Trend the Hard - Core Unemployed : Myth and Reality *

Persons who are unemployed for long periods of time in our society constitute a large, complex, ongoing problem, even during times of rleatively high employment. The significance of this problem is supported by the fact that between 1947 and 1962 long-term unemployment had risen 100 percent, while short-term unemployment rose 20 percent. We were also reducing short-term unemployment during this period at a considerably faster rate than long-term unemployment. The national concern with long-term unemployment is, of course, reflected in the antipoverty programs of the 1960’s. A significant number of these programs (Job Corps, Neighborhood Youth Corps, and Work Experience Training) are concerned with the questions of employment and unemployment among the poor. In a broad’sense we have come to view the