Department of Labor Logo United States Department of Labor
Dot gov

The .gov means it's official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you're on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Economic News Release
PRINT:Print
CPS CPS Program Links

Characteristics of Unemployment Insurance Applicants and Benefit Recipients News Release

For release 10:00 a.m. (ET) Wednesday, March 29, 2023			      USDL-23-0586

Technical information: (202) 691-6378  *  cpsinfo@bls.gov  *  www.bls.gov/cps  
Media contact:         (202) 691-5902  *  PressOffice@bls.gov


                  CHARACTERISTICS OF UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE APPLICANTS 
                              AND BENEFIT RECIPIENTS -- 2022          


In 2022, about one-quarter of the unemployed (26 percent) who worked in the past 12 months
had applied for unemployment insurance (UI) benefits, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
reported today. Of the unemployed who had not applied for benefits, more than one-half
(55 percent) did not apply because they did not believe they were eligible to receive UI
benefits.

Only people who have previously worked are eligible for UI benefits, and they generally
must apply shortly after separating from their last job. Therefore, estimates presented
in this news release are restricted to people who had worked at some point in the 12 months
prior to the survey. In 2022, about two-thirds of the unemployed had worked in the last
12 months. Other unemployed people, including those who entered the labor force for the
first time and those who last worked more than a year ago, are excluded from these data.

This information was obtained in a supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS), a
monthly sample survey of about 60,000 households that provides data on employment and 
unemployment in the United States. This supplement, which was conducted in February and
May 2022, was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor's Chief Evaluation Office. Estimates
in this news release--referred to as 2022 estimates--are averages of data collected in
both months. The official measure of unemployment from the CPS is based on job search
activity and current availability for employment, rather than on the application for or
receipt of UI benefits. A more detailed description of the concepts and definitions used
in the supplement is included in the Technical Note in this news release.

Highlights from the 2022 data:

 --The majority--about 7 in 10--of unemployed people who worked in the past 12 months
   had not applied for UI benefits since their last job. (See tables 1 and 3.)

 --Unemployed people covered by a union contract on their last job were more than twice
   as likely to have applied for UI benefits as those who were not covered: 57 percent
   versus 24 percent. (See table 2.)

 --Among unemployed people who had not applied for UI benefits, 55 percent did not apply
   because they thought they were ineligible to receive benefits. About 17 percent of
   the unemployed did not apply because they expected to start working soon. Another
   10 percent cited attitudes about or barriers to applying, such as they did not need
   the money, had a negative attitude about UI, did not know about UI, or had problems
   with the application process. (See table 3.)

--Fifty-five percent of unemployed people who had applied for UI benefits since their
  last job received benefits. (See table 1.)

Unemployment Insurance Applicants

In 2022, 26 percent of the unemployed who worked in the past 12 months had applied for UI
benefits after separating from their last job. (See table 1.)

The likelihood of applying for UI benefits varied by reason for unemployment. Among job
losers and people who completed temporary jobs, 37 percent had applied for UI benefits since
their last job. The figure was lower for people with other reasons for unemployment: 11 percent
for job leavers and 10 percent for reentrants to the labor force who worked in the last year.
(Job leavers are unemployed people who left their jobs voluntarily, and reentrants are unemployed
people who have past work experience but were not in the labor force before beginning their
current job search.)

People with longer durations of unemployment were more likely to apply for UI benefits than
were people with shorter durations of joblessness. For example, 37 percent of people looking
for work for 15 to 26 weeks and 36 percent of those looking for 27 weeks and over had applied
for UI benefits, higher than the share for those unemployed for less than 5 weeks (19 percent).

The share of unemployed men who applied for UI benefits was little different from the share
of unemployed women who applied: 27 percent and 24 percent, respectively. There was also 
little difference in the likelihood of applying for benefits by race or Hispanic ethnicity.

The likelihood of applying for UI benefits increased with age. About 8 percent of unemployed
people ages 16 to 24 had applied since their last job, compared with 31 percent of those ages
25 to 54 and 35 percent of those 55 years and over.

Among unemployed people age 25 and over, 36 percent of unemployed people who were high school
graduates (no college) applied for UI benefits, little different from the percentage for people
with some college or an associate degree (38 percent). This was higher than the share of people
with a bachelor's degree and higher (23 percent). 

