economy · national desk

When Americans lose a job, how long are they out?

Published October 5, 2026, 10:54 AM EDT · CT Signal automated data desk

The median unemployed US worker has been out of work 11.5 weeks (2026-09) — highest since May 2026.

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The data

Monthly US series since the early 2000s; the latest print is labelled on the chart. Source and query below.

Download this chart (PNG, 2×) · rendered server-side from the same spec you see above.

Source

PBS NewsHour (fixture) — Job growth cools as unemployment edges up in several states

Provenance · fetched, never written

dataset: https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/UEMPMED
query: FRED fredgraph.csv id=UEMPMED; agency of record: US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey
published October 5, 2026, 10:54 AM EDT · data as of 2026-09

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