08.08.2015 Views

Economic Report of the President

Report - The American Presidency Project

Report - The American Presidency Project

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS
  • No tags were found...

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.

Chart 2-2Distribution <strong>of</strong> Unemployment by Family StatusHUSBANDS,SPOUSE WORKING7.8%HUSBANDS.SPOUSE WORKING11.5%1978 1982'HUSBANDS AND WIVES WHOSE SPOUSE DOES NOT WORK AND PERSONS WHO MAINTAINFAMILIES.NOTE.^DATA RELATE TO PERSONS 16 YEARS AND OVER.SOURCE: DEPARTMENT OF LABOR.REASONS FOR UNEMPLOYMENTAnalyzing <strong>the</strong> problem <strong>of</strong> unemployment requires understanding<strong>the</strong> process by which people become unemployed. The unemployedare <strong>of</strong>ten described in stereotyped terms as <strong>the</strong> victims <strong>of</strong> permanentlay<strong>of</strong>fs by firms that are ei<strong>the</strong>r partially or fully shutting down. Evenduring <strong>the</strong> recent recession, however, this characterization applied toless than half <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> unemployed.As part <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> monthly Current Population Survey, <strong>the</strong> unemployedare asked a number <strong>of</strong> questions designed to elicit <strong>the</strong> reasonsfor <strong>the</strong>ir unemployment. The answers to <strong>the</strong>se questions permit abreakdown <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> unemployed into five groups: (1) persons laid <strong>of</strong>fwho can expect to return to <strong>the</strong> same job; (2) persons who have lostjobs to which <strong>the</strong>y cannot expect to return; (3) persons who havequit <strong>the</strong>ir jobs; (4) reentrants who are returning to <strong>the</strong> labor forceafter a spell <strong>of</strong> nei<strong>the</strong>r working nor looking for work; and (5) newentrants who have never worked at a full-time job before but are nowseeking employment.Chart 2-4 shows that <strong>the</strong> distribution <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> unemployed among<strong>the</strong>se categories is very sensitive to cyclical conditions. The share <strong>of</strong>persons who have lost <strong>the</strong>ir jobs, ei<strong>the</strong>r temporarily or permanently,33

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!