RE: Work force is calculated as all people over 16 and not in the military or institutionalized. So yes, that includes people who are retired, like my parents.
________________________________
OK, what does “working age Americans” in the sentence mean?
If they include retirees and those in college, then either the 102 Million figure is skewed, or the use of the term “working age Americans” is undefined or has been redefined.
It does. College and high school. The Bureau of Labor Statistics defines the labor force as anyone over age 16 who is not on active duty in the armed forces and who is not in an institution (prison or mental facility, old age home, etc.) That figure includes retired, those not working due to choice like stay-at-home mothers, those on disability, and so forth. So yes, that 21.5% rate is skewed. That's why the government does not use it as a measure of unemployment.