Frictional unemployment occurs due to

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Question restatement: Frictional unemployment occurs due to

Option a: 'changes in demand for workers due to weather conditions and other seasonal factors.' This describes seasonal unemployment, which happens because certain industries hire more in some seasons and less in others. It is not frictional unemployment, which is about the normal job-search process rather than predictable, recurring seasonal shifts.

Option b: 'the normal job search time required by people when changing jobs, initially entering the labour force, or re-entering the labour force.' This matches the standard definition of frictional unemployment: people are temporarily unemployed while searching for suitable roles or transitioning into the workforce, including those new to or returning to work. It reflects the short-term, voluntary nature of the unemployment arising from personal job-search activity.

Option c: 'a downturn in the business cycle; often referred to as demand-deficient unemployment.' This describes cyclical unemployment, which is tied to macroeconomic downturns and insufficient aggregate demand. It is not frictional unemployment, which is not caused by weak overall demand but by the regular job-search process.

Option d: 'a mismatch between the skills of available workers and the jobs required by firms.' This is structural unemployment, arising from longer-term changes in the economy that create a gap between workers’ skills and job requirements. Although related to unemployment, it is distinct from frictional unemployment, which is about short-term job searches rather than skill mismatches.

Summary: Option b identifies the standard cause of frictional unemployment as the normal job-search period during job transitions, new entrants, or re-entries into the workforce. The other options describe seasonal, cyclical, and structural unemployment, respectively, which are different phenomena with different underlying causes.

Frictional unemployment occurs due to

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