Unemployment

In modern America, unemployment is a widespread problem for the economy and for the
welfare of its citizens. As an economic issue, unemployment has the capability of negatively
affecting corporations and government finances, which would lead to problems for society as a
whole. Unemployment can also affect the mental health of those afflicted and of those who
surround them. Furthermore, as a consequence, long lasting unemployment can damage an
individuals future career and potential. By being an abundant economic problem and an
overbearing financial problem to individuals, unemployment drastically damages our society.
Unemployment can be classified into different types, each of which has various causes
for it. The first type of unemployment is called frictional unemployment,which is caused by the
time it takes for people to move between jobs. It can be caused whenever people graduate dont
find a job right away or if they are looking for new employment. Structural unemployment
occurs when a worker is unable to adapt to a changing work environment. Inability to learn new
skills, replacing workers with technology, and the decline for a specific work industry are all
common causes. Real wage unemployment happens if wages exceed a certain rate, discouraging
employers from hiring more workers and causing the supply of labor to be greater than the
demand. Voluntary unemployment is whenever people actively choose to stay unemployed,
especially if unemployment benefits are generous. Lastly, cyclical unemployment takes place
when the economy isnt functioning at full capacity, leading to negative economic growth and a
fall in output. This lack of output forces businesses to lay off workers in order to account for the
lack of profit.
In terms of the economy, unemployment has a great influence on consumer spending,
leading to a negative impact on companies. Because unemployed citizens tend to spend less

money, which causes a loss of profits to certain companies. In turn, the loss of profits forces
companies to make layoffs in order to account for this loss, effectively causing others to lose
their jobs and creating a cycle of unemployment and profit loss. In addition, the government
offers payment to unemployed citizens in the form of benefits. These benefits cause a great
amount of government spending as well as a lowered amount of income tax received, leading to
the government having to borrow money or cut back on spending in other areas. Overall, high
unemployment rates are a threat to the economy, which affect the welfare of the citizens.
A state of unemployment has an adverse affect on an individuals mental health and the
mental health of those who are close to them. If an unemployed person looking for a job remains
unemployed for a few months, they will start to develop feelings of anxiety and depression while
also experiencing trouble sleeping. In a prolonged state of unemployment, their psyche becomes
damaged and their self esteem starts to drop, a condition that could persist even after they are
unemployed. As for their families, unemployment brings a great deal of stress, thus damaging
their overall well-being. Furthermore, the children of an unemployed person are more likely to
be depressed, exhibit dangerous behavior, and, as they mature, are reported to earn less money
than of other children. Lastly, coworkers who are still employed may experience a heavier
workload, leading to greater stress on top of anxiety of losing their job as well. On the whole,
unemployments ability to affect, not only an individuals mental state, but also those around
them proves its danger to all of society.
It is reported that being unemployed for too long could reduce ones chances of getting a
job in the future due to various factors. One of these factors is the atrophy of useful skills where
because of inactivity, an individual forgets those skills. This factor can also affect the economy
by preventing necessary skills from being used in the workplace, thus decreasing effective

output. Furthermore, prolonged unemployment causes an individual to become skeptical about

the value of job education and training, making them less inclined to commit to a job that
requires a long amount of training. Lastly, being unable to find a job for so long is unappealing
to employers, further increasing the difficulty for unemployed citizens to find any work with
every denied job. Lengthy unemployment inevitably turns into a self-perpetuating issue of
further unemployment and damage to ones well-being.
While the unemployment rate is slowly dropping, its still high enough to be a problem
and has the potential to increase very quickly. Its lasting effect on the economy and government
spending may lead to future problems that increase unemployment. Also, its affect on mental
health may lead to issues with work efficiency, decreasing business output and leading to people
being laid off. Finally, unemployment leads to a negative influence on ones ability to get a job,
placing them in a rut of unemployment. Unemployment is a financial, psychological, and
prevalent issue to society and if left untreated, will grow to an overwhelming rate.

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