The U.S. Long-Term Unemployment Rate is the Highest Its been Since 2022

Key Takeaways

• The long-term unemployed accounted for 25.7% of all unemployed people in August, 2025, up by 385,000 (4.2 percentage points) over the year.
• This is the highest its been since February 2022.
• For reference, when the long-term unemployment rate broke 25% in 2009, the U.S. was already more than a year into recession.