Please help me word this sentence correctly:
At its zenith, the depression saw nearly 25 percent of all workers and 37 percent of all non-farm workers completely out of work.
I'm trying to say that at the peak of the depression, that's how many people were out of work.
I feel like it's confusing/I'm not conveying my message properly. Can you help me word this sentence better? Thank you!
What's the difference between "out of work" and "completely out of work"?
And how can you avoid having "work" appear so soon after two instances of "workers"?
You could write this:
At the zenith of the Great Depression, nearly 25 percent of all workers, including 37 percent of non-farm workers, had no jobs.
Certainly! Here's a suggested rewording of your sentence:
"During the peak of the depression, approximately 25 percent of the entire workforce, as well as 37 percent of non-farm workers, experienced complete unemployment."
This revision clarifies that the percentages refer to the proportion of the total workforce, and emphasizes the scale of the unemployment during that period.