Types of Unemployment (Cambridge (CIE) O Level Economics)
Revision Note
Written by: Steve Vorster
Reviewed by: Jenna Quinn
Types of Unemployment
It is possible to classify the causes of unemployment into three categories
Structural unemployment occurs when there is a mismatch between jobs and skills in the economy
It usually happens as the structure of an economy changes e.g. the secondary sector is declining and the tertiary sector is growing
There is no longer a need for a specific type of worker e.g. ship builders in Glasgow
Many Western industries have relocated production to China causing structural unemployment in their economies
Unless workers receive help to retrain, they are often left unemployed or underemployed
Cyclical unemployment is caused by a fall of total (aggregate) demand in an economy
This typically happens during a slow down or recession
At least one of the components of real gross domestic product (rGDP) is falling (consumption, investment, government spending or net exports)
The demand for labour is a demand derived from the demand for goods/services
As output falls in the economy, firms lay off workers
Frictional unemployment occurs when workers are between jobs
This is usually short-term unemployment
Workers have voluntarily left their previous job to search for another
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