While the definition of unemployment is clear, economists divide unemployment into many different categories. The broadest two categories of unemployment are voluntary and involuntary unemployment. When unemployment is voluntary, it means that a person has left his job willingly in search of other employment. When it is involuntary, it means that a person has been fired or laid off and now must look for another job. Digging deeper, unemployment, both voluntary and involuntary, is broken down into three types.