Expand National Service to Keep Workers Engaged During Tough Economic Times

Harry Stein and Shirley Sagawa argue that by tying national service funding to the long-term unemployment rate, service programs would function as an automatic fiscal stabilizer for the national economy.

Two million jobless Americans have been trying to find work for at least 27 weeks. Many of these workers become trapped in a cycle of unemployment or underemployment that can mean a future of reduced wages, if they can even find a job, and an unsettling home environment for their family.

Many long-term unemployed need a path back into the workforce—one such path should be national service. In a recent report from the Center for American Progress, we proposed automatically creating new and temporary national service positions during times of high long-term unemployment, which would phase out as the economy returns to normal.

The above excerpt was originally published in Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity. Click here to view the full article.

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