A politician has calculated that the total social benefit of the current amount of unemployment compensation is $3 billion per year. The total social cost of unemployment compensation is currently only $2 billion. The politician argues that a net gain to society would occur if we increased the level of unemployment compensation until total costs rise enough to equal total benefits. Is the politicians logic in the argument correct? Why or why not?
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Expert's answer
2013-06-27T09:23:39-0400
Unemployment benefits (also, depending on the jurisdiction, called unemployment insurance, The Dole or unemployment compensation) are payments made by the state or other authorized bodies to unemployed people. Benefits may be based on a compulsory para-governmental insurance system. Depending on the jurisdiction and the status of the person, those sums may be small, covering only basic needs, or may compensate the lost time proportionally to the previous earned salary. To Keynesian economists unemployment insurance programs act as an automatic stabilizer. When employment grows, program revenue rises through increased tax revenues while program spending falls as fewer workers are unemployed. This creates a surplus of funds for the unemployment program to draw upon during a recession. In a recession, unemployment benefits tax revenues fall and program spending rises as more workers lose their jobs and receive benefits. The increased payments to unemployed workers puts additional funds into the economy; however, others argue that the taxation necessary to support this system serve to decrease employment.
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