Reclassifying unemployed workers as discouraged workers moves them out of the labor force, so the unemployment rate:

1. Discouraged workers change both parts of the ratio. 2. The unemployment rate is unemployed persons divided by the labor force. 3. Those not working and not looking for work are out of the labor force. 4. Reclassifying removes a person from both the numerator and the labor force. 5. Removing them from the numerator dominates, so the measured rate falls. _Source: OpenStax Principles of Macroeconomics for AP Courses 2e (CC BY 4.0), Ch 7 'Unemployment'_