Types of Unemployment - 21 |
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There are a variety of different types of unemployment. Having
underutilised labour is an indicator that the supply of labour, and the demand for labour
are not in equilibrium.
You may be seasonally unemployed. Many jobs do not last all year.
Many jobs in the agricultural sector are seasonal; shearing sheep, wool
classing, fruit and grape picking only last for a number of months each
year.
You may be a member of the hard core unemployed. Some people
are unemployable because of their ''personal characteristics''. You may
have a criminal record. You may have physical characteristics that employers
may not like (for example, a heavily tattooed person may find it difficult
to get work in an area with large amount of customer contact, like retailing).
The rapid computerisation of the work place has many positives: it has
allowed information to be more quickly gathered within an organisation, and then transmitted
to decision makers. Computerisation has allowed greater uniformity of product, and higher
quality production. However, many jobs are disappearing, as their functions are taken over
by automated processes. This is termed technological unemployment. This is effecting
office staff and middle management in many businesses. Change brings the need for retraining
as well. Many people in their late fifties find it difficult to find employment,
because employers may think these people are too old to effectively do
the job required. Although many types of discrimination are illegal, and
''Equal Opportunity'' legislation exists, it can be difficult to prove
you have been discriminated against.
You may be frictionally unemployed. Many workers in the construction
industry work on large projects. There are often periods of time when these
workers are ''between contracts''.