Generically, depends on what you want to know. No measure tells you everything, and measures that try obfuscate everything. Is it useful to know what portion o

Generically, depends on what you want to know. No measure tells you everything, and measures that try obfuscate everything. Is it useful to know what portion of the population is working, what percentage of 16-22 yos are working? An increase in employment rate among women might mean more good jobs are available. It might mean that times are tough and women (or men) with small children need to work more. It might mean people can't afford to retire, or that 60+ people are having trouble finding a job, etc. IMO the problem is an obsession with creating a measure that maps perfectly to an imprecise term. "Unemployment," in the abstract, is not a perfectly defined thing. The measure should not define the thing. Measures should be used to understand the thing.