Camden Commentary: S.E. Georgia counties' unemployment rates higher than state average.

Friday, March 12, 2010

hannah said...: That's not necessarily bad news. Unemployed means that somebody used to pay for your labor and report it and now they don't.
Self-employment and people who survive off "unearned income" aren't counted in those numbers.
It was estimated in 2000 that the so-called "underground" or "shadow" economy was as large as 1/3 of the GDP (what gets counted) and growing. Some people assume the underground economy refers to criminal behavior such as prostitution and dealing illegal drugs. However, that's not the majority of the activity. Few people are studying the underground economy in the U.S., but a study of Germany's determined that when corporate production decreased and workers had more hours of free time, they invested in upgrading their residence and housing stock. And none of that replacement and increase of capital value registered in the national accounts.
So, some of the official data are presented as negative because of a preconceived notion of how things ought to be (everyone working for pay for someone else and keeping the records up to date).
Economists suggest that economic development and growing affluence promote a reduction in underground or black-market activities. However, the nation with one of the smallest shadow economies is Uzbekistan.

If anybody takes up your offer and comes over to mow your grass for free, s/he'll be contributing to the underground economy.; March 13, 2010 at 9:42 AM