How do they calculate the unemployment rate?

do they only count the people that apply for unemployment? or is it some other calculation method? do they count people that aren't even looking for jobs? i'm unemployed and looking for a job (and never applied for unemployment) but how would they differentiate me from a housewife or someone that is not looking?

Answer:
They only count the people who have been unemployed for 6 consecutive monthes. People who have been unemployed 7 monthes, are actively looking for a job and haven't found one aren't included. People that are voluntarily unemployed (like housewives and wealthy people that don't need to work) don't count either. You're probably not counted either. It's an estimate.
I was taught in Economics class that they do phone surveys. They ask whoever answers how old they are (I think), if they're employed, and if not, are they looking. The problem with this is people could lie for whatever reason- thus misrepresenting the %.

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