## The Human Cost of Recessions: Assessing It, Reducing It

_IMF Staff Position Notes, November 11, 2010_

## Source details

**Canonical URL:** [The Human Cost of Recessions: Assessing It, Reducing It](https://www.imf.org/en/publications/imf-staff-position-notes/issues/2016/12/31/the-human-cost-of-recessions-assessing-it-reducing-it-24221)

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## Bibliographic details
- Authors: Mai Dao, Prakash Loungani
- Published: November 11, 2010
- Series: IMF Staff Position Notes
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.5089/9781462308163.004

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### Summary and central findings
- Recessions leave scars on the labor market.
- Over 200 million people across the globe are estimated to be unemployed at present resulting from the Great Recession of 2007–09.
- The paper surveys what is known about the effects of past recessions to assess the human cost of increased unemployment.
- If past is prologue, the cost to the unemployed (and society) could be high.
- The focus of this paper is on advanced economies.
- Most countries mounted strong policy responses to minimize the human costs; the policy actions were notable for their consistency and coherence across countries.

### Policy analysis and recommendations (high-level)
- Emphasize strong, coherent policy responses to limit labor-market scarring from recessions.
- Address aggregate demand shortfalls to reduce unemployment and associated human costs.
- Consider benefits provision, unemployment insurance (UI benefit), and work program design as tools to mitigate the adverse effects of recessions on workers and wages.

### Scope, subject matter, and keywords
- Subject: Labor, Labor markets, Unemployment, Unemployment rate, Wages
- Keywords: aggregate demand, benefits provision, demand shock, Europe, Global, headline inflation, job loser, Labor markets, North America, SPN, UI benefit, Unemployment, unemployment insurance, Unemployment rate, Wages, work program

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## Content in this bundle

- **_spn1017 — Annex 1: Fiscal Adjustment and Income Distribution in Advanced Economies**
  - [_spn1017 — Annex 1: Fiscal Adjustment and Income Distribution in Advanced Economies (Markdown version)](/-/media/websites/imf/imported-full-text-pdf/external/pubs/ft/spn/2010/_spn1017.pdf.md){rel="alternate" type="text/markdown"}
  - [_spn1017 — Annex 1: Fiscal Adjustment and Income Distribution in Advanced Economies (PDF)](/-/media/websites/imf/imported-full-text-pdf/external/pubs/ft/spn/2010/_spn1017.pdf){rel="external" type="application/pdf"}

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_Source: https://www.imf.org/en/publications/imf-staff-position-notes/issues/2016/12/31/the-human-cost-of-recessions-assessing-it-reducing-it-24221_