In ancient times, pre-civilization included, was there such a concept as joblessness? Was there ever not enough to do in the world? I severely doubt it. So this notion of unemployment in its essence is a purely capitalist notion, in that providing for oneself is an intrinsic requirement outside of capitalism. Living off of savings or other forms of insurance is not a realistic option outside capitalist society, among the few lucky enough to gain capital accumulation. Without capital, in a capitalist society that has used the notion of private property to exclude all earlier methods of survival and self-sustenance (i.e. hunting and gathering is not permitted outside your own property lines), survival itself is impossible. A homesteader in history might have once had such a bountiful crop that his/her family didn’t need to tend it the next year, but I severely doubt they took the risk that their luck would hold so well for another year thereafter. The only people who could afford not to work were those subjugating others into providing for the group’s survival unassisted, but this “wealthy” class considered their acts of oppressing their fellow humans a sort of “tending” work. These wealthy tyrants have always regarded “tending to their subjects” as similar to a farmer tending to the plants of the field. The names have changed; but serfs, slaves, proletariat, and employees have all fit similar roles. I suppose even this “management” class wouldn’t ever consider themselves “jobless.”
So, can unemployment really ever be caused by a lack of things to do? Is the world that serene and settled? I would argue instead that joblessness is a state invented by capitalism, and fostered by its dependency on the profit motive as the only source of “worth.” Base survival is not a worthwhile endeavor in capitalist investment, however necessary it is to the survivor. In fact, if capitalists can make any necessity, including survival, more difficult for the “customer,” the better for their profits. “Captive markets” are the most wonderful thing in the world to a capitalist. It doesn’t really matter to them if their captives are starving or unhappy, so long as they keep on paying in some way.