Economics Homework Help

I’m trying to learn for my Macro Economics class and I’m stuck. Can you help?

Part 1:https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/UNRATE

Follow the link above. You should see a graph depicting US unemployment from 1948-2021.

1. What period of time had the lowest unemployment on this graph? What was the unemployment rate? Do you know of any historical or economic factors that might have contributed to such a low unemployment rate?
2. Until 2020, what period of time had the highest unemployment rate? What was the rate? Do you know of any historical or economic factors that could have contributed to such a high unemployment rate?
3. What was the unemployment rate in March 2020? April 2020? May? Do you think this change represents frictional, structural or cyclical unemployment? Why?

Part 2: https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CIVPART

Follow the link above. You should see a graph depicting US labor force participation from 1948-2021.

1. Using the years found in your answers for Part 1, what were the corresponding labor force participations rates for those years? Was this rate relatively high or low, compared to what you see on the rest of this graph?
2. What could it mean when we have a low unemployment rate alongside a historically low labor force participation rate?

Part 3: Further Discussion

1. Describe someone you know who is part of the labor force, and what makes them part of the labor force. Describe someone you know who is not part of the labor force, and what makes them not part of the labor force.
2. Do you think the surge in unemployment in 2020 is different from the unemployment we saw after the 2008 financial crash? Why or why not? You can discuss levels of unemployment, how quickly jobs were lost/recovered, types of jobs lost, policy responses, or your experience with either event.