What is the Local Area Unemployment Statistics program?
The Local Area Unemployment Statistics program is a federal-state cooperative venture that counts the number of people working— not jobs—by where they live. The data collected include individuals either working or actively seeking work during any part of the week that includes the 12th of the month. The results are used to develop monthly estimates of labor force statistics—the number of persons employed, unemployed and the unemployment rate—at the state, county and labor market area levels and for selected cities.