Can we finally put this hypercapitalist rightist American myth to rest? Here’s the reality: Topping things off, “hard to fire people” German is two percentage points lower in unemployment than the US. The UK is also lower; France is even.
Beyond that, this is comparing apples to oranges, in several ways.
First, European countries don't calculate unemployment the same way the US does. I don't know about today, but, a decade ago, Germany counted you as unemployed if you were working for a temp agency, even if it was full-time work. (At that time, Manpower was the single largest employer in both the US and the Federal Republic, since you work for the temp agency, not the company with which it is contracting.)
Second, due to the amount of people the US incarcerates for drug crimes, and the amount of people it pays to arrest them, try them, keep them incarcerated, etc., we'd have even higher unemployment without our draconian drug laws.
Third, many European countries have "universal service" upon graduation from high school, or the equivalent thereof. This is military service for many who do not conscientiously object, etc. It doesn't count as employment. In the US, with its professional army, though (please, not "all volunteer," its "professional") the men and women in uniform count as employed. Right now, if we weren't fighting multiple wars in a recession, we'd have even more unemployment.
So, actually, it's not that unemployment in "old Europe" is the same or a bit lower than here; if you compare apples and apples, it's probably a lot lower than in the high-unemployment USofA.
The US unemployment rate hitting 10.2 percent underscores this even more.
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