What Are the Long-Term Effects of Unemployment?

Unemployed people might suffer a loss of reading comprehension skills over time. In one study, Swedish workers showed a 5% decline in reading ability after being out of work for a year. Other long-term effects of unemployment include relationship difficulties, economic hardship and physical and mental health problems.

More about the long-term effects of unemployment:

• Both men and women report a strain on their interpersonal relationships during unemployment. Men who lose their jobs are at greater risk of divorce than men who are working.


• Unemployed people might be more inclined to make poor food choices, according to one study, and that can have long-term health consequences.


• Some of the most insidious long-term effects of unemployment are on long-term career and financial prospects. Many unemployed workers settle for new jobs that offer lower compensation than their previous employment. There also is evidence that children of people who are unemployed for a long period of time will earn less during their careers.