The US labor force — that is, the number of Americans working or actively seeking work — has grown at a slower rate every decade since the 1970s. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the US labor force was facing population and immigration growth declines, lower rates of women and younger people going into the labor force, and more Americans reaching retirement age.
The rate of expansion of the labor force peaked in the 1970s at almost 25,000 people per decade. By the 2010s this number declined to just over 5,000. In the past two years, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, the labor force actually shrank. A shrinking or more slowly growing labor force means fewer people making the goods and services that drive the economy. It can also exacerbate the current supply chain challenges.
