Job market remains tight in 2019, as the unemployment rate falls to its lowest level since 1969

The U.S. labor market remained strong in 2019, as the unemployment rate fell to 3.5 percent, the lowest rate since 1969. Both the employment–population ratio and the civilian labor force participation rate increased over the year. Levels of long-term joblessness and involuntary part-time employment continued to trend down. A decade after the end of the Great Recession, the U.S. economy continued to expand, and the labor market remained strong by historical standards. By the end of 2019, the economy had grown for 126 months or 42 quarters, making it the longest economic expansion on record.1 Most labor force measures continued to improve throughout 2019. Total employment, as measured by the Current Population Survey (CPS), expanded by 2.0 million, reaching 158.6 million by the end of the year.