It is now well documented that for many the experience of unemployment brings with it physical and mental health problems. Not all groups in our community are equally affected by unemployment.
Young people are another seriously disadvantaged group.
Three articles in consecutive issues of the Journal will highlight the health problems faced by unemployed people. 7 Satisfactory employment has many benefits that unemployed people are denied. These benefits are firstly financial, but equally important are the assignment of identity and status, the increased social contact, being part of a collective purpose and joint effort, and being able to engage in regular activity. The substantial cuts to income that most unemployed people face are associated with real and relative deprivation that, in itself, can be psychologically destructive. Poverty clearly affects physical and psychological well-being.