The writer is editor-in-chief of MoneyWeek

Let’s say you are unemployed and someone offers you $15 an hour to work a 40-hour week as a shift manager at McDonald’s in the US. That would give you $600 a week. It’s not a fortune. It’s not awful either. So all other things being equal, if you were in need of work you’d probably take it. But what if someone else was offering you a little over $600 a week if you didn’t take it? $650 perhaps — to stay at home instead. My guess is that you might think twice.

This might be part of the explanation behind the trouble American companies are having hiring at the moment. For much of the past 18 months the US government has not only showered one-off stimulus cheques on the general population but also offered hugely bumped up unemployment benefits. People have been able to claim more and for longer than ever before (39 weeks rather than 26 weeks). The average weekly unemployment benefit across the country is now well over $600, with some states paying over $700.