You need to be aware of the factors that influence a person’s chances of employment. These include;
- Educational qualifications
- Demand for certain skills
- Age
- Ethnicity
- Social class
- Gender
- Employment opportunities in a particular area, etc.
You also need to be aware of the impact of unemployment upon both the individual, and the local community.
Individual |
Local community |
Loss of status and self-esteem |
A high number of job losses tends to have a knock-on effect upon the local economy |
Over time, unemployed people often lose the friends they had at work |
Can lead to higher levels of crime |
The health of unemployed people tends to be worse than those in employment |
Can lead to social alienation, particularly amongst young people |
Loss of wealth and income |
Can result in more environmental poverty |
A high number of unemployed people is also damaging to the economy, as labour (one of the four factors of production) stands idle. Since the recession of the early 1980s, the level of unemployment has gradually declined. |
