Chap 28 Macroeconomics

Unemployment that results because the number of jobs available in some labor markets may be insufficient to give a job to everyone who wants one is called

structural unemployment

collective bargaining refers to

the process by which unions and firms agree on the terms of employment

Suppose that the adult population in the town of Springfield is 225 million. If 40 million are unemployed and 100 million are employed, then the unemployment rate is approximately

29%

Since 1960, the natural rate of unemployment in the U.S. has been between

5% and 6%

Measuring unemployment is the job of the

Bureau of Labor Statistics

Meredith is looking for work as a computer programmer. Although her prospects are good, she has not yet taken a job. Julie is looking for work in a steel mill. Every time she shows up for an interview, there are more people looking for work than there are openings. Someone waiting in line with her tells her it has been that way for a long time.

Meredith is frictionally unemployed, and Julie is structurally unemployed.

Esmerelda worked part-time for her mother's business without pay. Tabitha was absent from work because she had strep throat. Who is counted as "employed" by the Bureau of Labor Statistics?

both Esmeralda and Tabitha

Consider two people who are currently out of work. Tim is not looking for work because there have been many job cuts where he lives, and he doesn't think it likely that he will find work. Bev is not currently looking for work, but she would like a job, and she has looked for work in the past. The Bureau of Labor Statistics considers

both Tim and Bev to be marginally attached workers.

Some individuals would like to have a job, but they have given up looking for a job after an unsuccessful search. These individuals are called

discouraged workers, and they are not classified by the Bureau of Labor Statistics as unemployed.

Duane owns his own real estate company. The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts Duane as

employed and in the labor force

People who are unemployed because they are in search of a job that suits their skills are included within

frictional unemployment

Suppose that the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that the number of jobs for dental hygienists will grow faster than most occupations while the number of jobs for bookbinders will decline. This change in the labor market could lead to

frictional unemployment caused by sectoral shifts

Sectoral shifts in demand for output

increase unemployment due to job search.

The effects of unionization on wages in the sectors of the economy that are unionized causes the supply of labor in other sectors of the economy to

increase, reducing wages in industries that are not unionized.

an increase in minimum wage

increases structural unemployment

Job search

is one reason economies always experience some unemployment. is the process of matching workers with appropriate jobs. would not be a problem if all workers and all jobs were the same. All of the above are correct. (**** correct***)

Which of the following is not an explanation for the existence of structural unemployment?

job search

Unemployment numbers reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics are reported based on a

monthly survey of about 60,000 households

The amount of unemployment that an economy normally experiences is called the

natural rate of unemployment

Cyclical unemployment is caused by

neither frictional nor structural unemployment

Unemployment insurance

reduces the hardship of unemployment, but it also increases the amount of unemployment. reduces the incentive for the unemployed to find and take new jobs. causes workers to be less likely to seek guarantees of job security when they negotiate with employers over the terms of employment. All of the above are correct (***correct***)

Most spells of unemployment are

short, but most unemployment observed at any given time is long term.

Which of the following is not an explanation for the existence of unemployment in the long run?

the business cycle

Who of the following is not included in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' "employed" category?

those waiting to be recalled to a job from which they had been laid off

Cyclical unemployment refers to

year-to-year fluctuations of unemployment around its natural rate.