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The definition of an unemployed person is someone of working age (16 and up), jobless, able
and available to work, and actively looking for a job. This means anyone without a job who is
reaching out to contacts about jobs or applying to positions.
This definition of unemployment is specific and rigid—it doesn’t just include “anyone who
doesn’t have a job.”
On the other hand, an employed person is very simply defined as someone with a job. A job
can include anything from doing full-time work to doing part-time work to being self-
employed.
Both unemployed and employed people make up the “labor force,” or the subset of the
population that is both able and interested in working. Not included in the labor force
are citizens not looking for jobs—for example, a stay-at-home mom, a college student,
or a “discouraged worker” (someone who has stopped looking for work because they
believe no work is available).
The level of unemployment in a country is measured as a percentage of the labor force.
By using a percentage, called the unemployment rate, analysts and economists can
automatically account for natural increases in population that would otherwise skew
unemployment and employment numbers.
Low unemployment is key to economic stability. High and long-term unemployment can
cause significant stress on a nation in three key areas:
Solving unemployment is a hotly debated topic, and no economists agree on one simple way to do it.
However, if unemployment rises noticeably, the government usually steps in with specific policies
designed to lower the total number of unemployed people.
1. Monetary policy. Monetary policy is financial influence implemented by a central. Monetary
policies usually come in the form of lower interest rates, which increase the total money
supply within an economy by allowing banks and businesses more access to loans—and
therefore, more accessible spending power.
2. Fiscal policy. If expansionary monetary policy doesn’t adequately lower the unemployment
rate, government agencies will turn to fiscal policy. Fiscal policy is fiscal stimulus
implemented by the national government, and fiscal policies include spending on
infrastructure, proposing tax cuts, increasing the minimum wage, or implementing
unemployment benefits (for instance, unemployment insurance). These methods are designed
to inject more demand into the private economy and strengthen economic activity.