Hurricane Katrina Evacuees, December 2005

In December, evacuees identified in CPS-sampled households represented about 1.1 million persons aged 16 and over who had evacuated from where they were living in August due to Hurricane Katrina. Just over half of these persons had returned to the home from which they had evacuated. Of the 1.1 million evacuees, about 58 percent were in the labor force in December and their unemployment rate was 12.4 percent. See table below.

Employment status in December 2005 of persons 16 years and over who evacuated from their August residence, even temporarily, due to Hurricane Katrina 1/

[Numbers in thousands, not seasonally adjusted]
Employment status in December 2005 Total Residence in December
Same as in
August		 Different than
in August

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

 1,105 605 500

Civilian labor force

 643 353 290

Participation rate

 58.2 58.4 58.0

Employed

 563 333 230

Employment-population ratio

 51.0 55.1 46.0

Unemployed

 80 20 60

Unemployment rate

 12.4 5.6 20.7

Not in labor force

 462 252 210

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