LOW UNEMPLOYMENT

mACROECONOMIC OBJECTIVE: LOW UNEMPLOYMENT

INTRODUCTION: In this weeks learning you will consider the economic and human costs of unemployment and specifically labour unemployment. This is a topic that will resonate with anyone that has looked over last weeks jobless numbers and it seems a long time ago (actually about a month ago) that the American economy could boast the lowest jobless numbers on record. I have included a summary of the jobless reports below from around the world to bring you up to date!

Wow - Less than a month ago...

Weekly claims for jobless benefits drop, suggesting coronavirus hasn't yet hit labor market
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment insurance fell last week for a second straight week, an indication that the coronavirus had not yet hit the labor market in a major way. The Labor Department said Thursday that applications for unemployment benefits, a good proxy for layoffs, dropped by 4,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 211,000.

And where we're at today...

A record 10 million sought US jobless aid in past 2 weeks
WASHINGTON (AP) - More than 6.6 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week - doubling a record high set just one week earlier - a sign that layoffs are accelerating in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak. Combined with last week's report that 3.3 million people sought unemployment aid two weeks ago, the U.S.

Unemployment doesn't affect everyone equally...

Under 25s and women 'finances hit worst by virus'
Young workers, the worst paid and women will be most affected economically by the coronavrius, a study has found. A "remarkable concentration" of those groups are employed in sectors that have shut down, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) discovered. It said its research raised serious worries" about the longer-term effect of the crisis on young people especially and inequality.

The longer-term implications of rising unemployment...

The Economic Devastation Is Going to Be Worse Than You Think
"All the economists I've talked to are as freaked out as they've ever been," Jared Bernstein, who served as chief economist to Vice President Joe Biden in the Obama administration and informally advises his presidential campaign, told me. Yet what is scariest about the new economic projections is that they are probably too rosy.

Define the term unemployment.
Explain how the unemployment rate is calculated.
Calculate the unemployment rate from a set of data.
Explain the difficulties in measuring unemployment, including the existence of hidden unemployment, the existence of underemployment, and the fact that it is an average and therefore ignores regional, ethnic, age and gender disparities.
Discuss possible economic consequences of unemployment.
Discuss possible personal and social consequences of unemployment.
Describe, using examples, the meaning of frictional, structural, seasonal and cyclical (demand-deficient) unemployment.
Distinguish between the causes of frictional, structural, seasonal and cyclical (demand-deficient) unemployment.
Explain, using a diagram, how cyclical unemployment is caused by a fall in aggregate demand.
Explain, using a diagram, how structural unemployment is caused by changes in the demand for particular labour skills, changes in the geographical location of industries, and labour market rigidities.

Why are we waiting
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An introduction to the US labour market

WHAT IS UNEMPLOYMENT?

WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF UNEMPLOYMENT?

unemployment_lesson.pdf
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unemployment_economics_-_course_companion_-_jocelyn_blink_and_ian_dorton_-_third_edition_-_oxford_2020_1___dragged__7.pdf
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Economics A-Z terms beginning with A | The Economist
The Economist offers authoritative insight and opinion on international news, politics, business, finance, science, technology and the connections between them.

Why American unemployment is so low
MARKETS may be jittery, but America's job-creation machine continues to roll on. America's economy added 155,000 net new jobs in November. Strikingly, the unemployment rate is 3.7%, which is the lowest level in roughly half a century. The last time America enjoyed a similar stretch of low unemployment it was preparing to put men on the moon.

The link between video games and unemployment
IN 2016 the video-gaming industry racked up sales of about $100bn, making it one of the world's largest entertainment industries. The games on offer run the gamut from time-wasting smartphone apps to immersive fantasy worlds in which players can get lost for days or weeks.

Left behind
MARIA GIL ULLDEMOLINS is a smart, confident young woman. She has one degree from Britain and is about to conclude another in her native Spain. And she feels that she has no future.

Review of Keynesian and Neo-classical macroeconomic modelling

Enquiry question: 'How far and why do Keynesian and Neo-classical economists disagree about the characteristics of the macroeconomy (growth, inflation and unemployment)?'

WHAT: Review Keynesian and Neo-classical views of the macroeconomy regarding growth inflation and unemployment
HOW: Make a creative piece (rap, short movie, information documentary, song, cartoon strip etc) or publication to demonstrate the great macroeconomic divide between the Keynesian and Neo-classical economists.
WHY: The great sways of in contemporary politics are between these two schools of economic thought, almost everything when boiled down comes down to economics...As Keynes said “Practical men who believe themselves to be quite exempt from any intellectual influence, are usually the slaves of some defunct economist. Madmen in authority, who hear voices in the air, are distilling their frenzy from some academic scribbler of a few years back”

INTRODUCTION: Before you can create your 'Battle of the Century' publication you will need to remind yourself of the main differences between the two school's of macroeconomic thought. You will need to examine the differences in thought between Keynesian and Neo-classical scholars on the issues of Unemployment, inflation and growth. You should complete the review handout below in order that you understand all the key points that need to go into your creative piece/publication:

ACTIVITY 1: Complete the Review handout:

keynsian_and_classical_review_lesson__1_.pdf
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Going Viral - Bringing it together

ACTIVITY 2 : Watch the videos below to get inspiration for your own creative piece/publication:

MRU's Take: 'Game of Theories' - Keynes Vs The Austrians and Monetarists (These are the Neo-Classical Economists)

ACTIVITY 3: Get creative! These are some good examples from previous years... We will be using the Paper 1 Markscheme criteria to assess your creative piece!

Assessment Criteria for viral publication: Remember the question is in the form of an enquiry, so your key question is 'How far and why do Keynesian and Neo-classical economists disagree about the characteristics of the macroeconomy?'