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UN EMPLOYMENT

Unemployment



















In most countries, unemployment is one of the most social and aconomic problems of the day. It exists in an alarmining degree not only in poor countries, but also in apparently prosperous lands like England and the United States of America' Just now it is not so bad as it was a few years ago on England; but even today, when trade is fairly good and the re-armam schemes have absorbed a number of the hithert there are still about two million (in a population of forty million) out of work. The number of the unemployed goes up and down as trade diminishes or improves; but unemployment-still remains as a more or less serious problem. 
There is A stress the serious sufferings of men and families,of work for long periods of time-lack of food, decent housing , health, and all the pleasures of life, nor the injury a country as whole suffers when so large a part of its populations is idle and is a burden on the rest. Let us glance at the different ways in which the problem is being tackled. At one time emigration was the chief remedy. People who could not get work at home were helped to emigrate to the Colonies, and went across the seas to people Australia, New Zeland and Canada. 
But emigration on any large scale to these countries is no longer possible, as they have big populations of their own. Either work of support has now to be found for the wordless at home. Private charity, administered by philanthropic societies, has done much to relieve the distress of families out of work by supplying them with money and food. But the problem is too big a one for private effort to deal with adequately. 
So the State has had to step in; and today it supports families who are out of work on what is call the "dole". 
The unemployed can now claim a certain allowance out of State funds, so long as they are genuenily out of work. This is sufficient to secure them food and housing, and medical attention in time of sickness. 
This has saved thousands from starvation; but it has its disadvantages. Living on the dole in idleness is not good for the character of any man. The honest workman feels degraded at having to live on charity, when all he wants is to earn an honest living by honest toil. And the effect on theirs is to make them idle and workshy, and unwilling to take work even when they can get it. So the problem is not solved, but only alleviated.

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