IF 64.2% of the eligible civilian non institutionalized working population is working, then 35.8% is NOT. So, this 9% number is what? To be fair, when we had "full employment" the rate was 67%, not 64%. There are some who are Never going to be in the workforce, institutionalized or not. I think the more interesting part of this graph is the angle of the dangle. And what it was in Reagan's second term.

Labor Force Participations Plunges To Fresh 26 Year Low | zero hedge

At 64.2%, the labor force participation rate (as a percentage of the total civilian noninstitutional population) is now at a fresh 26 year low, the lowest since March 1984, and is the only reason why the unemployment rate dropped to 9% (labor force declined from 153,690 to 153,186). As for the numer