Editing Discouraged worker (section)

{{short description|Person of legal employment age who is not actively seeking employment}}
{{Globalize|date=December 2010}}
[[Image:Distribution of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 years and older first quarter 2009.png|thumb|Distribution of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 years and older, first quarter 2009 (US)]]
[[Image:Persons not in the labor force selected indicators quarterly averages 1994–2009 not seasonally adjusted.png|thumb|Persons not in the labor force selected indicators quarterly averages 1994–2009 not seasonally adjusted (US)]]
[[File:Unemployed.jpg|thumb|A woman holding a sign by a road, writing "Please help hard times, unemployed" in Massachusetts]]
In [[economics]], a '''discouraged worker''' is a person of legal employment age who is not actively seeking employment or who has not found employment after long-term [[unemployment]], but who would prefer to be working. This is usually because an individual has given up looking, hence the term "discouraged".

A discouraged worker, since not actively seeking employment, has fallen out of the core statistics of the unemployment rate since they are neither working nor job-seeking. Their giving up on job-seeking may derive from a variety of factors including a shortage of jobs in their locality or line of work; [[discrimination]] for reasons such as [[ageism|age]], [[racism|race]], [[sexism|sex]], [[Religious discrimination|religion]], [[Sexual orientation discrimination|sexual orientation]], and [[Ableism|disability]]; a lack of necessary skills, training, or experience; a [[chronic illness]] or [[disability]]; or simply a lack of success in finding a job.<ref name="Canada discourage2"/>

As a general practice, discouraged workers, who are often classified as ''marginally attached to the labor force'', ''on the margins'' of the labor force, or as part of ''hidden unemployment'', are not considered part of the labor force, and are thus not counted in most official [[unemployment rate]]s—which influences the appearance and interpretation of unemployment statistics.

One of the reasons why people become discouraged workers is discrimination in the workplace. The research found that minorities are more likely to become discouraged workers due to discrimination. The minorities, such as African Americans, ethnic and racial minorities in Europe, and older workers, tend to become discouraged workers more than others. Discrimination leads workers to be discouraged workers because discrimination caused feelings of helplessness and uncontrollability and decreases a level of self-efficacy. The studies of discouraged workers are undertaken, as it is seen as "hidden unemployment". However, it is related to major social problems like minority discrimination and the lack of a diverse community.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Heslin |first1=Peter A. |last2=Bell |first2=Myrtle P. |last3=Fletcher |first3=Pinar O. |date=2012-05-07 |title=The devil without and within: A conceptual model of social cognitive processes whereby discrimination leads stigmatized minorities to become discouraged workers |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/job.1795 |journal=Journal of Organizational Behavior |volume=33 |issue=6 |pages=840–862 |doi=10.1002/job.1795 |issn=0894-3796|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

There are not significant behavioral patterns of labor force participation across age-sex groups in the business cycle. It is related to the unemployment rate in the region. Generally, the discouraged worker effect gets stronger when the unemployment rate exceeds a certain level. Young workers are most dependent on the business cycle, regarding the decision of whether to participate in the labor force. There is a linear relationship only among the prime-age female between the added workers and the discouraged workers. The discouraged worker effects appear more for older workers during the exception phase, which is the phase when the unemployment rates of workers departed.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Congregado |first1=Emilio |last2=Gałecka-Burdziak |first2=Ewa |last3=Golpe |first3=Antonio |last4=Pater |first4=Robert |date=2020-01-06 |title=Asymmetry and Non-linearity in Discouraged and Added Worker Effects |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00128775.2019.1710215 |journal=Eastern European Economics |volume=58 |issue=3 |pages=221–241 |doi=10.1080/00128775.2019.1710215 |s2cid=214364089 |issn=0012-8775|url-access=subscription }}</ref>