AP Macroeconomics 2.3 Unemployment Questions

Calculate labor-market measures, classify unemployment types, evaluate official-rate limits, and connect cyclical unemployment with output and the natural rate.

Syllabus
Effective Fall 2022
Course
AP Macroeconomics

Exam points

  • classify people as employed, unemployed or outside the labor force
  • calculate labor-force totals, unemployment rates and labor force participation rates
  • explain how movements into or out of the labor force change measured rates
  • evaluate how discouraged and underemployed workers cause the official rate to understate slack
  • classify frictional, structural and cyclical unemployment from scenarios

Question 1

[Maximum number: 3]

Assume that in the country of Zeta, the civilian noninstitutional population aged 16 and over is 1,000,000. The labor force participation rate is 70%, the unemployment rate is 9%, and the natural rate of unemployment is 5\%.

Question (a)

(a)

Calculate the number of people in Zeta that are unemployed. Show your work.

[ 1 ]

Question (b)

(b)

If some individuals who are counted as unemployed in Zeta looking for work, what will happen to each of the following?

[ 2 ]

Question (i)

(i)

The labor force participation rate. Explain.

[ 1 ]

Question (ii)

(ii)

The unemployment rate

Begin your response to this question at the top of a new page in the separate Free Response booklet and fill in the appropriate circle at the top of each page to indicate the question number.

[ 1 ]

Question 2

[Maximum number: 1]

Which of the following scenarios demonstrates a limitation of the official unemployment rate?

A

It excludes people like Bob, who is looking for a new job as a school cafeteria worker since his last job was replaced by a vending machine.

B

It excludes people like Tammy, who is not working but is looking for a new job because of her recent move from Texas to New York.

C

It excludes people like Salem, who is no longer attempting to find a job after unsuccessfully searching for one.

D

It excludes people like Rania, who is working as a beach lifeguard only during the summer because she is a full-time student.

E

It excludes people like Julie, who is searching for a job but is unable to find one as a result of an increase in the minimum wage.

Table for Question 2 — AP Macroeconomics

Question 3

[Maximum number: 1]

Assume that the economy of Barrikos is in short-run equilibrium, with its economic data summarized in the table provided. The government budget is balanced, and the capital and financial account (CFA) balance is zero.

Table for Question 3 — AP Macroeconomics

What is the numerical value of the actual unemployment rate in Barrikos?

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