Among major occupational groups, people last employed in natural resources, construction,
and maintenance occupations were more likely to have applied for UI benefits (37 percent) 
than people last employed in management, professional, and related occupations (25 percent),
in service occupations (22 percent), and in production, transportation, and material moving
occupations (19 percent). (See table 2.)

Among industries, unemployed people who last worked in education and health (17 percent),
leisure and hospitality (19 percent), other services (21 percent), and in wholesale and
retail trade (22 percent) were the least likely to have applied for UI benefits. This compared
with 38 percent for those who last worked in construction and 39 percent for those who last
worked in manufacturing.

Unemployed people who were covered by a union contract on their last job were more than
twice as likely to have applied for UI benefits, 57 percent compared with 24 percent of 
those who were not covered.

Reason for Not Applying for Unemployment Insurance Benefits

In 2022, the majority--about 7 in 10--of unemployed people who worked in the past 12 months
had not applied for UI benefits since their last job. Of these unemployed people, 55 percent
did not apply because they believed they were ineligible. Eligibility issues include: their
work was not covered by UI, they quit their job, were terminated for misconduct, had 
insufficient past work, or had previously exhausted their benefits. (See tables 1 and 3.)

Approximately 1 out of 10 unemployed people who had not applied for UI benefits had not done
so because of attitudes about or barriers to applying--for example, they did not need the
money or want the hassle, had a negative attitude about UI, did not know about UI or did
not know how to apply, or had problems with the application process.

About 17 percent of unemployed people had not applied for UI benefits because they expected
to start work soon. Other reasons for not applying for UI benefits include personal reasons
or planned to file for benefits soon.

About 4 percent of unemployed people who had not applied for UI benefits did not provide a
reason for not applying.

Unemployment Insurance Benefit Recipients

In 2022, 55 percent of unemployed people who had applied for UI benefits after separating
from their last job received benefits. (See table 1.)

Among unemployed applicants, 59 percent of job losers and people who completed temporary
jobs received benefits. This was higher than the figures of 35 percent for job leavers and
34 percent for reentrants to the labor force who received UI benefits.

Applicants who were unemployed less than 5 weeks were less likely to receive benefits (42
percent) than were those with longer durations of joblessness. For example, 72 percent of
applicants unemployed for 27 weeks and over had received benefits.

The shares of men and women who received UI benefits were little different (58 percent and
51 percent, respectively). There was also little difference in the likelihood of receiving
benefits by race or Hispanic ethnicity.

Applicants who were covered by a union contract in their last job were more likely to have
received UI benefits than those who were not covered. About four-fifths (81 percent) of
applicants who were covered by a union contract had received benefits since separating from
their last job, compared with one-half (50 percent) of applicants who were not covered.
(See table 2.)

People Marginally Attached to the Labor Force

Some individuals may be eligible for UI benefits even though they were not classified as
unemployed in the survey. In 2022, 14 percent of people marginally attached to the labor
force had applied for UI benefits since separating from their last job. (These estimates
are restricted to people who had worked in the past 12 months.) (See table 4.)

People marginally attached to the labor force are those who are neither employed nor
unemployed, who want a job, have searched for work during the prior 12 months (but not in
the last 4 weeks), and were available to take a job. If they had looked for work in the
last 4 weeks, they would be counted as unemployed.

More than one-half (56 percent) of people marginally attached to the labor force had not
applied for UI benefits since separating from their last job because they believed they
were ineligible to receive benefits. Another 10 percent had not applied due to attitudes
about or barriers to applying for UI benefits, and 28 percent had not applied for UI 
benefits for other reasons. Six percent of people marginally attached to the labor force
who had not applied for UI benefits did not provide a reason for not applying. (See table 5.)




Technical Note

The data presented in this news release were collected through a supplement to the February and May 2022
Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS is a monthly survey of about 60,000 eligible households that
provides data on employment and unemployment for the nation’s civilian noninstitutional population age
16 and over. The CPS is conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Chief Evaluation Office sponsored the collection of the February and May
2022 supplement to obtain information about the number and characteristics of those who do and do not
file for unemployment insurance (UI) benefits, as well as information on those who receive benefits.
These data provide information not available from the UI program administrative data or the monthly CPS.

One of the most persistent misconceptions about the CPS unemployment measure is that it is based on the
number of people who apply for or receive UI benefits. However, data on UI program participation cannot
be used to determine unemployment because the CPS concept includes people who are not eligible for
benefits, who have exhausted their benefits, and who do not apply for benefits. The monthly CPS does not
include questions about UI participation.

