ABSTRACT
Unemployment is a distinct phenomenon at the interface of the labor market and the welfare state as such, it helps identify the mode of institutional interaction in modern society. Its special character becomes clearer when compared to both temporary absence and early retirement. Early retirement has a permanent character, whereas the duration of unemployment is uncertain and in many cases transitory. The comparative sociology of unemployment is surprisingly small, although some efforts have been made to unravel the striking variations in unemployment across countries and over time. Active labor market policy can be an alternative to open unemployment, such as in the celebrated Swedish model, which provides training, sheltered workshops, and relief work. Comparative research has thus far been preoccupied with variations in the rate of total unemployment and its development. A labor supply perspective suggests that young people at school, as well as early retirees, are groups of special interest for the configuration of the unemployment regime.
