Pavlina R. Tcherneva - The Case for a Job Guarantee

1 Cover

2 Front Matter The Case for a Job Guarantee Pavlina R. Tcherneva polity

3 Preface

4 Introduction Notes

5 1 A Public Option for Good Jobs Notes

6 2 A Steep Price for a Broken Status Quo How “Natural” is Unemployment? The Labor Market: A Catch-22 for Many The Human Yo-Yo Effect Unemployment is Expensive A Broken Status Quo: Policy Responses Notes

7 3 The Job Guarantee: A New Socia Contract and Macroeconomic Model Guarantees All Around: Public Options and Price Supports Price Supports, Buffer Stocks, and Living Wages Setting the Most Important Price Better Control of Inflation and Government Spending Automatic Stabilizers: Guaranteed Employment or Guaranteed Unemployment? Prevention, Not Just Cure The Labor Standard and the New Social Contract Boon to the Service Sector Other Benefits: Transition, Pre-distribution, and the Safety Net Notes

8 4 But How Will You Pay for It? Monetary Systems and the Power of the Public Purse Real versus Financial Costs and Benefits The Job Guarantee Budget Notes

9 5 What, Where, and How: Jobs, Design, and Implementation Program Features Administration and Participatory Democracy Differences from Other Proposals Types of Jobs: A “National Care Act” Real World Programs Concerns and Frequently Asked Questions Notes

10 6 The Job Guarantee, the Green New Deal, and Beyond Situating the Job Guarantee within the Green Agenda Industrial Mobilization and the Job Guarantee Conclusion: The Missing Global Employment Policy Notes

11 Index

12 End User License Agreement

1 Chapter 1 Table 1Runaway Inequality

2 Chapter 4 Table 2Simulating the Job Guarantee

3 Chapter 6 Table 3Support for Government Job Creation and Employer of Last Resort Policies

1 Chapter 1 Figure 1Distribution of Average Income Growth During Expansions

2 Chapter 2 Figure 2Chronic Job Shortages Figure 3Unemployment: The Human Yo-Yo Figure 4Unemployment During the Great Recession and Beyond

3 Chapter 6 Figure 5Popular Support for the Job Guarantee Figure 6Regional Support for Government Employment Programs

1 Cover

2 Table of Contents

3 Begin Reading

1 i

2 ii

3 iv

4 v

5 vi

6 viii

7 ix

8 x

9 1

10 2

11 3

12 4

13 5

14 6

15 7

16 8

17 9

18 10

19 11

20 12

21 13

22 14

23 15

24 16

25 17

26 18

27 19

28 20

29 21

30 22

31 23

32 24

33 25

34 26

35 27

36 28

37 29

38 30

39 31

40 32

41 33

42 34

43 35

44 36

45 37

46 38

47 39

48 40

49 41

50 42

51 43

52 44

53 45

54 46

55 47

56 48

57 49

58 50

59 51

60 52

61 53

62 54

63 55

64 56

65 57

66 58

67 59

68 60

69 61

70 62

71 63

72 64

73 65

74 66

75 67

76 68

77 69

78 70

79 71

80 72

81 73

82 74

83 75

84 76

85 77

86 78

87 79

88 80

89 81

90 82

91 83

92 84

93 85

94 86

95 87

96 88

97 89

98 90

99 91

100 92

101 93

102 94

103 95

104 96

105 97

106 98

107 99

108 100

109 101

110 102

111 103

112 104

113 105

114 106

115 107

116 108

117 109

118 110

119 111

120 112

121 113

122 114

123 115

124 116

125 117

126 118

127 119

128 120

129 121

130 122

131 123

132 124

133 125

134 126

135 127

136 128

137 139

138 140

139 141

140 142

141 143

142 144

143 145

144 146

145 147

146 148

“More than any other piece of public policy, the Job Guarantee can help us build a more equitable economy and just society. Pavlina Tcherneva has written the perfect primer for anyone interested in understanding why and how the Job Guarantee can do so much good.”

Ady Barkan, activist, organizer and author of Eyes to the Wind

“Many are coming to understand that the socioeconomic system in which we live – or endure – is broken, badly. There are solutions. The ideas in this valuable work point the way to a more civilized, indeed survivable, social order.”

Noam Chomsky

“The Job Guarantee is the next big, common-sense idea for economic reform. Over years of dedicated work, Pavlina Tcherneva has developed and advanced the plan, and today it stands poised to complement the Green New Deal and Medicare for All as a fundamental pillar of the progressive agenda. Read about it here … and go out to help make it happen.”

James K. Galbraith, The University of Texas at Austin

“Tcherneva lays out the case for how we can raise the roof by lifting the floor, as we transition away from a failed and cruel economy based on an assumed percentage of unemployment. She demonstrates how a jobs guarantee can help address some of our biggest challenges, including bridging the gap to a Green New Deal and the critical conversion from a fossil-fuel economy to a sustainable future. Through her book we can see a world where everyone who wants to claim the dignity of work as their own has that right.”

Sara Nelson, International President, Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, AFL-CIO

“Pavlina Tcherneva offers an eloquent and convincing argument for a public sector job guarantee as an economic shock absorber. Particularly valuable is her demonstration of how such a program can revitalise local communities. Beyond this, her book is an indispensable primer for advocates of a Green New Deal.”

Lord Robert Skidelsky, author of Keynes: The Return of the Master

For my daughter Yvette –

May you live in a world that is green and just.

The Case For series

Sam Pizzigati, The Case for a Maximum Wage

Louise Haagh,

The Case for Universal Basic Income

James K. Boyce, The Case for Carbon Dividends

Frances Coppola,

The Case for People’s Quantitative Easing

Joe Guinan & Martin O’Neill,

The Case for Community Wealth Building

Anna Coote & Andrew Percy,

The Case for Universal Basic Services

Gerald Friedman, The Case for Medicare for All

Andrew Cumbers, The Case for

Economic Democracy

Pavlina R. Tcherneva, The Case for a Job Guarantee

Pavlina R. Tcherneva

polity

Copyright © Pavlina R. Tcherneva 2020

The right of Pavlina R. Tcherneva to be identified as Author of this Work has been asserted in accordance with the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

First published in 2020 by Polity Press

Polity Press

65 Bridge Street

Cambridge CB2 1UR, UK

Polity Press

101 Station Landing

Suite 300

Medford, MA 02155, USA

All rights reserved. Except for the quotation of short passages for the purpose of criticism and review, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.