unemployment

[uhn-em-ploi-muhnt]

noun

1. the state of being unemployed, especially involuntarily.

   Automation poses a threat of unemployment for many unskilled workers.

2. the number of persons who are unemployed.

3. Informal.,  unemployment benefit.

unemployment

/ ˌʌnɪmˈplɔɪmənt /

noun

1. the condition of being unemployed

2. the number of unemployed workers, often as a percentage of the total labour force

Other Word Forms

• antiunemployment adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of unemployment¹

First recorded in 1885–90; un- ¹ + employment

Example Sentences

Sir Lenny argues that black British people are grossly over-represented in the prison population and that there are relatively higher levels of black unemployment "all because of the transatlantic slave trade".

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Of all the disturbing trends I’ve been made unwitting witness to in the hyper-technological age, cheering for someone’s unemployment stands out as one of the most grotesquely cruel.

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The youth-led protests began on 25 September, triggered by public anger over repeated water and power cuts and have since morphed into wider dissatisfaction over corruption and high unemployment.

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“There’s bad, and even worse. Jared Golden and Paul LePage. Golden voted against unemployment benefits, child tax credits and more affordable healthcare,” an ad announcing Dunlap’s bid said.

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GP unemployment is getting worse, he said, with five doctors applying for every GP training post, while patient demand for appointments continues to increase.

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Related Words

• bankruptcy 
• collapse 
• decline 
• deflation 
• downturn 
• hard times www.thesaurus.com
• inflation 
• shakeout 
• slide 
• slump 
• stagnation 

When To Use

What does unemployment mean?

Unemployment is the state of not having a paid job—of being unemployed.Unemployment is also commonly used in the context of economics to mean the total number of people unemployed, such as in a country, as in Unemployment is down this quarter, with thousands of new jobs having been created. The opposite of this is employment—the total number of people who are employed. Employment also commonly means the state of being employed.The word unemployment is sometimes used as a short and informal way of referring to an unemployment benefit, which is an allowance of money paid to unemployed workers, such as by the government. People receiving such a benefit are often said to be receiving unemployment.Example: Unemployment is extremely stressful when you go months without any job prospects.