Only people who have previously worked are eligible for UI benefits, and they generally must apply 
shortly after separating from their last job. Therefore, estimates presented in this news release are
restricted to people who had worked at some point in the 12 months prior to the survey. In 2022, about
two-thirds of the unemployed had worked in the last 12 months. Other unemployed people, including those
who entered the labor force for the first time and those who last worked more than a year ago, are
excluded from this news release.

The estimates in this release--referred to as 2022 estimates--are weighted averages of data collected in
February and May 2022. Data are weighted to produce nationally representative estimates. The supplement
weights are controlled to population estimates that are averaged over the 2 months. May data are 
disproportionately represented in the estimates because two-thirds of the data were collected in May,
when the full CPS sample received the supplement questions. One-half of the CPS sample was asked these
questions in February.

If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access
telecommunications relay services.

Definitions

The principal definitions used in this news release are described below. Additional information about
CPS concepts and definitions is available on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/cps/definitions.htm.

Unemployed who worked in the past 12 months. In the CPS, people are classified as unemployed if they
were not employed during the survey reference week; were available for work during the survey reference
week (except for temporary illness); and had made at least one specific, active effort to find employment
sometime during the 4-week period ending with the survey reference week. People who were waiting to be
recalled to a job from which they had been laid off need not have been looking for work to be classified
as unemployed.

Data in this news release exclude unemployed people with no previous work experience and those who last
worked more than 12 months prior to the survey. However, all unemployed persons expecting to be recalled
from temporary layoff are included, regardless of whether they worked in the 12 months prior to the survey.

Marginally attached to the labor force who worked in the past 12 months. People marginally attached to 
the labor force are those who are neither employed nor unemployed, who want a job, have searched for work
during the prior 12 months, and were available to take a job during the survey reference week, but had 
not looked for work in the 4-week period ending with the survey reference week. If they had looked for 
work in the 4-week period, they would be counted as unemployed.

Data in this news release on people marginally attached to the labor force refer to those who worked 
in the past 12 months, a subset of total marginally attached.

Unemployment Insurance (UI). The federal-state UI program provides unemployment benefits to eligible 
workers (as determined under state law). The UI payments (benefits) are intended to provide temporary
financial assistance to unemployed workers. Each state administers a separate UI program within guidelines
established by federal law. Eligibility for UI benefits, amounts, and the length of time benefits are 
available are determined by the state law under which UI claims are established. For more information about
state UI programs, visit https://oui.doleta.gov/unemploy/uifactsheet.asp.

UI benefit applicants. In the CPS, UI applicants are people who applied for UI benefits since separating
from their last job. Whether a person applied for UI benefits was determined through answers to the 
question: "Have you applied for unemployment benefits since your last job?" Data in this news release 
refer to unemployed individuals and people marginally attached to the labor force who had worked in the
past 12 months.

UI benefit recipients. In the CPS, these individuals are UI applicants who received UI benefits since 
separating from their last job. This information was obtained from the following question: "Have you 
received any unemployment benefits since your last job?" This question was asked of people who had applied
for UI benefits since their last job. Data in this news release refer to unemployed individuals and people
marginally attached to the labor force who had worked in the past 12 months.

Union coverage on last job. Data in this news release refer both to union members and to those who were
covered by a union contract on their last job. Union coverage on the last job is based on the question:
"Were you a union member or covered by a union contract on your last job?"

Main reason for not applying for UI benefits. This information is based on responses to the question: 
"There are a variety of reasons why people might not apply for unemployment benefits. What are the reasons
you have not applied for unemployment benefits since your last job?" Interviewers could record more than
one reason. If respondents provided more than one reason, interviewers asked which was their main reason.

Comparability of the estimates

Previous supplements collected data on UI applicants and benefit recipients in 2018, 2005, 1993, 1989,
and 1976. The 2022 supplement questions used to identify UI applicants and benefit recipients were similar
to the 2018 and 2005 supplements but were different from questions used in earlier years.

