labor force
Americannoun
-
(in the United States) the body of people who are at least 16 years old and are either employed or available for employment.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of labor force
First recorded in 1880–85
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It says tunnels would improve the rocket facility's "competitiveness, efficiency and scope for growth" as well as improving access to labour for island businesses.
From BBC • Jun. 29, 2026
"Women perform likeability labour for a mix of social and cultural reasons," says Dr Gladys Nyachieo, a sociologist and senior lecturer at the Multimedia University of Kenya.
From BBC • Aug. 2, 2025
The contestants' lawyers say they should be compensated for their time which they say was "essential labour" for the production, arguing they were "not working for free" and should have been classed as employees.
From BBC • Sep. 18, 2024
Hundreds of thousands of workers have been forced to pay for their own recruitment and labour for years earning poverty wages.
From The Guardian • Apr. 1, 2022
‘Little do they know of our long labour for the safekeeping of their borders, and yet I grudge it not.’
From "The Return of the King" by J.R.R. Tolkien
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
