Unemployment: The United States has Fallen Behind

The unemployment rates in the United States have been a concern for several years now. Until recently, these unemployment rates had seen nothing but increases. Still, other countries around the world have had very low unemployment rates – even through the global recession. So what is the difference?

There are several reasons that the unemployment rates in other countries are much lower than in the US. This article from the Harvard Business Review claims that it is largely due to a lack of work-life balance for US employees. This is often linked to lack of time off for new parents, or parents of sick children. Having a family focused work environment is important for employees, but the US laws do not provide parents with much job security if time is taken off for family. This creates unhappy employees which eventually leads to high turnover and poor economic performance for companies.

Another reason other nations have lower unemployment is that many countries have more strict firing laws. This is common of many European countries. This keeps employees in their jobs for longer periods of time which reduces turnover. The rapidly growing Asian economies have been able to provide a wide array of new job opportunities keeping these countries’ unemployment numbers low. With new companies and industries emerging in these countries all the time, keeping Asian citizens employed has not been an issue.

Overall, there are many factors that contribute to any country’s unemployment rate. Luckily for the US, unemployment has recently dropped showing signs of hope. Do you think this will continue? Will the US unemployment ever drop to be as low as some of its European and Asian competitors? Let us know your thoughts below!