Unemployment statistics are based on aggregates of individuals, not families, yet the family as a unit suffers from unemployment-especially of the major wage earner. This paper explores the ramifications of using the individual rather than the family as the unit of analysis. Two issues in particular are discussed: the tendency to equate employment/unemployment with family economic well-being and the narrow operationalization of the term "unemployed." Policy implications in the form of additional indicators are discussed.
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