2.

the greater life expectancy of women, which had lengthened by 23.0 years during the first half of the century compared with an increase of 19.4 years for men. 3/

In California

The "population explosion" which came to California with the gold rush swelled the number of inhabitants 310 percent in the ten years between 1850 and 1860.4/ California has not always been the fastest growing state, but her population has grown at least three times as fast as the total population of the United States in most decades since 1900.57 From that year to 1950, the California population increased sixfold, while the nation's population did not quite double.

In the decade from 1950 to 1960 the older age groups stayed
at approximately the same proportion of the total California
population while the proportion at younger age levels mounted.

. Women remained at about 50 percent of the total popu-
lation, and increased in number by about 49 percent.
Unlike the national pattern, 6/ the greatest rate of
increase in the number of women (70.6 percent) was
in the under 25 group. 77 Women in the 65-plus
group gained in numbers by over 55 percent, attaining
a ratio to men of 127 to 100.

. Although the age group 25-44 grew by about 29 percent in numbers, its proportion to the State's total population dropped from 32.0 percent to 27.8 percent.

Similarly, the age group 45-64 gained 37 percent in
size, but dropped from 21.6 to 20.0 percent of the
State's population.

EMPLOYMENT AND UNEMPLOYMENT AMONG OLDER WORKERS

1. United States

Persistent unemployment continues to be one of the nation's most vexing problems. In spite of large increases in output and employment during recent years, an average of 4.2 million persons were unemployed throughout the nation in 1963.8/ During that year, the nation's gross national product approached 600 billion dollars9/ and the civilian labor force went over the 72 million mark.10/ Nevertheless, 5.7 percent of the civilian labor force was unemployed. Another 3.6 percent of the labor force was employed part time, although desiring full-time work.

About a quarter of the unemployed were out of work for 15
weeks or longer during 1963, and more than half a million

-19

individuals were out of work for six months or more. Many of these persons had exhausted their financial resources including unemployment insurance.

Men aged 45 or older had an average unemployed rate throughout the nation of about 4.0 percent in 1963, compared with about 3.9 percent for those in the age group 25-44. In recent years, a fractionally higher rate for older workers has prevailed.

Older workers are often out of work longer when they become unemployed. In 1963, almost half of unemployed men aged 65 and over throughout the nation who were looking for work had been unemployed for 15 weeks or longer, and about two out of five in the age group 45-64 were in a similar situation. 11/ The duration of unemployment for workers between 45 and 64 increased with age. Studies of shutdowns of several large plants during 1963 showed that the proportion of displaced workers who remained unemployed for more than six months was almost 50 percent higher for those aged 45 and over than for younger workers.

Between the censuses of April 1950 and April 1960, unemployment rates rose for men and women in all age groups, with the highest rates reserved for the youngest age category:

a Per 100 persons in civilian labor force. Not seasonally adjusted. Source:

U.S. Census of Population.

In the subsequent three-year period, the average annual rate fluctuated from 6.7 percent to 5.6 percent, with rates for women ranging from 7.2 percent to 6.2 percent. 12/ Highest rates were experienced by the group under age 25, of whom 11.8 percent were unemployed on the average in 1963. For both men and women aged 65 and over, however, the average rate in 1963 dropped below the 1950 average to a recent low

It may

of 4.5 percent for men and 3.2 percent for women.
be that these low rates for the older group relate to the
accelerating dropout of males from the labor force after age
65 as more individuals retire.

Unemployment rates for women reveal less about their true employment situation than do the rates for men. Although the rates for women tend to decrease with age, the extent of their attachment to the labor market is uncertain, as many older women apparently leave the labor market as soon as they become unemployed.

Table 2 shows unemployment trends nationally from 1961 to 1963:

Table 2

Annual Average Unemployment Rates a/ by Age and Sex
United States, 1961-1963

a/ Per 100 persons in civilian labor force.

Source:

Employment and Earnings, Feb. 1964.

U.S. Dept. of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Tables A-2 and A-11.

Men whose education has been limited have the highest
rates of unemployment, particularly those aged 55 and older
whose formal schooling stopped short of a high school
diploma.13/
A study in March 1962, showed that only one-
third of male workers aged 55-64 had finished high school
and about one-fourth had not completed grammar school. The
unemployment rate for those with four years of college was
2.5 percent, but for those with less than five years of school
the rate soared to 12.4 percent. Table 3 illustrates clearly
the relationship between education and joblessness.

Table 3

Unemployment Rates and Years of School Completed
Males 35 to 44 and 55 to 64 Years Old

United States, March 1962

(a) Includes persons with no school years completed.
Note: Detail may not add to totals because of rounding.
Source: Manpower Report of the President, March 1964.
U.S. Dept. of Labor, Washington, D.C. Page 135.

In spite of a growing labor force and rising employment, the rate of unemployment in California has remained at, a level above the national average during recent years. 14/ At the time of the 1950 Census, the number of unemployed Californians was 339,600 or 8.0 percent of the civilian labor force, while the national unemployment rate was 4.9.15/ By April 1960, unemployment had increased to more than 373,900 out of the 6.1 million labor force.16/ The April 1960 rate of 6.1 percent of the labor force was above the nationwide rate of 5.1 percent. Although conditions improved in 1962 and 1963, unemployment in California hovered around 6.0 percent during both years and well into 1964 as against a national

Although 187,000 new jobs were developed in California during 1963, the labor force grew by 209,000, adding 22,000 to the number of unemployed, which averaged 411,000 for the year.

The chart below shows seasonally adjusted unemployment rates for California from 1954 through 1964. The long-term

upward trend in unemployment is marked by some dips as economic conditions improved in 1956, 1959, and 1962, but the "stepladder" rise in unemployment rates from one recovery period to the next is apparent. During each period of recovery, the unemployment rate has remained at a higher level than in the previous one.

Source: Employment and Unemployment in California,
December 1964. California Departments of
Industrial Relations and Employment.

Unemployment rates at the 1950 Census date reflect heavy unemployment during the early months of the year, before the mid-year acceleration in defense spending which came on the heels of the Korean crisis. As in the rest of the nation, unemployment was highest among the youngest and oldest groups of workers.

In 1960 at time of Census taking, one in ten was unemployed among young people under 25, and more than seven percent of those aged 65 or more were jobless.18/ The aged group, however, was relatively small in numbers. Of California's unemployed in 1960, about one-fourth were under age 25, 36 percent were aged 45 or older, and men and women aged 65 or older comprised 5 percent of the total unemployed. In other words, April 1960 found some 94,000 California youth and about 17,600 aged out of work. Unemployment rates by age groups for California in April 1950 and April 1960 are shown in the table below.