A proposed rule affecting federal workers “opens the door” for reporting data in ways that don’t align with established norms.

If the rule goes into effect, it could be harder for economists at the Bureau of Labor Statistics — who are anxious about losing their jobs — to deliver bad news.

The “official” rate only counts unemployed people who have looked in the last four weeks. Five other rates track other kinds of unemployment.

One reason for all the part-time work is the instability in the broader economy, one expert says.

The two groups, which existed for decades, gave expert advice to federal data scientists and played a role in government transparency.

“If we think about the ways that companies collect data, it ranges so widely from different company,” said George Washington University’s Tara Sinclair. “That’s why it’s so important that we have government statistical agencies.”

The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects the most growth in health care and technology occupations over the next 10 years. But the projections aren’t iron-clad.

Schedule F would expand the role of political appointees in the government. So what would that mean for federal economic data?

BLS survey data showed that in 2023, 35% of employed people did some or all of their work at home.

Owners’ equivalent rent measures the market cost of living in a home — which is a bit different from how much we actually spend on housing.