

55.7 56.2 55.4

Employed

333 153 179

Employment-population ratio

42.1 50.2 36.9

Unemployed

108 18 90

Unemployment rate

24.5 10.5 33.4

Not in labor force

351 134 217

1/ Represents persons in the civilian noninstitutional population age 16 and over who resided in households that were eligible to be selected for CPS. These data are not representative of the total evacuee population because they do not include children or people residing in shelters, hotels, places of worship, or other units out of scope for CPS. The total number of evacuees estimated from the CPS may change from month to month as people move in and out of the scope of the survey and because of sampling variability.

Note: These data use population controls that have been adjusted to account for interstate moves by evacuees.

Back to Employment Status Information on Hurricane Katrina Evacuees

Hurricane Information Homepage | Effects of Hurricane Katrina on BLS Employment and Unemployment Data Collection and Estimation

 

Last Modified Date: May 2, 2006