The 2022 estimates are not strictly comparable with those from prior years. Changes in survey methods
affect the comparability of estimates over time. For example, the questions were not the same in all 
supplements. Also, collection periods differed across supplements, and the supplements were not always 
administered to all CPS respondents. For example, the 2022 supplement was collected in 2 nonconsecutive
months (February and May). Data in February were collected from half of the CPS sample, and data in May
were collected from the full CPS sample. In contrast, the supplement in 2018 was collected in May and
September from the full CPS sample. The supplements for 2005, 1993, and 1989 were collected in 4 different
months, and the questions were asked of about one-fourth of the CPS sample (the outgoing rotations).
(Specifically, the 2005 supplement data were collected in January, May, July, and November; the 1993 
supplement was administered in February, June, August, and November; and the 1989 supplement was conducted 
in May, August, and November 1989 and in February 1990.) The 1976 supplement was administered to the full
sample in May 1976.

Other factors should also be considered when analyzing the data. Different points in the business cycle,
changes in state UI laws, and the seasonal nature of applying for UI benefits can further complicate
comparisons of data over time. For example, the unemployment rate in 2022 was relatively low by historical
standards, and partially reflected economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. These factors may impact
the number and characteristics of people who apply for UI benefits.

Reliability of the estimates

Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both sampling and nonsampling error. When a sample, rather than
the entire population, is surveyed, there is a chance that the sample estimates may differ from the true
population values they represent. The component of this difference that occurs because samples differ by
chance is known as sampling error, and its variability is measured by the standard error of the estimate.
There is about a 90-percent chance, or level of confidence, that an estimate based on a sample will differ
by no more than 1.6 standard errors from the true population value because of sampling error. BLS analyses
are generally conducted at the 90-percent level of confidence.

The CPS data also are affected by nonsampling error. Nonsampling error can occur for many reasons, 
including the failure to sample a segment of the population, inability to obtain information for all
respondents in the sample, inability or unwillingness of respondents to provide correct information, and
errors made in the collection or processing of the data.

General information about the reliability of data from the CPS is available at 
www.bls.gov/cps/documentation.htm#reliability.




Table 1. Unemployment insurance (UI) benefit applicants and recipients among unemployed persons who had worked in the past 12 months by selected characteristics, 2022
[Numbers in thousands]
Characteristic Unemployed who
worked in the past
12 months (1)
UI benefit applicants Did not
apply for UI
benefits
Total Percent of
unemployed
UI benefit recipients
Total Percent of
UI benefit
applicants
Percent of
unemployed

Age

Total, 16 years and over

4,149 1,075 25.9 591 55.0 14.2 2,998

16 to 24 years

1,081 85 7.9 32 37.5 3.0 977

25 to 54 years

2,369 743 31.3 423 57.0 17.9 1,576

55 years and over

699 247 35.3 136 54.9 19.4 445

Sex

Men

2,319 630 27.2 363 57.6 15.7 1,638

Women

1,830 444 24.3 227 51.2 12.4 1,360

Race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity

White

2,889 693 24.0 392 56.6 13.6 2,144

Black or African American

861 273 31.7 133 48.7 15.4 570

Asian

165 45 27.4 28 - 17.1 115

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity

871 188 21.6 85 45.1 9.7 664

Disability status

With a disability

342 66 19.4 37 - 10.7 273

With no disability

3,807 1,008 26.5 554 54.9 14.6 2,725

Foreign born status

Foreign born

655 171 26.1 82 48.2 12.6 476

Native born

3,494 904 25.9 508 56.3 14.5 2,522

Reason for unemployment

Job losers and persons who completed temporary jobs

2,411 899 37.3 530 59.0 22.0 1,478

Job leavers

731 77 10.6 27 35.3 3.7 638

Reentrants

1,006 98 9.8 33 33.7 3.3 882

Duration of unemployment

Less than 5 weeks

1,805 344 19.0 145 42.3 8.0 1,441

5 to 14 weeks

1,377 376 27.3 215 57.2 15.6 970

15 to 26 weeks

590 220 37.2 132 60.3 22.4 362

27 weeks and over

377 136 35.9 98 72.4 26.0 225

Certification and licensing status

With a certification or license

610 198 32.5 97 48.9 15.9 399

Without a certification or license

3,539 876 24.8 494 56.3 14.0 2,599

Educational attainment

Total, 25 years and over

3,068 990 32.3 559 56.5 18.2 2,021

Less than a high school diploma

294 80 27.3 32 40.5 11.1 202

High school graduates, no college (2)

1,071 381 35.6 230 60.4 21.5 666

Some college or associate degree

897 343 38.2 194 56.5 21.6 550

Bachelor's degree and higher (3)

807 185 23.0 102 55.2 12.7 603

(1) Includes a relatively small number of persons who did not provide information about applying for UI benefits, not shown separately.
(2) Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent.
(3) Includes persons with bachelor's, master's, professional, and doctoral degrees.

