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definitions

structural unemployment

noun
  1. unemployment caused by basic changes in the overall economy, as in demographics, technology, or industrial organization.

Origin of structural unemployment

First recorded in 1960–65
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
British Dictionary definitions for structural unemployment

structural unemployment

noun
  1. economics unemployment resulting from changes in the structure of an industry as a result of changes in either technology or taste
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
structural unemployment in Culture

structural unemployment

Relatively long-lasting unemployment resulting from long-term shifts in economies and markets rather than short-term savings in economic conditions.

Note

Structural unemployment tends to develop around major changes in an economy, such as the move from an industrial to a technological economy. Workers displaced by the decline of the old economy tend not to be trained in fields suitable for the new economy, so they remain out of work.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.