Unemployment is an issue that has effected almost all countries. Whether it be developed or underdeveloped countries, unemployment still effects everyone. Despite of the joint economic efforts which are being made continuously, Europe remains afflicted with alarming rates of unemployed individuals. The same holds true for a number of other regions which are now on the verge of economic collapse. It should be noted here that during different phases of human history, unemployment is the one thing that has always remained constant in one form or another. Despite of the advancements in technology, the underlying mechanisms and principles of unemployment have remain unchanged.
Here are the 10 reasons and causes for high unemployment in Europe.
10. The Great Depression
There is no doubt in saying that aversive economic conditions of a country or region always result in high rates of unemployment. One such example is the 2008 economic meltdown that resulted in a global recession. It should be considered here that all countries and regions depend upon another for economic stability.
- Need for Mutualism
As different economies and regions are tied to one another, any economic turn down in one region influences the economy of the other region. It is clear that during times of an economic meltdown, businesses start to shrink and job openings start to disappear. In such harsh times, companies and organizations prefer to initiate drastic job cuts in order to meet their operational and all other costs. In simple words, when a company fails to earn significant profits, it has no other option than to undergo large scale job cuts. Sometimes, the company executives and officials prefer to limit job openings in order to avoid redundancies.
- People are being forced to Work More
At the same time, it should also be considered that the employees who work for these companies and organizations are expected to perform a number of tasks in order to remain employed. There is no end to the companies and organizations that are exploiting their work force by paying them less and work more.
- Technological Innovation
In the span of the 19th century which is marked for the industrial and technological revolutions, millions of workers had revolted on the introduction of machines. As the machines were able to perform different tasks with more agility, thousands and thousands of workers were forced to leave their jobs. In other words, traditional jobs had started to disappear with the introduction of machines. In the present times, the primary threats are robotics and hyper-intelligent computers. The process of keeping consumer records and archives in different organizations is being performed by single-master computers. Previously, these chores and tasks were performed by teams. A single server computer, operated by a single person, is able to perform the same task in a short time period.
- The Cost War
This form of unemployment is also being seen these days as the companies and organizations are able to benefit more by spending a little cost. The cost of paying hundreds of employees is higher than the one required to purchase and maintain sophisticated computing machines and devices.
- Machines replacing Humans
It can also be said that the years that follow will be marked for the inception of more sophisticated and state of the art computers and devices that will result in more unemployment. Although technological innovation is often seen as positive, still it has a number of de-merits, especially in terms of elevating the unemployment rates.
- Increasing Population-A Cause
Increasing populations can be termed the third primary cause of unemployment. In the span of the past few decades, the numbers of unemployed individuals have continued to increase. To some extent, the increasing rates of trade and goods balance out the increasing population, but most businesses fail to comply with the short term consequences.
- Alternatives are there
There are a number of strategies that can be used to employ a large number of individuals, but not all countries and economies are able to execute these measures. A number of economists and experts are of the view that population control is one of the best methods that can be used to meet the challenges of high unemployment.
- Plethora of Factors
There are a number of different factors that can be linked to alarming rates of unemployment. However, in terms of the causes and effects of unemployment, only the dominant factors will be considered. The major factors that result in unemployment can be classified as economic, social, cultural, political etc.
- More needs to be done
Unemployment is indeed the most debilitating problem for all globalized economies. History shows that there are some effective measures and maneuvers that can be used to alleviate unemployment rates. However, these strategies and measures might not be enough to employ every single person in the world. There is a lot more that needs to be done in order to keep the world population employed. It can be concluded that the future of mankind can be secured by making joint ventures and efforts in order to control and limit the causes and effects of unemployment in the world.