NOTE: Estimates are an average of data collected in February and May 2022. Data exclude unemployed persons with no previous work experience and those who last worked more than 12 months prior to the survey. However, all unemployed persons expecting to be recalled from temporary layoff are included, regardless of whether they worked in the 12 months prior to the survey. Estimates for the above race groups (White, Black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races. Persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. Dash indicates no data or data that do not meet publication criteria (values not shown where base is less than 75,000).


Table 2. Unemployment insurance (UI) benefit applicants and recipients among unemployed persons who had worked in the past 12 months by characteristics of last job, 2022
[Numbers in thousands]
Characteristic Unemployed
who worked
in the past
12 months (1)
UI benefit applicants Did not
apply for UI
benefits
Total Percent of
unemployed
UI benefit recipients
Total Percent of
UI benefit
applicants
Percent of
unemployed

Total, 16 years and over

4,149 1,075 25.9 591 55.0 14.2 2,998

Union status on last job (2)

Union member or represented by a union

269 153 57.0 124 80.7 45.9 113

Nonunion

3,757 902 24.0 454 50.3 12.1 2,827

Occupation of last job (3)

Management, professional, and related occupations

904 229 25.4 133 57.8 14.7 665

Management, business, and financial operations occupations

372 144 38.6 73 50.9 19.6 228

Professional and related occupations

532 86 16.1 59 69.3 11.2 437

Service occupations

879 197 22.4 112 57.1 12.8 658

Sales and office occupations

916 264 28.8 126 47.7 13.7 644

Sales and related occupations

416 106 25.4 53 49.9 12.7 307

Office and administrative support occupations

500 158 31.7 73 46.2 14.6 336

Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations

591 220 37.1 132 59.9 22.3 365

Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations

67 21 - 13 - - 46

Construction and extraction occupations

456 178 39.0 111 62.1 24.2 271

Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations

68 21 - 9 - - 48

Production, transportation, and material moving occupations

853 165 19.3 88 53.6 10.4 660

Production occupations

308 65 21.3 29 - 9.5 239

Transportation and material moving occupations

545 99 18.2 59 59.6 10.9 420

Industry of last job (3)

Agriculture and related industries

86 25 29.0 17 - 19.6 61

Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction

23 12 - 7 - - 10

Construction

513 192 37.5 124 64.7 24.3 314

Manufacturing

383 148 38.5 79 53.6 20.6 236

Wholesale and retail trade

621 136 21.9 72 52.8 11.5 469

Transportation and utilities

319 82 25.7 43 52.6 13.5 229

Information

51 13 - 4 - - 36

Financial activities

159 44 27.8 15 - 9.3 114

Professional and business services

586 151 25.7 92 61.3 15.7 424

Education and health services

562 95 17.0 46 48.5 8.2 463

Leisure and hospitality

589 109 18.6 56 51.6 9.6 467

Other services

154 32 20.8 25 - 16.3 111

Public administration

97 35 36.2 10 - 10.5 58

(1) Includes a relatively small number of persons who did not provide information about applying for UI benefits, not shown separately.
(2) Refers to union members and those covered by a union contract on their last job. Data do not sum to total because some individuals did not respond to the question about union membership.
(3) Persons whose last job was in the U.S. Armed Forces are included in the unemployed total, but not shown separately.

NOTE: Estimates are an average of data collected in February and May 2022. Data exclude unemployed persons with no previous work experience and those who last worked more than 12 months prior to the survey. However, all unemployed persons expecting to be recalled from temporary layoff are included, regardless of whether they worked in the 12 months prior to the survey. Dash indicates no data or data that do not meet publication criteria (values not shown where base is less than 75,000).


