The U.S.?s unemployment rate, released monthly to heavy scrutiny, is currently at a low 5.5 percent, however this number only takes into account people who have been actively looking for work in the last four weeks. It does not give a complete picture of the nation?s unemployed ? some of whom may be retired, but others may be disabled or who have stopped looking for work. These ?discouraged workers? have actively looked for a job within the previous 12 months alone, and are considered a ?marginally attached? sector of the workforce. Including discouraged workers and millions of others who are not working or only working part-time for economic reasons, the nation?s true unemployment rate sits at 10.8 percent, and has yet to reach 2007?s pre-recessionary levels.
See "Unemployment Indicators Only Tell Part of the Story", Andrew Soergel, U.S. News and World Report, June 18, 2015