The working age population in the US is 214,779,134. 64.8% of the US population is of working age as defined by the OECD (15-64), and with a 2020 population of 331,449,281, we have about 214.8 million working years remaining.
| A year | Proportion of Working People (15-64) | US citizens | Working Age Population |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 61.9% | 203,211,926 | 125,788,182 |
| 1980 | 66.1% | 226,545,805 | 149,746,777 |
| 1990 | 65.8% | 248,709,873 | 163,651,096 |
| 2000 | 66.2% | 281,421,906 | 186,301,301 |
| 2010 | 67.1% | 308,745,538 | 207,168,256 |
| 2020 | 64.8% | 331,449,281 | 214,779,134 |
The working-age population in America reached its highest point in 2006 and 2007, when 67.3% of the US population was of working age. As of 2020, 64.8% of Americans are between 15-64, which the OECD describes as the age that should be “working age.”
What is the Prime Working Age Population in the US?
The working age population in the US is 128.58 million. The prime working age is defined as the age range of 25-54, and America has 128.58 million people who fall into this age group as of 2020.
There are 64.42 million working-age men and 64.16 million working-age women in the United States.
Questions for Working Age People
-
Are people of working age the same as workers?
No, the working age population is not the same as the working population. The labor force is the ratio of employed and unemployed people, while the working population is the number of people in the middle age group (15-64, according to the OECD definition).
However, in order to calculate the number of working people, it is important to know the working years.
-
How do you calculate the number of employees?
To calculate the number of employees, divide the number of employees by the years of employment.
For example, if the workforce consists of 7,000 people and the number of working years is 10,000, the employee participation rate is 70%.
-
Which age groups are used the most?
35-44 year olds are the most active. The participation rate for this age group in the US is 77% by 2020.
-
Which age groups are least active?
The 55 and over age group is the least active. The labor force participation rate among this age group in the US is 36.4% by 2020.
Working Age Population as % of US Population 1970-2020
| A year | Proportion of Working Age Population (15-64) |
|---|---|
| 1970 | 61.9% |
| 1971 | 62.3% |
| 1972 | 62.8% |
| 1973 | 63.3% |
| 1974 | 63.9% |
| 1975 | 64.3% |
| 1976 | 64.8% |
| 1977 | 65.3% |
| 1978 | 65.7% |
| 1979 | 66% |
| 1980 | 66.1% |
| 1981 | 66.2% |
| 1982 | 66.3% |
| 1983 | 66.3% |
| 1984 | 66.3% |
| 1985 | 66.4% |
| 1986 | 66.5% |
| 1987 | 66.4% |
| 1988 | 66.2% |
| 1989 | 66% |
| 1990 | 65.8% |
| 1991 | 65.6% |
| 1992 | 65.5% |
| 1993 | 65.4% |
| 1994 | 65.4% |
| 1995 | 65.4% |
| 1996 | 65.5% |
| 1997 | 65.7% |
| 1998 | 65.9% |
| 1999 | 66% |
| 2000 | 66.2% |
| 2001 | 66.4% |
| 2002 | 66.6% |
| 2003 | 66.7% |
| 2004 | 66.9% |
| 2005 | 67.1% |
| 2006 | 67.3% |
| 2007 | 67.3% |
| 2008 | 67.2% |
| 2009 | 67.2% |
| 2010 | 67.1% |
| 2011 | 67.1% |
| 2012 | 66.8% |
| 2013 | 66.6% |
| 2014 | 66.3% |
| 2015 | 66.1% |
| 2016 | 65.9% |
| 2017 | 65.6% |
| 2018 | 65.4% |
| 2019 | 65.1% |
| 2020 | 64.8% |
References
-
US Census Bureau. “History of Population Change (1910-2020).” Accessed February 28, 2022.
-
OECD. “People of working age.” Accessed February 28, 2022.
-
Statistics. “United States population by sex and age.” Accessed February 28, 2022.