Table 3. Main reason for not applying for unemployment insurance (UI) benefits among unemployed persons who had worked in the past 12 months, 2022
[Numbers in thousands]
Main reason for not applying for UI benefits Unemployed persons (1) who did
not apply for UI benefits
Total Percent
distribution

Total, 16 years and over

2,998 100.0

Eligibility issues

1,652 55.1

Job separation type (quit, misconduct, etc.) or work not covered by UI

956 31.9

Insufficient past work

361 12.0

Previous exhaustion of benefits

52 1.7

Any other reason concerning eligibility

283 9.5

Attitude about or barrier to applying for UI benefits

306 10.2

Do not need the money or do not want the hassle

163 5.4

Negative attitude about UI

15 0.5

Do not know about UI or do not know how to apply

85 2.8

Problems with application process

44 1.5

Other reasons for not applying for UI benefits

923 30.8

Expect to start working soon

505 16.8

Did not apply for personal reasons

65 2.2

Plan to file soon

97 3.2

All other reasons

257 8.6

Reason not provided

117 3.9

(1) Data exclude unemployed persons with no previous work experience and those who last worked more than 12 months prior to the survey. However, all unemployed persons expecting to be recalled from temporary layoff are included, regardless of whether they worked in the 12 months prior to the survey.

NOTE: Estimates are an average of data collected in February and May 2022. Dash indicates no data or data that do not meet publication criteria (values not shown where base is less than 75,000).


Table 4. Unemployment insurance (UI) benefit applicants and recipients among persons marginally attached to the labor force who had worked in the past 12 months by selected characteristics, 2022
[Numbers in thousands]
Characteristic Marginally
attached to the
labor force who
worked in the past
12 months (1)
UI benefit applicants Did not apply
for UI
benefits
Total Percent of
marginally
attached
UI benefit recipients
Total Percent of
marginally
attached

Age

Total, 16 years and over

510 73 14.3 47 9.1 423

16 to 24 years

154 13 8.2 7 4.3 137

25 to 54 years

285 47 16.6 32 11.3 228

55 years and over

71 13 - 8 - 59

Sex

Men

260 44 16.9 32 12.3 202

Women

251 29 11.5 15 5.9 221

Race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity

White

350 47 13.4 27 7.6 290

Black or African American

99 15 15.2 10 10.1 84

Asian

9 3 - 3 - 6

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity

108 24 21.7 22 20.6 85

Educational attainment

Total, 25 years and over

357 60 16.9 40 11.2 287

Less than a high school diploma

58 7 - 3 - 46

High school graduates, no college (2)

106 10 9.6 7 6.3 90

Some college or associate degree

120 26 21.8 21 17.4 94

Bachelor's degree and higher (3)

73 17 - 10 - 56

(1) Includes a relatively small number of persons who did not provide information about applying for UI benefits, not shown separately.
(2) Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent.
(3) Includes persons with bachelor's, master's, professional, and doctoral degrees.

NOTE: Estimates are an average of data collected in February and May 2022. Persons marginally attached to the labor force are those who are neither employed nor unemployed, who want a job, have searched for work during the prior 12 months, and were available to take a job during the reference week, but had not looked for work in the 4 weeks prior to the survey. All data in this table refer to the subset of persons marginally attached to the labor force who have worked in the past 12 months. Estimates for the above race groups (White, Black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races. Persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. Dash indicates no data or data that do not meet publication criteria (values not shown where base is less than 75,000).


Table 5. Main reason for not applying for unemployment insurance (UI) benefits among persons marginally attached to the labor force who had worked in the past 12 months, 2022
[Numbers in thousands]
Main reason for not applying for UI benefits Marginally attached (1) who did not
apply for UI benefits
Total Percent
distribution

Total, 16 years and over

423 100.0

Eligibility issues

237 56.0

Job separation type (quit, misconduct, etc.) or work not covered by UI

144 34.0

Insufficient past work

60 14.3

Previous exhaustion of benefits

- -

Any other reason concerning eligibility

33 7.7

Attitude about or barrier to applying for UI benefits

43 10.2

Do not need the money or do not want the hassle

22 5.1

Negative attitude about UI

3 0.8

Do not know about UI or do not know how to apply

11 2.6

Problems with application process

7 1.6

Other reasons for not applying for UI benefits

117 27.7

Expect to start working soon

36 8.5

Did not apply for personal reasons

18 4.4

Plan to file soon

17 4.1

All other reasons

46 10.8

Reason not provided

26 6.1

(1) Data refer to the subset of persons marginally attached to the labor force who have worked in the past 12 months. (Persons marginally attached to the labor force are those who are neither employed nor unemployed, who want a job, have searched for work during the prior 12 months, and were available to take a job during the reference week, but had not looked for work in the 4 weeks prior to the survey.)

NOTE: Estimates are an average of data collected in February and May 2022. Dash indicates no data or data that do not meet publication criteria (values not shown where base is less than 75,000).


Last Modified Date: March 29, 2023