Unemployment rates here are calculated based on people collecting benefits and being available and looking for work, i.e. filling out the gov't benefit forms...After a period of time, some drop out of the work force, are no longer participating as the term goes and thus are not counted.
Here is a basic example...Country X has an active labour force of 100 workers, 20 are on unemployment benefits and 80 are working...Later on, 5 of the unemployed give up, drop out of the labour force, go back to the farm, whatever...so, now, with an active labour force of 95, say 19 are unemployed and 76 have jobs. Here, 4 jobs have been lost but the percentage unemployed is the same...
edit...actually, one significant cause for the difference in unemployment rates in canada vs. the us. is how prisoners enter into the mix...my understanding is that the us has a higher ratio of prisoners and these are not counted as unemployed |
