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Unemployment has been holding steady at a near 50-year low, according to the federal government
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But a new study shows nearly one in four Americans are considered functionally unemployed
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So, first things first, what does it mean to be functionally unemployed
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The term was coined by the Ludwig Institute for Shared Economic Prosperity, a research and advocacy group
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They define functional unemployment to include not only those who are jobless
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but also people who are struggling to find full-time work and those stuck in poverty-wage jobs
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According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, America's unemployment rate remained unchanged from March to April at 4.2 percent
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However, the Ludwig Institute says its true rate of unemployment, or true report
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which measures functional unemployment, rose slightly from 24 percent in March to 24.3 percent in April
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The Ludwig Institute says the functional unemployment rate has remained at 24 percent or higher since February
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with no signs of improving. The Institute's chair said current trends show little sign of improvement
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The harsh reality is that far too many Americans are still struggling to make ends meet
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and absent an influx of dependable, good-paying jobs, the economic opportunity gap will widen
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A separate ysis by the Ludwig Institute, released earlier this month, shows a widening gap between what Americans earn and how much they need to bring in to achieve what they call a minimal quality of life
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That includes not just the daily necessities like food and shelter, but things like education, transportation and clothing as well
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That ysis found Americans need to earn at least $67,000 a year to attain that minimal quality of life
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