The question of whether or not an economic system should abide by
"Laissez-Faire" policies does not turn on whether or not a system
provides full employment. Full employment is not a great virtue if
the resulting resources earned do not meet the spending needs of the
workers, or if the supply of goods and services generated do not meet
public demand.
With that in mind, in a free-enterprise system "Laissez-Faire" is an
acceptable economic policy, regardless of whether or not full
employment is achieved. It is important to underscore that
"Laissez-Faire" does not mean that government intervention is
completely absent. Instead, it means that government regulation is
limited to only necessary areas to enable the market system to
function properly. That still provides ample opportunity for the
government to become involved in limiting such things as fraudulent
behavior, abuses of market power, or collusion against the public, for
example.
Finally, even if one believes that "Laissez-Faire" policies cannot be
trusted to ensure the proper functioning of a market economy, it is
generally found that policies of government interference in the
allocation of resources does not lead to higher employment rates. For
example, minimum wage laws and employee hiring requirements tend to
result in lower employment rates rather than full employment.
Dictionary.com: "Laissez-Faire"
http://www.dictionary.com/search?q=laissez+faire
Capitalism.org: Capitalism FAQ
http://www.capitalism.org/faq/index.htm
Search Terms: Laissez-Faire
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