Unemployment — Economics, 11–13 years
Understand what unemployment measures, why it happens, and why being without a job is different from choosing not to work.
When people want work but have none
Unemployment counts people who are able and willing to work, are looking for a job, but do not currently have one. It does not include every person without a job, such as someone taking a planned break or caring full-time for a baby.
Why unemployment is measured
The problem is that a town can look busy while many willing workers cannot find jobs. Measuring unemployment helps show unused skills and lost income, and helps decision-makers judge whether training, support or new jobs are needed.
Reading an unemployment rate
Imagine 1,000 people are in the labour force: 940 have jobs and 60 are looking for one. The unemployment rate is 60 ÷ 1,000 × 100 = 6%. A person studying full-time and not seeking work is not in this calculation.
No job is not always unemployment
A common mistake is to call everyone without a paid job unemployed. It is reasonable because everyday speech uses the words that way, but economists ask two extra questions: are they available for work, and are they actively looking?
Where you notice it
Unemployment appears in news reports, job-centre figures and conversations about a town's future. A rising rate may mean fewer businesses are hiring, while a falling rate may hide people who stopped looking, so one number needs context.
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