Deck 28: Unemployment and Its Natural Rate

Question 1

Measuring unemployment is the job of the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Cyclical unemployment refers to the year-to-year fluctuations in unemployment around its natural rate.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

An economy's natural rate of unemployment refers to the amount of unemployment that the economy normally experiences.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

The natural rate of unemployment refers to the current unemployment rate.

Question 5

The amount of unemployment varies little over time and across countries.

Question 6

Long-run unemployment arises from a single problem that has a single solution.

Question 7

The Bureau of Labor Statistics produces data on unemployment, types of employment, length of the average workweek, and the duration of unemployment.

Question 8

The natural rate of unemployment is the desirable rate of unemployment for an economy.

Question 9

There is no easy way for policymakers to reduce the economy's natural rate of unemployment while at the same time reducing the hardships of the unemployed.

Question 10

The natural rate of unemployment is any type of unemployment that does not go away on its own even in the long run.

Question 11

Every week, the Bureau of Labor Statistics produces data on unemployment.

Question 12

The natural rate of unemployment is impervious to economic policy.

Question 13

Some degree of unemployment is inevitable in a complex economy.

Question 14

Most people rely primarily on income other than their labor earnings to maintain their standard of living.

Question 15

Government policy can do nothing about the natural rate of unemployment.

Question 16

When a country keeps its workers as fully employed as possible, it achieves a higher level of GDP than if many of its workers were idle.

Question 17

The natural rate of unemployment is closely associated with the short-run ups and downs of economic activity.

Question 18

The amount of unemployment that a country typically experiences is a determinant of its standard of living.

Question 19

The natural rate of unemployment is constant over time.

Question 20

The Bureau of Labor Statistics produces data on unemployment and other aspects of the labor market from a regular survey of about 600 households, called the Current Population Survey.

Question 21

The adult population must equal the sum of the employed, the unemployed, and those not in the labor force.

Question 22

Someone who is without work but is not looking for work is included in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' "unemployed" category.

Question 23

Some adults who were not working are included in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' "employed" category.

Question 24

The Bureau of Labor Statistics' "unemployed" category includes those who were not employed, were available for work, and had tried to find employment during the previous four weeks.

Question 25

Full-time students and homemakers are included in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' "unemployed" category.

Question 26

The Bureau of Labor Statistics produces data on unemployment based on the number of people collecting unemployment insurance.

Question 27

The Bureau of Labor Statistics divides the adult population into two categories: those who are employed and those who are unemployed.

Question 28

Adults who were waiting to be recalled to a job from which they had been laid off are included in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' "employed" category.

Question 29

Only paid workers are included in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' "employed" category.

Question 30

Adults who were not working but who had jobs from which they were temporarily absent are included in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' "employed" category.

Question 31

The Bureau of Labor Statistics' "employed" category includes those who worked as paid employees, worked in their own business, or worked as unpaid workers in a family member's business.

Question 32

The Bureau of Labor Statistics produces data on unemployment and other aspects of the labor market from a regular survey of about 60,000 households, called the Current Population Survey.

Question 33

Every adult who was not employed during the previous four weeks is included in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' "unemployed" category.

Question 34

Unpaid stay-at-home fathers are included in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' "unemployed" category.

Question 35

The Bureau of Labor Statistics divides the adult population into three categories: employed, unemployed, and not in the labor force.

Question 36

Someone who has a job but is absent from work because she is on vacation is counted as "employed."

Question 37

Both full-time and part-time workers are included in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' "employed" category.

Question 38

The adult population must equal the sum of the employed and the unemployed.

Question 39

Adults who are waiting to be recalled to a job from which they had been laid off are counted as "unemployed."

Question 40

The Bureau of Labor Statistics divides the adult population into four categories: employed, underemployed, unemployed, and not in the labor force.

Question 41

The labor-force participation rate equals the percentage of the labor force that is either employed or unemployed.

Question 42

The unemployment rate equals the percentage of the labor force that is unemployed.

Question 43

Table 28-5
2015 Labor Data for Tajnia
$$\begin{array} { | l | l | } \hline \text { Number of adults employed } & 10,000 \\\hline \text { Number of adults unemployed } & 2,250 \\\hline \text { Number of adults not in the labor force } & 17,750 \\\hline\end{array}$$

-Refer to Table 28-5. The unemployment rate of Tajnia in 2015 is about 18.4 percent.

Question 44

The Bureau of Labor Statistics computes unemployment rates for the entire adult population and for groups based on age, gender, and race.

Question 45

The unemployment rate equals the percentage of the adult population that is unemployed.

Question 46

Table 28-5
2015 Labor Data for Tajnia
$$\begin{array} { | l | l | } \hline \text { Number of adults employed } & 10,000 \\\hline \text { Number of adults unemployed } & 2,250 \\\hline \text { Number of adults not in the labor force } & 17,750 \\\hline\end{array}$$

-Refer to Table 28-5. The labor-force participation rate of Tajnia in 2015 is about 33.3 percent.

Question 47

The labor-force participation rate tells us the fraction of the population that is able to participate in the labor market.

Question 48

Table 28-5
2015 Labor Data for Tajnia
$$\begin{array} { | l | l | } \hline \text { Number of adults employed } & 10,000 \\\hline \text { Number of adults unemployed } & 2,250 \\\hline \text { Number of adults not in the labor force } & 17,750 \\\hline\end{array}$$

-Refer to Table 28-5. The total adult population of Tajnia in 2015 is 30,000.

