What is the economically active population?

What Does economically active population Mean

We explain what the economically active population is and the characteristics of the employed and economically inactive population.

The employed population is part of the economically active population.

What is the economically active population?

The economically active population, also known as the “labor force”, corresponds to the number of people who are in the stage of working or productive life . This group includes people who have an occupation and those who do not but are looking for it.

It is the part of the population capable of providing goods or services to the market because it meets certain variables such as age range, level of education, work experience, among others. It is made up of two large groups:

  • Working population. The one who has a job.
  • Unemployed population. It is the part of the population that does not have a job but is actively searching. It is also called “open unemployment”. It should not be confused with the economically inactive population.

See also: Urban population

Working population

The primary sector deals with the extraction of raw materials.

The employed population is the part of the economically active population that has at least one economic activity . The criterion of one hour worked allows statistical comparability with other countries and allows capturing the multiple informal or low-intensity occupations in a territory.

The number of hours of normal occupation is considered between 35 and 45 hours per week. But within the employed population, two subgroups are also included, although they do not have this characteristic:

  • Hourly underemployed population. It is the part of the population that works less than thirty-five hours a week.
  • Overcrowded population. It is the part of the population that works more than forty-five hours a week.

Furthermore, the employed population differs according to the productive sector in which it invests its working hours. This classification allows the study and analysis of the economic production of a population. The different sectors are:

  • The primary sector . It covers economic activities related to the extraction of natural resources . Examples of the primary sector are agriculture , livestock , mining and hydrocarbon exploitation , among others.
  • The secondary sector . It encompasses economic activities that transform raw materials into finished products, adding value to merchandise. Examples of the secondary sector are industrial activity (considered light and heavy ) that offers furniture products, electronics , footwear, processed foods , clothing, among others.
  • The tertiary sector . It covers economic activities intended to provide services (and not the production of goods or merchandise). Examples of the tertiary sector are commerce , transport, public or private services, among others.
  • The quaternary sector. It covers economic activities related to the provision of services focused on intellectual, knowledge and research work . Examples of the quaternary sector are consulting, technology research and development , financial planning , etc.
  • The quinary sector. It encompasses non-profit activities that generate a contribution to society from education , health, recreation, etc. Examples of the quinary sector are the actions of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), leaders in technology, people of influence or social references, official government tasks , among others.

Economically inactive population

The economically inactive population is the part of the population that does not have a job or trade, nor is it looking for one . It comprises groups of people with the following characteristics:

  • Young people of sixteen years or more, who do not classify as employees.
  • Students of any category of study (elementary school, grade school, etc.) who are not in employment.
  • Retirees or pensioners.
  • Volunteer in social or charitable activities.

Follow with: Absolute population

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