Yes, different countries do measure their unemployment rates differently. This results in incomparable data and is why Japan has always had what was considered an absurdly low unemployment rate. However, institutions such as the BLS, OECD and ILO do standardize the rates, allowing us to compare them against one another.
On March 28th, the OECD came out with their OECD Factbook 2006, thus putting me in a quandry;
Do I hold true to my economic principles and promptly cancel my date with the impossibly gorgeous blond or
Go out with the blond knowing I have betrayed the Sacred Economic Order.
Regardless, in the Factbook they had standardized rates which would prove useful;
What was also interesting was that they broke down the unemployment rates for men and women. I thus subtracted the female unemployment rate from the male unemployment rate to see where the men were pulling more of their own weight.
It seems Greece and other central European countries have more of their men working than women. Ireland has more of their women working than their men. Alas, it seems this is more of a measure of which countries keep their women at home and not necessarily a reflection upon a stronger male work ethic...it is also futher proof I want a Irish girl.
Why is the issue of unemployment even discussed when there is plenty of work out there. Take this site www.POSTaNEED.com for example. People or companies post when they have an odd job to do and then people pick up those jobs or even companies pick them up. Even if you are not a career person then you can just pick up these jobs when you feel like working or when you need money. But to say there is even an idea of unemployment it is crazy. Most everyone can pull weeds, clean, paint, stuff envelopes etc. Is this not true... ?
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