unemployability

unemployability — noun

1. the condition of being very hard to hire for work, often because of health, miss

1.nounC2
Definition

the condition of being very hard to hire for work, often because of health, missing skills, or a damaged work record

Example

After the injury, Cyrus feared that constant pain could bring unemployability.

unemployability caused by lasting health problems

When the factory shut, years without training deepened Gabriel's unemployability.

unemployability after a long skills gap

Common collocations
  • face unemployability
  • long-term unemployability
  • reduce unemployability
  • risk of unemployability
Synonyms
  • unemployment

    means having no job now, but it does not by itself suggest lasting barriers to being hired

  • joblessness

    is a broader everyday term for having no job, not specifically being hard to hire

  • worklessness

    is mainly a policy term for being outside paid work and can be broader than hiring difficulty

Antonyms
  • employability

    means having the skills or condition that make employers willing to hire you

  • work-readiness

    focuses on being prepared for a job, especially after training or support

Grammar Patterns

face unemployability

reduce unemployability

risk of unemployability

unemployability because of [reason]

Usage Note

Often used in formal discussions of health, social policy, prison release, or long breaks without training. Distinguish from unemployment: unemployment means not having a job now, while unemployability suggests lasting barriers that make employers unlikely to hire the person.

Common Mistakes

After the accident, he faced unemployment because no employer would hire him.
After the accident, he faced unemployability because no employer would hire him.
unemployment means being out of work now; unemployability stresses difficulty being hired.
Her unemployabilities grew after years out of work.
Her unemployability grew after years out of work.
unemployability is usually uncountable.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Unemployability is stronger than unemployment or joblessness. Unemployment and joblessness only say that someone does not have a job at the moment. Unemployability suggests that employers are unlikely to hire the person because of a lasting barrier such as poor health, missing training, a long break from work, or a criminal record. Employability is the opposite idea: it refers to the qualities that make someone easier to hire. Use unemployability when the problem is not only being out of work now, but also facing serious barriers to getting back into work.

unemployability ↗unemployment ↗joblessness ↗employability ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • face unemployability
  • long-term unemployability
  • reduce unemployability
  • risk of unemployability

Prepositions

Etymology

English

Unemployability was formed in English from unemployable and the ending -ity. It names the condition of being hard to hire for work, especially when a lasting barrier makes returning to employment difficult.