INTRODUCTION
This chapter is to introduce the following points, background of the study, statement of the problem, objectives of the study, research questions, hypothesis, and significance of the study and definition of terms.
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Cooperative is a basis for overall transformation of citizenry social and economic problems.
According to Berko, (1987:297), cooperative is a voluntary and democratic association of persons with variable membership and variable capital whose members pooled themselves and their resources together on mutual and self help basis to form a business enterprise which seek to solve the socio-economic problems of these members by directly providing goods and services to them in their capacity as either the owner/customer or owner employees of the cooperative enterprise.
According to Bob Igwe (2012:2) cooperative is defined as an association usually incorporated with economic aims, formed by or for persons or cooperation’s, having common needs approximately equal or proportional contribution to capital deriving proportionate service and benefits from it.
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Cooperative in order to promote the welfare of their members involve themselves in most tangible projects like building of houses, building of schools, building of hospitals, building of recreation centre, market and building of industries. Cooperative serves as a hold to company and local development agency, it also seeks to provide a community owned structure.
Today, there is vast unemployment in Nigeria and Aba- North Local Government Area in particular. After many years of Democracy, there are graduates of fifteen years standing, which roam the streets in search of white collar jobs that don’t exist. Unemployment is still on the increase irrespective of federal government budget to curb the surge. In the years, 2012, the federal government budgeted N10 billion and N20 billion in 2013 to deal with unemployment yet, unemployment increases on daily basis. Both the state and federal government are launching out a lot of programmes on small scale business enterprises, yet unemployment is still increasing.
However, the fact remains that no country can succeed in providing a reasonable standard of living for citizens alone. It is now obvious that the only option left of us is to adopt the socio-economic model of mutual self-help whereby unemployed individuals can voluntarily join together to achieve a common good through the formation of cooperative enterprise.
Cooperative we know plays multiple roles as institutional frame work for allocating scarce resources, stimulating economic growth and enhancing economic welfare. It raises the income level of the people by providing income learning opportunities.
Many reasons have been given for this critical situation concerning jobs, and such reasons include rapid growth of population in our country, the movement of capital to the cheap labour and the impact of new technology.
LITERATURE REVIEW
DEFINITION OF UNEMPLOYMENT
According to Udu et al (1999:75) Unemployment is defined as a situation in which persons capable and willing to work are unable to find suitable paying job opportunity. One cannot say precisely the number of unemployed people in our country (Nigeria). No institution can boost of having the current number of unemployed persons in. Nigeria today, most companies, private institutions and government agencies are forced to retrench a good number of their workers.
Every economy experiences some degrees of unemployment, the ease in carrying employment reduces the rate of unemployment in any given period.
TYPES OF UNEMPLOYMENT
SEASONAL UNEMPLOYMENT
According to Udu et al, (1999:76) seasonal unemployment is the type of unemployment that occurs in industries or activities that are seasonal in nature. These activities enjoyed labour temporary during the peak periods, examples of these includes, Christmas seasons, shop owners and company employ extra hands for the seasonal sale once the season is over, people so back to their formal state of life.
NORMAL AND TRANSITIONAL UNEMPLOYMENT
In construction companies or concrete jobs, this depends mainly on manual labour, workers are temporarily laid off at the end of major assignment such workers are reengaged when other jobs become available in families who re-organization takes place.
INTERNATIONALLY TRANSMITTED UNEMPLOYMENT
Is the type of unemployment that takes place in export oriented industries.
STRUCTURAL UNEMPLOYMENT
This type of unemployment comes as a result of changes in the pattern of aggregate demand and in the techniques of industry. This is more of long term phenomenon than either seasonal or frictional unemployment.