First of all Larry, you need to educate yourself as to what the “Civilian Labor Force Participation Rate” is. The qualifying term being LABOR FORCE.  It is the subset of Americans who have jobs or are seeking a job, are at least 16 years old, are not serving in the military and are not institutionalized. In other words, all Americans who are eligible to work in the everyday U.S. economy. From 1999 through 2009, the number of people in the U.S. civilian labor force ranged from about 138 million to 155 million. And as you will see in the link and graph attached, those over age 55, have a much lower rate due to, well, I'll let you figure that one out. The population of the U.S. In 2016 is currently estimated at about 324 million.

http://www.bls.gov/emp/ep_table_303.htm