pacitated workers, and seasonal workers neither working nor seeking work at the time of the census, were frequently included among gainful workers; but, in general, such persons are not included in the labor force. On the other hand, the census included in the labor force for 1940 and 1950 persons seeking work without previous work experience, that is, new workers. Such new workers as there were at the time of the 1920 and 1930 Censuses were probably for the most part not reported as gainful workers.

In 1920, the census date was January 1, whereas that for 1930, 1940, and 1950 was April 1. For this additional reason, the number of gainful workers reported for 1920, especially in agricultural areas, may not be altogether comparable with the statistics for later years.

tistics does not appear to differ from that for 1940 because of these measures.

The 1940 data for employed persons in this volume vary in some cases from the figures originally published in the 1940 reports. The appropriate 1940 figures for the employed shown in the present report have been adjusted to exclude the estimated number of men in the armed forces at that time. This was done to achieve comparability with the 1950 employed total which is limited to civilians.

Current Population Survey.—The estimated size of the civilian labor force in the United States based on the Current Population Survey is about 5 percent above the corresponding figure from the 1950 Census. The discrepancy lies chiefly in the count of incidental workers. Examination of the census returns for a sample

of households that were also included in the Current Population Survey for April 1950 indicates that although differences of all kinds were found, on balance, the Current Population Survey enumerators, who are much more experienced than were the temporary census enumerators, reported more completely the employment or unemployment of teen-agers and women 25 years old and over. This difference is reflected in higher labor force participation rates and unemployment rates for those groups and a more accurate reporting of persons employed in industries, such as agriculture, trade and personal services, where part-time or occasional work is widely prevalent. These are the groups for whom variability in response is relatively great in labor force surveys. On the other hand, the differences were at a minimum for men and for young women-the major components of the "fulltime" labor force. Table Q compares the labor force participation rates-i. e., the proportion of the population in the labor force-for broad age groups by sex and color, based on reports for identical persons obtained by census and by Current Population Survey enumerators.

It may be estimated on the basis of the above analysis that perhaps 3 percent of the total population 14 years old and over in April 1950 were actually in the labor force but were classified outside the labor force in the census returns. This percentage varies from State to State and between one population group and another. For example, misclassification was somewhat greater for nonwhite than for white persons as shown in table Q. This difference reflects in large measure the fact that proportionately more nonwhite workers are unemployed, or employed as service workers or laborers, groups that were particularly subject to misclassification in the census.

Other data. Because the 1950 Census employment data were obtained by household interviews, they differ from statistics based on reports from individual business establishments, farm enterprises, and certain government programs. The data based on household interviews provide information about the work status of the whole population.

Persons employed at more than one job are counted only once as employed and are classified according to the job at which they worked the greatest number of hours during the census week. In statistics based on reports from business and farm establishments, on the other hand, persons who work for more than one establishment may be counted more than once. Moreover, other data, unlike those presented here, generally exclude private household workers, unpaid family workers, and self-employed persons, and may include workers less than 14 years of age. An additional difference arises from the fact that persons with a job but not at work are included with the employed in the statistics shown here, whereas only part of this group is likely to be included in employment figures based on establishment payroll reports. Furthermore, the household reports include persons on the basis of their place of residence regardless of where they work, whereas establishment reports relate persons to their place of work regardless of where they live; the two types of data may not be comparable for areas where a significant number of workers commute

For a number of reasons, the unemployment figures of the Bureau of the Census are not directly comparable with the published figures for unemployment compensation claims or claims for veterans' readjustment allowances. Certain persons such as private household and government workers are generally not eligible for unemployment compensation. Further, the place where claims are filed may not necessarily be the same as the place of residence of the unemployed worker. In addition, the qualifications for drawing unemployment compensation differ from the definition of unemployment used by the Bureau of the Census. Persons working only a few hours during the week and persons classified as "with a job but not at work" are sometimes eligible for unemployment compensation but are included by the Bureau among the "employed."

HOURS WORKED DURING CENSUS WEEK

The data on hours worked were derived from answers to the question, "How many hours did he work last week?" asked of persons who reported they had worked during the week prior to their enumeration. The statistics refer to the number of hours actually worked during the census week, and not necessarily to the number usually worked or the scheduled number of hours. For persons working at more than one job, the figures relate to the combined number of hours worked at all jobs during the week. The data on hours worked presented in this report provide abroad classification of young employed persons into full-time and parttime workers. The proportion of persons who worked only a small number of hours is understated because such persons were omitted from the labor force count more frequently than were full-time workers.

WEEKS WORKED IN 1949 Definitions

The statistics on weeks worked are based on replies to the question, "Last year, in how many weeks did this person do any work at all, not counting work around the house?" This question was asked of a 20-percent sample of persons 14 years old and over. The data pertain to the number of different weeks during 1949 in which a person did any work for pay or profit (including paid vacations and sick leave) or worked without pay on a family farm or in a family business. Weeks of active service in the armed forces are also included. It is probable that the number of persons who worked in 1949 is understated, because there is some tendency for respondents to forget intermittent or short periods of employment.

Comparability

In 1950, no distinction was made between a part-time and a full-time work week, whereas in 1940 the enumerator was instructed to convert part-time work to equivalent full-time weeks. A fulltime week was defined as the number of hours locally regarded as full time for the given occupation and industry. A further difference is that, in the 1940 reports, the data were shown for wage and salary workers only and were published in terms of months rather than weeks.

OCCUPATION, INDUSTRY, AND CLASS OF WORKER

In the 1950 Census of Population, information on occupation, industry, and class of worker was collected for persons in the experienced civilian labor force. All three items related to one specific job held by the person. For an employed person, the information referred to the job he held during the census week. If he was employed at two or more jobs, the job at which he worked the greatest number of hours during the census week was reported. For an experienced unemployed person, the information referred to the last job he had held.

