Unemployment Trends, Variables, and Assistance

The unemployment rate has greatly increased since the onset of the recession in December 2007, when it measured 5.0%. The rate peaked at 10.1% in October 2009, four months after the recession's official end. Almost two years into the economic recovery, the unemployment rate remains high, at just under 9.0%, and remains of concern to policymakers. This book assesses the relative magnitudes of cyclical and structural unemployment as they have different implications for policymakers. An analysis of changes between 2007 and 2010 in a variety of labour markets indicators across industries, finds patterns that strongly suggest most of the 5 percentage point increase in the U.S. unemployment rate is cyclical and due to depressed aggregate demand.