Question 49

Retirees are included in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' "not in the labor force" category.

Question 50

The labor-force participation rate equals the percentage of the total adult population that is in the labor force.

Question 51

Table 28-5
2015 Labor Data for Tajnia
$$\begin{array} { | l | l | } \hline \text { Number of adults employed } & 10,000 \\\hline \text { Number of adults unemployed } & 2,250 \\\hline \text { Number of adults not in the labor force } & 17,750 \\\hline\end{array}$$

-Refer to Table 28-5. The unemployment rate in Tajnia in 2015 is about 7.5 percent.

Question 52

Table 28-5
2015 Labor Data for Tajnia
$$\begin{array} { | l | l | } \hline \text { Number of adults employed } & 10,000 \\\hline \text { Number of adults unemployed } & 2,250 \\\hline \text { Number of adults not in the labor force } & 17,750 \\\hline\end{array}$$

-Refer to Table 28-5. The labor-force participation rate of Tajnia in 2015 is about 40.8 percent.

Question 53

Table 28-5
2015 Labor Data for Tajnia
$$\begin{array} { | l | l | } \hline \text { Number of adults employed } & 10,000 \\\hline \text { Number of adults unemployed } & 2,250 \\\hline \text { Number of adults not in the labor force } & 17,750 \\\hline\end{array}$$

-Refer to Table 28-5. The labor force of Tajnia in 2015 is 12,250.

Question 54

Table 28-5
2015 Labor Data for Tajnia
$$\begin{array} { | l | l | } \hline \text { Number of adults employed } & 10,000 \\\hline \text { Number of adults unemployed } & 2,250 \\\hline \text { Number of adults not in the labor force } & 17,750 \\\hline\end{array}$$

-Refer to Table 28-5. The labor force of Tajnia in 2015 is 10,000.

Question 55

If the number of people unemployed rose but the number of people employed and the adult population stayed the same, then the labor force participation rate would rise.

Question 56

The labor-force participation rate tells us the fraction of the population that has chosen to participate in the labor market.

Question 57

The labor force equals the sum of the employed and the unemployed.

Question 58

The Bureau of Labor Statistics computes labor-force participation rates for the entire adult population and for groups based on age, gender, and race.

Question 59

The labor force minus the number of employed equals the number of unemployed.

Question 60

The labor-force participation rate equals the percentage of the labor force that is employed.

Question 61

Within the U.S. population, blacks of prime working age (ages 25-54) have higher rates of unemployment than whites of prime working age (ages 25-54), regardless of gender.

Question 62

Within the U.S. population, blacks of prime working age (ages 25-54) have similar rates of unemployment than whites of prime working age (ages 25-54), regardless of gender.

Question 63

Within the U.S. population, women of prime working age (ages 25-54) have similar rates of labor-force participation than men of prime working age (ages 25-54), regardless of race.

Question 64

Within the U.S. population, teenagers (ages 16-19) have similar rates of labor-force participation than adults of prime working age (ages 25-54), regardless of race or gender.

Question 65

Over the past several decades in the United States, the labor-force participation rate of women has increased and the labor-force participation rate of men had decreased.

Question 66

Within the U.S. population, teenagers (ages 16-19) have higher rates of unemployment than adults of prime working age (ages 25-54), regardless of race or gender.

Question 67

Over the past several decades, the difference between the labor-force participation rates of men and women in the U.S. has gradually decreased.

Question 68

Causes of the changing role of women in American society over the past several decades include new technologies that have reduced the amount of time required to complete routine household tasks, improved birth control, and changing political and social attitudes.

Question 69

Within the U.S. population, teenagers (ages 16-19) have similar rates of unemployment to adults of prime working age (ages 25-54), regardless of race or gender.

Question 70

For 2015 the U.S. natural rate of unemployment was estimated to be about 4.9 percent, which was close to the actual unemployment rate in 2015.

Question 71

Within the U.S. population, teenagers (ages 16-19) have lower rates of labor-force participation than adults of prime working age (ages 25-54), regardless of race or gender.

Question 72

Within the U.S. population, women of prime working age (ages 25-54) have lower rates of labor-force participation than men of prime working age (ages 25-54), regardless of race.

Question 73

Within the U.S. population, women of prime working age (ages 25-54) have higher rates of unemployment than men of prime working age (ages 25-54), regardless of race.

Question 74

Over the past several decades, the difference between the labor-force participation rates of men and women in the U.S. has gradually increased.

Question 75

Data on the unemployment rate in the U.S. since 1960 show that the economy always has some unemployment and that the amount changes from year to year.

Question 76

Data on the unemployment rate in the U.S. since 1960 show that the unemployment rate sometimes is close to zero.

Question 77

The deviation of unemployment from its natural rate is called cyclical unemployment.

Question 78

Economists at the Congressional Budget Office estimated that for 2015, the U.S. natural rate of unemployment was about 4.9 percent.​

Question 79

The normal rate of unemployment around which the unemployment rate fluctuates is called the natural rate of unemployment.

Question 80

The normal rate of unemployment around which the unemployment rate fluctuates is called cyclical unemployment.