Question 1

Which one of the following would be classified as employed?

Accepted Answer

The 17-year-old high school student who works a newspaper route six hours per week would be classified as employed.

Question 2

Suppose the population (age 16 and over) of Peru is 400 million; 20 million are unemployed, and 230 million hold jobs. What are the rates of unemployment and labor force participation of Peru?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Suppose the population (age 16 and over)...

Question 3

Each month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics calculates unemployment by

Accepted Answer

The Bureau of Labor Statistics surveys a random sample of households to calculate unemployment.

Question 4

Suppose the population (age 16 and over) of Panama is 50 million; 4 million are unemployed, and 36 million hold jobs. What are the rates of unemployment and labor force participation of Panama?

Accepted Answer

The labor force is the sum of the employed and unemployed, which is 4 million + 36 million = 40 million. The unemployment rate is the number of unemployed divided by the labor force, which is 4 million / 40 million = 10%. The labor force participation rate is the labor force divided by the population, which is 40 million / 50 million = 80%.

Question 5

The employment/population ratio identifies the proportion of the population age 16 and over that is

Accepted Answer

The employment/population ratio is calculated by dividing the number of employed individuals by the total population age 16 and over. Therefore, it only identifies the proportion of individuals who are employed, not those who are unemployed, in the labor force, or on layoff waiting to be rehired.

Question 6

Which of the following would be most likely to reduce the rate of unemployment?

Accepted Answer

An Internet job listing system that makes it easier to get information about job openings and available employees would make it easier for job seekers to find job opportunities and for employers to reach potential employees. This could lead to an increase in job matches and, therefore, a reduction in the rate of unemployment.

Question 7

The unemployment rate is defined as the number of

Accepted Answer

The answer of The unemployment rate is defined as the...

Question 8

Which one of the following persons would be considered unemployed?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which one of the following persons would...

Question 9

Which of the following would be classified as employed?

Accepted Answer

A worker who is in the midst of a two-week vacation from his regular job would be classified as employed, as they have a job but are taking a temporary break from it. The other options do not currently have a job, or have a job but are not currently working due to external factors (layoff, caring for family members).

Question 10

Suppose the population (age 16 and over) of Vietnam is 100 million; 5 million are unemployed, and 40 million hold jobs. The labor force participation rate in Vietnam is

Accepted Answer

The answer of Suppose the population (age 16 and over)...

Question 11

Suppose the population (age 16 and over) of Madagascar is 200 million; 9 million are unemployed, and 111 million hold jobs. Indicate the rate of unemployment and the employment/population ratio of Madagascar.

Accepted Answer

The unemployment rate is calculated as (unemployed / labor force) * 100 = (9 million / (9 million + 111 million)) * 100 = 7.5%. The employment/population ratio is (employed / population) * 100 = (111 million / 200 million) * 100 = 55.5%.

Question 12

Suppose the population (age 16 and over) of New Zealand is 48 million; 4 million are unemployed, and 40 million hold jobs. Indicate the rate of unemployment and the employment/population ratio of New Zealand.

Accepted Answer

The unemployment rate is calculated by dividing the number of unemployed by the labor force (the number of employed plus the number of unemployed). In this case, the unemployment rate is 4 million / (4 million + 40 million) = 9.1%. The employment/population ratio is calculated by dividing the number of employed by the population. In this case, the employment/population ratio is 40 million / 48 million = 83.3%.

Question 13

The labor force participation rate is defined as the number of

Accepted Answer

The labor force participation rate measures the percentage of the working-age population (i.e. individuals aged 16 years or older) who are either employed or actively seeking employment. Therefore, the labor force participation rate is calculated by dividing the number of individuals who are employed or seeking employment (i.e. the sum of employed and unemployed individuals) by the total working-age population.

Question 14

Xavier is on layoff from his assembly-line job in Detroit, and he expects to return in about four weeks. During this time, he is vacationing in Florida. The Bureau of Labor Statistics would classify Xavier as

Accepted Answer

The answer of Xavier is on layoff from his assembly-line...

Question 15

How would the Bureau of Labor Statistics classify a college graduate who is not currently working but recently turned down an offer for employment at $10 an hour in order to keep looking for a better job?

Accepted Answer

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, individuals who are not currently employed but are actively seeking employment are considered unemployed. In this scenario, the college graduate is actively looking for a job and turned down an offer, therefore they would be classified as unemployed.

Question 16

The unemployment rate equals the number of persons

Accepted Answer

The unemployment rate is defined as the percentage of the labor force that is unemployed, so the numerator should be the number of people who are unemployed, and the denominator should be the labor force. The labor force is defined as the sum of the number of people who are employed and the number of people who are unemployed, so dividing the number unemployed by the labor force gives the unemployment rate.

Question 17

Andrea would be considered unemployed if she is

Accepted Answer

Andrea is not currently employed and is actively seeking work, so she would be considered unemployed. Option A describes underemployment, option B describes temporary leave, and option C describes a situation where Andrea is already employed full-time.

Question 18

When people speak of the labor force participation rate, they are actually talking about the percentage of

Accepted Answer

The labor force participation rate measures the percentage of working-age people who are either working or actively seeking work. Therefore, option D is the correct answer. Option A only refers to people who are actively seeking work, while option B only refers to people who are currently employed. Option C refers to a subset of potential participants in the labor force, but does not encompass all of them.

Question 19

Darryl would like to work as an accountant full time. A full-time position is not available, however, so he must accept a part-time job working 15 hours per week. The Bureau of Labor Statistics would categorize Darryl as

Accepted Answer

Darryl is earning income through his part-time job, therefore he is considered to be employed according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Question 20

Suppose the population (age 16 and over) of Angola is 100 million; 5 million are unemployed, and 70 million hold jobs. The labor force participation rate in Angola is

Accepted Answer

The labor force participation rate is calculated as the labor force (employed + unemployed) divided by the population (age 16 and over). Here, the labor force is 75 million (70 million employed + 5 million unemployed), and the population is 100 million. Thus, the participation rate is 75 million / 100 million = 75 percent.

Quiz 8: Economic Fluctuations, Unemployment, and Inflation