Editing Current Population Survey (section)

==1994 revisions==
In 1994 the administration and questions in the CPS were overhauled.<ref>[[Cathryn S. Dippo]], Donna L. Kostanich, and [[Anne Polivka|Anne E. Polivka]] (1994). 
[https://www.bls.gov/osmr/research-papers/1994/pdf/cp940030.pdf Effects of methodological change in the Current Population Survey]. [https://web.archive.org/web/20130307194003/http://www.amstat.org/sections/SRMS/Proceedings/papers/1994_039.pdf Short version] in Proceedings of the Survey Research Methods Section IV. Current Population Survey (CPS) Redesign: Parallel Testing Results of Old and New Questionnaire and Collection Methodology. American Statistical Association. Archived by the [[Wayback Machine]].</ref> Prior to 1994, the alternate measures of unemployment had different names because the BLS drastically revised the questions in the CPS and renamed the measures: U3 and U4 were eliminated; the official rate U5 remained the same measure but was renamed U3; U6 and U7 were revised and renamed U5 and U6.<ref name=bh>John E. Bregger and Steven E. Haugen (1995). [http://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/1995/10/art3full.pdf BLS introduces new range of alternative unemployment measures]. ''[[Monthly Labor Review]]'', October: 19–29. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.</ref>

CPS-based measures of unemployment before 1994:
* U-1 Persons unemployed 15 weeks or longer, as a percent of the civilian labor force
* U-2 Job losers, as a percent of the civilian labor force
* U-3 Unemployed persons aged 25 and older, as a percent of the civilian labor force aged 25 and older (the unemployment rate for persons 25 and older)
* U-4 Unemployed persons seeking full-time jobs, as a percent of the full-time labor force (the unemployment rate for full-time workers)
* U-5 Total unemployed persons, as a percent of the civilian labor force (official unemployment rate)
* U-6 Total persons seeking full-time jobs, plus one-half of persons seeking part-time jobs, plus one-half of persons employed part-time for economic reasons, as a percent of the civilian labor force less one-half of the part-time labor force
* U-7 Total persons seeking full-time jobs, plus one-half of persons seeking part-time jobs, plus one-half of persons employed part-time for economic reasons, plus discouraged workers, as a percent of the civilian labor force plus discouraged workers less one-half of the part-time labor force

CPS-based measures of unemployment after 1994:
* U-1 Persons unemployed 15 weeks or longer, as a percent of the civilian labor force
* U-2 Job losers and persons who completed temporary jobs, as a percent of the civilian labor force
* U-3 Total unemployed, as a percent of the civilian labor force (official unemployment rate)
* U-4 Total unemployed plus discouraged workers, as a percent of the civilian labor force plus discouraged workers
* U-5 Total unemployed, plus discouraged workers, plus all other marginally attached workers, as a percent of the civilian labor force plus all marginally attached workers
* U-6 Total unemployed, plus all marginally attached workers, plus total employed part-time for economic reasons, as a percent of the civilian labor force plus all marginally attached workers

Marginally attached workers are persons who currently are neither working nor looking for work but indicate that they want and are available for a job and have looked for work in the recent past. In addition, marginally attached workers have actively sought work in the past 12 months (e.g. they replied to a "wanted" ad) but have not actively sought work in the past 4 weeks.

Discouraged workers, a subset of the marginally attached, have given a job-market related reason for not currently looking for a job (e.g. they believe that no work was available). This group is about 50 percent smaller than the marginally attached group."<ref name=bh/> Persons employed part-time for economic reasons are those who want full-time work and are available to take a full-time job; they are sometimes said to be underemployed.