Definition

1. Noun:
   • The state of being without a paid job: "Unemployment" refers to the condition of an individual who is able and willing to work but cannot find a job.
   • The number or proportion of unemployed people in an economy: "Unemployment" also refers to the overall level or rate of joblessness within a society or economic system.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:
  • Long-term unemployment can have devastating effects on a person's skills and mental health.
  • The government released new data showing a fall in the national unemployment rate.
  • She has been on unemployment benefits since the factory closed.

Advanced Usage

• Structural unemployment: Joblessness caused by a mismatch between the skills of the workforce and the needs of the modern economy.
  • Automation is a major cause of structural unemployment in manufacturing.
• Frictional unemployment: Short-term unemployment that occurs when people are between jobs or are searching for their first job.
  • Some level of frictional unemployment is normal in a dynamic economy.
• Cyclical unemployment: Unemployment that rises during economic recessions and falls during periods of growth.
  • The stimulus package aimed to reduce cyclical unemployment caused by the downturn.

Variants and Related Words

• Unemployed (adj): Describing a person who does not have a job but is available for work.
  • He has been unemployed for six months.
• Unemployable (adj): Describing a person considered not fit for employment, often due to a lack of skills or other factors.
  • Without basic computer skills, he feared becoming unemployable.

Synonyms

• Joblessness: The state of not having a job.
• Idleness: (In an economic context) The state of not being employed or used.

Related Phrases

• Unemployment benefit/compensation: Money paid by the government to people who are out of work.
  • He applied for unemployment benefits after being laid off.
• Unemployment line/queue: A metaphorical or literal line of people seeking work or benefits.
  • The recession put thousands of people in the unemployment line.

Related Idioms

• A victim of unemployment: Someone who suffers the negative consequences of being jobless.
  • The town was full of victims of unemployment after the mine shut down.

Noun

1. the state of being unemployed or not having a job
   • unemployment is a serious social evil
   • the rate of unemployment is an indicator of the health of an economy