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A surprising group is disappearing from the job market
Cleveland.com ^ | 08 17 2026 | Chris Pugh

Posted on 08/18/2026 9:40:47 AM PDT by yesthatjallen

The U.S. unemployment rate remains historically low, but a growing number of labor researchers are focused on a different warning sign: young men are becoming less likely to work or actively look for jobs. The unemployment rate fell to 4.1% in July, while the civilian labor force declined by 264,000 people and the labor force participation rate slipped to 61.4%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The decline is especially pronounced among young men. A May analysis by the American Institute for Boys and Men found that labor force participation among men ages 16 to 24 fell from 69% in 2000 to 57% in 2025, the largest drop among the male age groups it examined. The group also found that the share of young men who were not in school and not seeking work doubled from 4% to 8% between 1990 and 2024.

The trend is unfolding as the broader labor market shows signs of cooling. The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis said July’s unemployment rate dropped partly because labor force participation declined faster than employment in the household survey. The bank also said payroll employment, employment-to-population ratios and labor force participation had moved lower in 2026, even as most major indicators remained healthy by historical standards.

SNIP

(Excerpt) Read more at cleveland.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: boys; jobs; laborstatistics; men; unemployment; workforce

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1 posted on 08/18/2026 9:40:47 AM PDT by yesthatjallen
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To: yesthatjallen

DEI is in full force.


2 posted on 08/18/2026 9:43:16 AM PDT by fruser1
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To: yesthatjallen

Waiting for all the boomercons to show up on this thread and blame it on “young people just don’t wanna work anymore like we did in my day!”


3 posted on 08/18/2026 9:46:47 AM PDT by Yashcheritsiy (I'd rather have one king 3000 miles away that 3000 kings one mile away)
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To: yesthatjallen

“Not seeking work”. Did you ASK them?...or did you just ASSUME that if they were unemployed for the long term that they “gave up” and therefore stopped counting them????


4 posted on 08/18/2026 9:47:35 AM PDT by FLT-bird
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To: yesthatjallen

Men are treated unfairly in college admissions and job hiring. If they do get a job they are passed over for deserved promotions.

That explains why they would not be enthusiastic about joining the job market.


5 posted on 08/18/2026 9:47:56 AM PDT by I want the USA back (Blue Lives Matter! White lives matter. Remember Iryna Zarutska and Justine Damond.)
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To: fruser1

all according to the feminazi plan ...


6 posted on 08/18/2026 9:48:22 AM PDT by bankwalker (Feminists, like all Marxists, are ungrateful parasites.)
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To: I want the USA back

In the world of DEI young men have to clean up everybody else’s messes without complaint.

It can get very old very quickly.


7 posted on 08/18/2026 9:49:28 AM PDT by cgbg (Four seconds is all it takes to beat the brainwashing.)
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To: Yashcheritsiy

No values. Shut up.


8 posted on 08/18/2026 9:50:17 AM PDT by MeneMeneTekelUpharsin (Freedom is the freedom to discipline yourself so others don't have to do it for you.)
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To: yesthatjallen

I have to wonder about how illegals leaving the country and the big layoffs in the federal government contributed to these numbers. Large swaths of illegals are in that age range.


9 posted on 08/18/2026 9:50:52 AM PDT by ProtectOurFreedom
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To: Yashcheritsiy

Show us on the doll where the ‘Boomers’ hurt you sweetie.


10 posted on 08/18/2026 9:51:52 AM PDT by dljordan (Where's the rest of the Epstein files hmmmm?)
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To: Yashcheritsiy

“”””Waiting for all the boomercons to show up on this thread and blame it on “young people just don’t wanna work anymore like we did in my day!”””””

I’m a “boomercon” as well as an employer for decades. So many of the younger generation don’t want to work. Staying stoned and playing video games in moms basement is an acceptable lifestyle for them.


11 posted on 08/18/2026 9:53:30 AM PDT by shelterguy
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To: yesthatjallen

I read a book years ago on how (and why) the age of “adulthood” has gone up so much since the internet. It is mid 30’s for men and high 20’s for women or something.

Back in Jesus’ day kids had one influence - their family and village which all shared the same values. Adulthood got older as the years went by and technology, travel, etc. increased and kids were influenced by things outside of their tribe.

Nowadays....


12 posted on 08/18/2026 9:53:57 AM PDT by 21twelve (Ever Vigilant - Never Fearful)
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To: yesthatjallen

How much of this is from the parasites Traitor Joe paid to invade America?


13 posted on 08/18/2026 9:54:16 AM PDT by Nateman (Democrats did not strive for fraud friendly voting merely to continue honest elections.)
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To: yesthatjallen

Maynard G. Krebs was born about 70 years too early.


14 posted on 08/18/2026 9:54:56 AM PDT by dfwgator ("I am Charlie Kirk!")
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To: Yashcheritsiy
Waiting for all the boomercons to show up on this thread and blame it on “young people just don’t wanna work anymore like we did in my day!”

As a parent of four adult daughters, I can assure you this is true.
15 posted on 08/18/2026 9:56:55 AM PDT by mmichaels1970 ( )
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To: Yashcheritsiy

You just can’t wait to put words in people’s mouth can you?


16 posted on 08/18/2026 9:57:20 AM PDT by ChessExpert (Infidels of the world unite against the evil that is Islam.)
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To: yesthatjallen

Hard to get a job if you ain’t a woman or foreigner or both.


17 posted on 08/18/2026 9:57:48 AM PDT by Resolute Conservative
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To: yesthatjallen
In the link within the link is the NEET number: Not in Education, Employment, or Training.

A generation of lost men? The reality of NEET data

That shows the NEET percentage of young men going down since 2020 (14.3% in 2020 to 12.5% in 2025). In other words, the LRP (labor force participation rate) might be misleading if we're trying to figure out which young men are neither working nor educating themselves to work. So according to that, there are a higher percentage of young men either working or in work training (college or trade school).

18 posted on 08/18/2026 9:57:56 AM PDT by Tell It Right (1 Thessalonians 5:21 -- Put everything to the test, hold fast to that which is true.)
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To: shelterguy
So many of the younger generation don’t want to work. Staying stoned and playing video games in moms basement is an acceptable lifestyle for them.

As is the term "wake and bake".
19 posted on 08/18/2026 9:58:03 AM PDT by mmichaels1970 ( )
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To: yesthatjallen

How do ‘labor researchers’ account for people working ‘off the books’ or alternative careers such as ‘uncredentialed pharmacist?’


20 posted on 08/18/2026 9:58:05 AM PDT by posterchild
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