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Unemployment

Vocabulary

casual workers

people who work irregularly and are in and out of the job force

cyclical unemployment

unemployment that rises and falls as as a result of the business cycle

discouraged worker

unemployed person who is not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them or there are no jobs for which they would qualify

frictional unemployment

unemployment of those who have just left their job, those who are coming back into the job market, and those who are in the process of obtaining a job for the first time

full employment

when all in an economy who want a job are able to get a job, that is, all unemployment is cyclical

gig economy

freelance and short term labor situations, often utilizing independent contractors

labor force

the total number of people in a national or regional population who are able and willing to work

labor force participation rate

the proportion of people who are willing and able to work expressed as a percentage of the total population, which includes those who are unwilling or unable to work

labor productivity

the measure of amount of real GDP produced by a unit of labor

natural rate of unemployment

the amount of unemployment that occurs when the economy is producing at potential output

Okun's law

law that states that there is a regular relationship between changes in a country's unemployment rate and changes in its economic growth rate

seasonal unemployment

unemployment that occurs because the need for workers falls at certain times during the year

structural unemployment

unemployment caused by long-term changes in the structure of the economy

technological unemployment

unemployment caused by technological progress, such as mechanization and automation

underemployed

people in the labor force not receiving employment that matches their education or utilizes their skills