The classification systems used for the occupation and industry data in the 1950 Census of Population are described below. These systems were developed in consultation with many individuals,

private organizations, and government agencies, and, in particular, the Joint Committee on Occupational Classification (sponsored by the American Statistical Association and the United States Bureau of the Budget).

Occupation

The occupation information presented here was derived from answers to the question, "What kind of work was he doing?" Classification system. The occupational classification system developed for the 1950 Census of Population is organized into 12 major groups, which form the basis for the occupation data in Chapter B of this volume. The system consists of 469 items, 270 of which are specific occupation categories; the remainder are FIGURE 29. PERCENT CHANGE, 1940 TO 1950, IN THE NUMBER OF EMPLOYED PERSONS IN THE UNITED STATES, BY MAJOR OCCUPATION GROUP

subgroupings (mainly on the basis of industry) of 13 of the occupation categories. For the detailed occupation tables in Chapter C, certain of the categories were combined, and the detailed occupation list used here consists of 446 items (tables 124, 125, and 158). The composition of each of the detailed categories is shown in the publication, U. S. Bureau of the Census, 1950 Census of Population, Classified Index of Occupations and Industries, Washington, D. C., 1950.

In the presentation of cross-classifications of occupation by urban-rural residence, age, race, class of worker, and income, intermediate occupational classifications of 158 items for males and 67 items for females have been used (tables 126 to 129 and 159). These intermediate classifications represent selections and combinations of the items in the detailed system. The relationships between the two levels of classification are given in Lists A and B for males and females, respectively.

Other industries (incl. not reported)

DETAILED ITEMS

Managers, officials, and proprietors (n. e. c.)-salaried:

48.

29.

Manufacturing

30.

Wholesale and retail trade

Wholesale trade

postal service

Food and dairy products stores, and milk retailing
General merchandise and five and ten cent stores
Apparel and accessories stores

Furniture, home furnishings, and equipment stores
Motor vehicles and accessories retailing
Gasoline service stations

Fating and drinking places

Hardware, farm implement, and building material retailing

Other retail trade

31.

Finance, insurance, and real estate

Banking and other finance

Insurance and real estate

49. Bakers

50. Blacksmiths, forgemen, and hammermen Blacksmiths

Forgemen and hammermen

51. Boilermakers

52. Cabinetmakers and patternmakers Cabinetmakers

Pattern and model makers, except paper

53. Carpenters

54. Compositors and typesetters

55. Cranemen, hoistmen, and construction machinery operators

Cranemen, derrickmen, and hoistmen

Excavating, grading, and road machinery operators

56. Electricians

57.

58.

Other industries (incl. not reported)

60. Linemen and servicemen, telegraph, telephone, and power

61. Locomotive engineers

62. Locomotive firemen

63. Machinists and job setters Job setters, metal Machinists

64. Masons, tile setters, and stone cutters Brickmasons, stonemasons, and tile setters Stone cutters and stone carvers

65. Mechanics and repairmen, airplane

66. Mechanics and repairmen, automobile

67. Mechanics and repairmen, radio and television

68. Other mechanics and repairmen, and loom fixers
Loom fixers

Mechanics and repairmen, office machine
Mechanics and repairmen, railroad and car shop
Mechanics and repairmen, not elsewhere classified

69. Millwrights

70. Molders, metal

71. Painters (construction), paperhangers, and glaziers

Glaziers

Painters, construction and maintenance
Paperhangers

72. Plasterers and cement finishers
Cement and concrete finishers
Plasterers

73. Plumbers and pipe fitters

74. Printing craftsmen, except compositors and type

75. Shoemakers and repairers, except factory

76. Stationary engineers

123.

Tailors and tailoresses

102.

Sawmills, planing mills, and miscellaneous wood products

79. Tinsmiths, coppersmiths, and sheet metal workers

Operatives and kindred workers-Con.
Other industries (incl. not reported)
Construction

Business and repair services

Personal services

Public administration

All other industries (incl. not reported)

124. Private household workers

Housekeepers, private household-living in
Housekeepers, private household-living out
Laundresses, private household-living in
Laundresses, private household-living out
Private household workers (n. e. c.)-living in
Private household workers (n. e. c.)-living out

125. Barbers, beauticians, and manicurists
126. Charwomen, janitors, and porters
Charwomen and cleaners
Janitors and sextons
Porters

127. Cooks, except private household

3. Mest cutters, except slaughter and packing house

113.

Yarn, thread, and fabric mills

90. Mine operatives and laborers (n. e. c.) Coal mining

114.

Crude petroleum and natural gas extraction Mining and quarrying, except fuel

91. Motormen, street, subway, and elevated railway

2. Painters, except construction and maintenance

115.

3. Power station operators

Miscellaneous fabricated textile products

M. Sailors and deck hands

116.

Paper and allied products

05. Sawyers

Pulp, paper, and paperboard mills

140.

Paperboard containers and boxes

Spinners and weavers, textile

Miscellaneous paper and pulp products

Spinners, textile

Weavers, textile

97. Stationary firemen

Leather and leather products

. Truck drivers and deliverymen

Leather: tanned, curried, and finished

Footwear, except rubber

Deliverymen and routemen

Truck and tractor drivers

Leather products, except footwear

Cement, and concrete, gypsum, and plaster products

Structural clay products

Pottery and related products

Miscellaneous nonmetallic mineral and stone products

Blast furnaces, steel works, and rolling mills

Other primary iron and steel industries

Primary nonferrous industries