Final answer:
When a person rejoins the labor force and starts looking for work, the unemployment rate increases and the labor-force participation rate is unaffected.
Step-by-step explanation:
When a person rejoins the labor force and starts looking for work, the unemployment rate increases and the labor-force participation rate is unaffected.
The labor-force participation rate refers to the percentage of the working-age population that is either employed or actively seeking employment. When a person rejoins the labor force and starts looking for work, they are counted as unemployed. This increases the unemployment rate because there is an additional person seeking employment. However, the labor-force participation rate remains unaffected because the total number of people in the labor force (employed and unemployed) does not change.
For example, if the labor force initially consisted of 100 employed individuals, and one of them becomes unemployed and starts actively seeking work, the labor force still consists of 100 individuals, but the unemployment rate increases because there is now one unemployed person in the labor force. The labor-force participation rate remains the same.