Labor Force Participation
In 2024, 83% of Maine adults ages 25-54 were in the labor force, up 2 percentage points from 2023.
Favorable movement since the last available data
Benchmark: Maine’s labor force participation rate for prime-working-age adults will match or exceed the national average.
Overview
As Maine’s population ages, the economic contribution of every individual becomes even more important. The labor force participation rate is the percentage of residents who are either working or looking for work. In 2024, 83.2% of Maine prime-working-age adults (ages 25-54) were in this category. This estimate comes from household surveys and is subject to revision, so these numbers should be interpreted with that in mind. People of all ages are invaluable to Maine’s workforce; this age range is presented here to compare Maine workers with their peers in other states.
Maine adults at every age are about as likely to be in the labor force as people in other states. The chart below shows that Maine adults of all ages work at about the same rates as their peers nationwide. However, we have a higher share of residents age 65 or older, and fewer people in this age group work. In 2023, 23% of Maine’s population was 65+ compared to just 18% of the U.S. population.
Potential measures to increase Maine’s labor force participation rate include higher wages, increased childcare access, reduced schedules for older workers, and outreach to new Mainers and people with disabilities, veterans, disengaged youth, and others.
Fig. A
On mobile? Viewing this data is easier at a computer.
Labor Force Participation Rate
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics