In May, members of the Senate Budget Committee released some condemning charts about male participation in the labor force. These frightening figures reveal that a record number of men have completely dropped out of the labor force. According to this committee, new information shows that the shrinking labor participation rate is not just due to greater numbers of baby boomers retiring.

The committee reports, “There are currently 61.1 million American men in their prime working years, ages 25 to 54. A staggering one in eight such men are not in the labor force at all, meaning they are neither working nor looking for work. This is an all-time high dating back to when records were first kept in 1955.”

In addition to the one in eight who have simply given up the search for work, an additional 2.9 million men who are in the labor force are not employed. “A total of 10.2 million individuals in this cohort [men ages 25 to 54], therefore, are not holding jobs in the U.S. economy today, ” the committee continues. This compares to only 7.5 million simply not working in 2007.

The Senate Budget Committee also noted an increase in older workers in the labor force:

Although defenders of the current economy attribute shrinking labor force participation to the increasing pace of retirement of the baby boomer generation, these new statistics above confirm a trend that Barron’s recently diagnosed: ‘The ratio of those over 55 in the workforce actually ticked up’—in other words, older Americans are being forced to return to work in a poor economy to make ends meet while many younger Americans simply aren’t working at all. In short, there is an unprecedented supply of working-age Americans who do not hold jobs.

The older generation of Americans nearing retirement are beginning to realize they can’t afford to retire. This in contrast to the 7.3 million men of prime working age who are not even looking for work.

In March 2013, Trumpet columnist Joel Hilliker wrote an article titled “The Incredible Shrinking Man.” In it, he recounts a lecture he gave to a group of young men at a summer camp. “If you follow the trend in society,” he said bluntly, “you’re going to end up being sloths and underachievers. And women are going to leave you in their vapor trails.”

Finding a job is not easy. You have to make a career out of searching for a career. This is more than a challenge men should rise up to, it is a responsibility. If you are struggling to find work, the Trumpet has produced plenty of articles to help you out of the slump. Start with our article from March 2012, “Despite High Unemployment—Here’s How to Find a Good Job!” Also, be sure to watch this video from Herbert W. Armstrong College registrar and business instructor Jason Hensley about “Searching for and Obtaining a Job.”