Institute of Economic Research, University of Wales Bangor, Gwynedd LL57 2DG, Wales

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Abstract
What we achieve and what we contribute are not independent of the level of demand for labour. Substantial labour reserves indicate that the labour market fails to discover a balance that reflects the needs and preferences of the population of working age. Different data sets—unemployment, vacancies, full-time equivalent jobs, and census data on forms of nonwork—are used to build a picture of the shift from tight to slack labour markets. The different sources confirm that unemployment becomes increasingly unreliable as a measure of labour reserve. The more difficult the labour market, the more likely it is that lack of opportunity takes the form of ‘sickness’ or government training rather than unemployment.

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