--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I thought they were unemployed. They did…" description: "\"“I thought they were unemployed. They did not appear as unemployed on any record, but the actual unemployment in France and throughout Europe, was enor..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee4/rose-wilder-lane-11326_quote_i-thought-they-were-unemployed-they-did_2091138.jpg" --- # I thought they were unemployed. They did not appear as… ![“I thought they were unemployed. They did not appear as unemployed on any record, but the actual unemployment in France and throughout Europe, was enormous. For every purchase in a French department store, something like an hour’s time was unemployed; millions of hours a day. And the cashiers, the…” quote by Rose Wilder Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee4/rose-wilder-lane-11326_quote_i-thought-they-were-unemployed-they-did_2091138.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee4/rose-wilder-lane-11326_quote_i-thought-they-were-unemployed-they-did_2091138.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee4/rose-wilder-lane-11326_quote_i-thought-they-were-unemployed-they-did_2091138.jpg) > ““I thought they were unemployed. They did not appear as unemployed on any record, but the actual unemployment in France and throughout Europe, was enormous. For every purchase in a French department store, something like an hour’s time was unemployed; millions of hours a day. And the cashiers, the filing clerks, the watchers of those records, never did a stroke of productive work.”” [Rose Wilder Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-wilder-lane/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She describes hidden unemployment where many people appear employed but perform no productive work, highlighting economic inefficiency. **In simple terms:** People can be officially employed yet do nothing useful. Key Takeaway Recognize and address hidden waste in labor. Themes economics employment productivity social critique Mood critical analytical Type observational analytical When to use this quote - policy analysis - government budgeting - business efficiency - social research Key Concepts hidden unemployment labor market inefficiency economic measurement Questions to Reflect On - How do we measure true productive labor? - What policies could reduce hidden unemployment? A Different Perspective The claim may overgeneralize and lacks precise data. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [The last time I was unemployed was 1989, and I've seen the research on retired people and how they feel about it. 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While he babbles, other men are risking and losing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-wilder-lane/anyone-who-says-that-economic-security-is-a-human-right-has-been-to/) [Rose Wilder Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-wilder-lane/) > [It was not seen that woman's place was in the home until she began to go out of it; the statement was a reply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-wilder-lane/it-was-not-seen-that-woman-s-place-was-in-the-home-until-she-began-to/) [Rose Wilder Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-wilder-lane/) > [Our quilts were more than useful, they had the faint sentimentality of a pressed flower. And no more beauty. We did not value them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-wilder-lane/our-quilts-were-more-than-useful-they-had-the-faint-sentimentality-of/) [Rose Wilder Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-wilder-lane/) > [Nothing whatever but the constitutional law, the political structure, of these United States protects any American from arbitrary seizure of his property and his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-wilder-lane/nothing-whatever-but-the-constitutional-law-the-political-structure/) [Rose Wilder Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-wilder-lane/) > [The need for Government is the need for force; where force is unnecessary, there is no need for Government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-wilder-lane/the-need-for-government-is-the-need-for-force-where-force-is/) [Rose Wilder Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-wilder-lane/) > [Plants and animals repeat routine, but men who are not restrained will go into the future like explorers into a new country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-wilder-lane/plants-and-animals-repeat-routine-but-men-who-are-not-restrained-will/) [Rose Wilder Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-wilder-lane/) > [Houses are the abiding joys; they are the most emotion-stirring of all things. An automobile is regarded with fond affection, a typewriter becomes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-wilder-lane/houses-are-the-abiding-joys-they-are-the-most-emotion-stirring-of-all/) [Rose Wilder Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-wilder-lane/) > [“To know the everlasting majority attitude toward new uses of productive energy, remember that your great-grandfather did not believe that railroads were possible. At…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-wilder-lane/to-know-the-everlasting-majority-attitude-toward-new-uses-of/) [Rose Wilder Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-wilder-lane/) > [“Certainly they would have planted more grapes, produced more wine, lowered the price of wine. They would have needed more casks, more boats, more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-wilder-lane/certainly-they-would-have-planted-more-grapes-produced-more-wine/) [Rose Wilder Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-wilder-lane/) > [“Ask why you can’t lift an innocent finger without permission, and your lack of the simplest reasoning power baffles them. One must always have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-wilder-lane/ask-why-you-can-t-lift-an-innocent-finger-without-permission-and-your/) [Rose Wilder Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-wilder-lane/) > [“Being absolute, and maintained by police force, a Government monopoly need not please its customers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-wilder-lane/being-absolute-and-maintained-by-police-force-a-government-monopoly/) [Rose Wilder Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-wilder-lane/) [Explore all 60 Rose Wilder Lane quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-wilder-lane/) ## More Time Unemployed quotes > [The last time I was unemployed was 1989, and I've seen the research on retired people and how they feel about it. 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