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Household PulseRSNNOWRKRVBackground & demographics › Occupation & employment status Economy, work, & money › Jobs & workbehavior

What is your main reason for not working for pay or profit? Select only one answer. - Selected Choice

Asked of: ANYWORK = 2

What is your main reason for not working for pay or profit?

Main reason for not working for pay (revised, 2023-2024) · Asked in 12 waves, 2023–2024 · 316,930 responses · weighted estimates computed from individual responses

Periods loaded: week61, week62, week63, cycle01, cycle02, cycle03, cycle04, cycle05, cycle06, cycle07, cycle08, cycle09. Version of RSNNOWRKRV first asked in week61: wording, reference period, answer options, or (for a checkbox) the option it names or whether the question offers a 'none of these' box differ from census_pulse:rsnnowrkrv.

Percentages ofpeople who answered everyone asked

Over time

all answers lines

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All other answers (3)6%

Other reason, please specify17%

I am/was laid off or furloughed4%

I am retired48%

I am/was sick or disabled17%

I am/was caring for children not in school or daycare5%

I did not want to be employed at this time4%

Shares in 2024

Shares of people who gave an answer. Each column is one wave, evenly spaced rather than to scale in time; hover for exact shares.

By group over time

all answers lines

Age Sex Race & ethnicity Education Income Region

All other answers (3)

Other reason, please specify

I am/was laid off or furloughed

I am retired

I am/was sick or disabled

Crosstab

Age Sex Race & ethnicity Education Income Region State

Wave

I did not want to be employed at this timeI am/was caring for children not in school or daycareI am/was caring for an elderly personI am/was sick or disabledI am retiredI am/was laid off or furloughedMy employer closed temporarily or went out of businessI do/did not have transportation to work

Answers as the source codes them

Waves

Poll	Field dates	Mode	Respondents	Responses
Household Pulse Survey, Cycle 09 (2024-08-20 to 2024-09-16) Source variable RSNNOWRKRV. Universe: ANYWORK = 2.	2024-08-20 to 2024-09-16	web	51,280	21,595
Household Pulse Survey, Cycle 08 (2024-07-23 to 2024-08-19) Source variable RSNNOWRKRV. Universe: ANYWORK = 2.	2024-07-23 to 2024-08-19	web	59,913	24,549
Household Pulse Survey, Cycle 07 (2024-06-25 to 2024-07-22) Source variable RSNNOWRKRV. Universe: ANYWORK = 2.	2024-06-25 to 2024-07-22	web	70,429	27,680
Household Pulse Survey, Cycle 06 (2024-05-28 to 2024-06-24) Source variable RSNNOWRKRV. Universe: ANYWORK = 2.	2024-05-28 to 2024-06-24	web	72,125	27,885
Household Pulse Survey, Cycle 05 (2024-04-30 to 2024-05-27) Source variable RSNNOWRKRV. Universe: ANYWORK = 2.	2024-04-30 to 2024-05-27	web	72,162	27,434
Household Pulse Survey, Cycle 04 (2024-04-02 to 2024-04-29) Source variable RSNNOWRKRV. Universe: ANYWORK = 2.	2024-04-02 to 2024-04-29	web	73,352	28,204

