Even in a stronger job market, it is likely that many of these individuals would choose not to work. But some who are counted as out of the labor force might be induced to seek work if the likelihood of finding a job rose or if the expected pay was higher.
Examples here include people who had become too discouraged to search for work when the prospects for employment were poor and some who retired when their previous jobs ended. In October, almost 2 million individuals classified as outside the labor force because they had not searched for work in the previous four weeks reported that they wanted and were available for work.