Econs - 4.6

Question 1

employment - definition

Answer 1

refers to the use of factors of production in the economy, such as labour

Question 2

unemployment - definition

Answer 2

occurs when people of working age are both willing and able to work but cannot find employment

Question 3

full employment - definition

Answer 3

everyone in a country who is willing and able to has a job

Question 4

changing patterns & levels of employment

Answer 4

1. employment sector
2. delayed entry to the workforce
3. ageing population
4. formal sector employment
5. female participation rate
6. public sector employment
7. flexible working patterns

Question 5

employment sector - patterns

Answer 5

• developed countries have more workers in the tertiary
• machines replace labour

Question 6

delayed entry to workforce - patterns

Answer 6

• people start work later
• education journey is too long

Question 7

ageing population - patterns

Answer 7

• avg age increases firms are more willing to employ after retirement age
• older workers stay
• lower birth rates & longer life spans

Question 8

formal employment - patterns

Answer 8

• increased employees in formal sector (officially recorded, paying income taxes) => increase in taxes paid => GDP increases
• more official work

Question 9

female participation rates - patterns

Answer 9

• change in social attitudes towards women, women choosing to have lesser children & at a later age to pursue a professional career

Question 10

public sector - patterns

Answer 10

• decline in proportion people employed in the public sector
• less public jobs

Question 11

flexible working times - patterns

Answer 11

• hiring part time, WFH, flexible working hours
  public sector
• bec of tech and competition

Question 12

formal sector employment - definition

Answer 12

refers to OFFCIALLY recorded employment, where workers PAY income taxes and contribute to the country’s official GDP

Question 13

2 ways to measure unemployment

Answer 13

1. claimant court - number of people whoa re out of working and claiming unemployment benefits
2. labour force survey - uses the ILO’s standardised household-based survey to collect work- related statistics

Question 14

unemployment rate - definition

Answer 14

measure of the percentage of a country’s workforce that is out of employment

Question 15

unemployment rate - formula

Answer 15

OR
–
(no of unemployed / (no of unemployed + employed + self employed)) x 100

Question 16

3 types of unemployment

Answer 16

1. frictional unemployment : changing jobs
2. structural unemployment : skills dont match jobs
3. cyclical unemployment : demand deficient unemployment

Question 17

frictional unemployment - definition

Answer 17

transitional unemployment which occurs when people change jobs or are in-between jobs

Question 18

structural unemployment - definition

Answer 18

occurs when the demand for products produced in a particular industry continually falls, often due to foreign competition

Question 19

cyclicals unemployment - definition

Answer 19

unemployment caused by a lack of demand, which causes a fall in national income. its a severe type of unemployment as it can affect every industry in the economy

Question 20

consequences of unemployment

Answer 20

• individuals : suffer from stress, can be homeless
• family : fights bec of the inability to provide
• local community : falling house prices / low security => increased crime rates
• firms : business failures / bankruptcies bec of low spending (no money to spend)
• government : higher expenditure (need to take care of the poor and provide welfare benefits)
• economy : less international competitiveness bec of falling levels of spending & national output

Question 21

policies to reduce unemployment

Answer 21

1. fiscal policy
2. monetary policy
3. protectionist measures
4. supply-side policy

Question 22

fiscal policy

Answer 22

• government increases spending on public projects => creates jobs
• cut taxes => more purchasing power => higher demand => firms need to produce more => hire more workers

Question 23

monetary policy

Answer 23

• lowers interest rates
  => cheaper loans => people buy more houses / cares
  => firms borrow to invest in new machinery / open branches / expand => more production => more hiring

Question 24

protectionist policy - definition

Answer 24

• using tariff / quotas to protect domestic industries from foreign competition

Question 25

protection policies

Answer 25

- tariff applied => imported goods more expensive => consumers buy locally made products - local firms => expand => higher more workers

Question 26

supply-side policies

Answer 26

- education & training => workers gain new skills => fill more job types - lower income tax => people more motivated to work - labour market reformed => easier for firms to hire - privatisation & deregulation => more private firms => more jobs created