In response to the latest unemployment numbers, I’m seeing people still wondering how the unemployment rate can go down if people stop looking for work. Way back in February 2010, I made a short video explaining the phenomenon of “discouraged workers” (although I never got into how one is considered part of the labor force). If you can stand the poor audio and video quality, it’s still accurate:
I taped that shortly before my second son was born. With my older boy now into superheroes and Legos, I have much more fun little figures to use if I ever do demonstrate how people depart the labor force.