Government spending as a cause or cure for unemployment
Some economists found high correlations between government spending as a percentage of GDP to unemployment from 1981 to the present using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The correlation between government spending was negative during the 1940 to 1980 period. However, the Misery Index was steadily rising during this period. These same economists state that the unemployment supply curve is actually vertical, that labor will work under any condition provided work is available, and the economic element with the most power to shift it is government.