Employed: A person is considered employed if he or she has spent most of the previous week working at a paid job.
Unemployed: A person is unemployed if he or she is on temporary layoff, is looking for a job, or is waiting for the start date of a new job.
Not in the Labor Force: A person who fits neither of these categories, such as a full-time student, homemaker, or retiree, is not in the labor force.
Labor Force
The labor force is the total number of workers and the BLS defines the it as the sum of the employed and the unemployed.