Group	I did not want to be employed at this time	I am/was caring for children not in school or daycare	I am/was caring for an elderly person	I am/was sick or disabled	I am retired	I am/was laid off or furloughed	My employer closed temporarily or went out of business	I do/did not have transportation to work	Other reason, please specify	n	MoE
All respondents	4%	5%	2%	17%	48%	4%	2%	1%	17%	21595	±1
AK	11%	7%	0%	19%	41%	3%	2%	–	16%	226	±12
AL	4%	4%	1%	22%	46%	1%	2%	0%	19%	385	±7
AR	6%	5%	2%	23%	44%	3%	1%	0%	14%	396	±8
AZ	3%	8%	2%	15%	52%	4%	2%	0%	13%	669	±6
CA	6%	5%	1%	16%	41%	6%	3%	1%	20%	1357	±6
CO	6%	4%	5%	16%	50%	4%	–	0%	15%	483	±7
CT	5%	6%	2%	20%	44%	6%	1%	1%	15%	346	±8
DC	3%	5%	0%	13%	34%	17%	3%	2%	21%	184	±13
DE	4%	4%	3%	14%	55%	3%	3%	4%	10%	267	±9
FL	6%	2%	3%	16%	51%	2%	2%	3%	16%	825	±6
GA	3%	7%	6%	15%	42%	3%	3%	2%	19%	545	±7
HI	1%	3%	7%	18%	51%	7%	–	0%	14%	258	±9
IA	2%	4%	1%	15%	61%	1%	1%	1%	14%	315	±7
ID	3%	5%	4%	18%	54%	3%	2%	1%	12%	473	±6
IL	3%	5%	1%	17%	49%	6%	2%	1%	17%	444	±7
IN	2%	6%	1%	21%	46%	5%	1%	–	17%	378	±7
KS	6%	6%	3%	15%	55%	2%	–	0%	12%	430	±6
KY	2%	4%	1%	25%	51%	2%	1%	1%	12%	348	±9
LA	3%	6%	2%	21%	43%	2%	1%	1%	21%	310	±8
MA	2%	4%	3%	23%	44%	7%	1%	1%	15%	440	±7
MD	4%	2%	1%	18%	60%	6%	3%	1%	6%	412	±7
ME	4%	5%	2%	14%	58%	2%	2%	3%	10%	246	±8
MI	7%	7%	3%	19%	47%	3%	2%	2%	11%	547	±7
MN	2%	4%	1%	13%	61%	2%	2%	0%	14%	395	±7
MO	2%	6%	2%	17%	52%	5%	1%	5%	9%	391	±8
MS	4%	5%	4%	23%	45%	2%	1%	6%	10%	325	±8
MT	6%	6%	2%	10%	61%	4%	3%	1%	9%	275	±8
NC	5%	6%	2%	16%	46%	3%	2%	1%	19%	380	±8
ND	4%	1%	11%	15%	51%	3%	1%	–	15%	125	±13
NE	6%	3%	1%	14%	55%	2%	4%	2%	12%	309	±8
NH	2%	4%	1%	17%	53%	3%	2%	–	19%	353	±11
NJ	2%	5%	5%	10%	41%	8%	4%	–	25%	386	±7
NM	3%	9%	2%	11%	51%	1%	1%	1%	21%	522	±7
NV	1%	5%	2%	14%	48%	6%	3%	2%	20%	379	±8
NY	3%	5%	1%	18%	48%	3%	4%	1%	17%	340	±8
OH	4%	3%	1%	18%	55%	3%	0%	3%	12%	378	±7
OK	8%	6%	1%	21%	43%	1%	3%	3%	15%	393	±7
OR	2%	4%	4%	20%	49%	5%	1%	1%	14%	595	±7
PA	4%	6%	1%	16%	53%	3%	2%	0%	13%	499	±6
RI	2%	3%	2%	23%	46%	3%	4%	–	17%	216	±9
SC	4%	3%	2%	21%	54%	3%	1%	0%	11%	406	±7
SD	2%	5%	1%	16%	60%	2%	1%	0%	14%	213	±10
TN	3%	3%	3%	24%	45%	2%	1%	4%	16%	396	±8
TX	4%	6%	2%	15%	42%	5%	2%	3%	22%	1037	±6
UT	8%	10%	2%	11%	42%	7%	1%	0%	19%	634	±7
VA	3%	6%	2%	16%	50%	2%	3%	0%	18%	515	±7
VT †	4%	4%	3%	10%	56%	2%	2%	0%	18%	155	±15
WA	6%	5%	2%	13%	49%	7%	1%	1%	16%	860	±5
WI	5%	3%	1%	11%	61%	2%	6%	1%	10%	353	±8
WV	3%	1%	3%	27%	46%	1%	0%	1%	18%	304	±9
WY †	9%	1%	1%	16%	53%	3%	1%	–	17%	177	±15