Cambridge International as and a level Economics Ebook

Diff iculties of measuring unemployment
Most governments use two main measures of unemployment. 
One measure is the number of people in receipt of 
unemployment-related benefi ts – this is called the 
claimant 
count 
measure. It has the advantage that it is relatively cheap 
and quick to calculate as it is based on information that 
the government collects as it pays out benefi ts. However, 
the fi gure obtained may not be entirely accurate. It may 
over- or understate the true fi gure as it may include some 
people who are not really unemployed and may omit some 
people who are genuinely unemployed. Some of those 
receiving unemployment benefi ts may not be actively seeking 
employment (voluntary unemployment) and some may 
be working and so claiming benefi t illegally. On the other 
hand, there may be a number of groups who are actively 
seeking employment but who do not appear in the offi
cial 
fi gures. Th
ese groups may include those above retirement age, 
those on government training schemes and those who choose 
not to claim benefi ts. As this measure is based on those 
Claimant count: 
a measure of unemployment based on 
those claiming unemployment benefits.
KEY TERM
SELF-ASSESSMENT TASK 
9.15
In 2013 the number of female workers in the UK passed 
14 million despite a rise in overall unemployment. Of 
this number, 57% were in full-time employment with 
43% in part-time employment. Th
ere were thought to 
be a number of reasons for this, including a rise in the 
female retirement age, an increase in the tertiary sector, 
more grandparents looking aft er the grandchildren 
during the day and cuts in benefi ts.
1
Explain how a rise in employment may occur at 
the same time as a rise in unemployment.