The Official Unemployment Rate as an Imperfect Measure of Joblessness

Discuss whether the official unemployment rate is an imperfect measure of joblessness.

Both the inflation rate and unemployment rate are closely watched aspects of macroeconomic performance metrics of the economy, and they are also among the key variables guiding macroeconomic policy targets. The existence of a high unemployment rate is a serious problem for households and for the nation at large. Do you think that the official unemployment rate is an imperfect measure of joblessness? If so, give examples of how the definition of the unemployment rate overstates or understates the number of jobless people in the economy.