Click here to view the International Job Creation Policy Menu
Washington, D.C. — Today, as the nation awaits tomorrow’s release of the latest unemployment numbers, the Just Jobs Network, coordinated by the Center for American Progress, unveiled a new analysis outlining job creation strategies developed by nations across the globe. The menu of policy options to get people back to work was assembled from stimulus packages, growth plans, and ministry reports from the Americas to Asia. Most of these policies were proposed or enacted after the global economic downturn of 2008.
Economies around the world will need to create well more than 600 million new jobs over the next decade if they are going to stem unemployment and provide work for new entrants into the global labor market. Policymakers are tackling unemployment in different ways but are often unaware of solutions other countries are pursuing. This policy menu of options attempts to bridge that gap by highlighting job creation ideas from select advanced and developing economies.
“The years-long phenomenon of jobless economic growth in many countries means policymakers must stop assuming growth will automatically lead to jobs. Instead of thinking of jobs as a consequence of growth, we must focus on good job creation as a driver of economic growth that will lead to broadly shared prosperity," said Sabina Dewan, Director of Globalization and International Employment at the Center for American Progress.
This menu of job creation ideas is not an endorsement of any particular set of policies. Rather, the aim is to provide a resource for policymakers to survey the variety of job creation ideas being proposed around the globe. The analysis of the options is broken down according to actions taken in certain industrial and company sectors as well as by age, gender and other categories.
Key observations drawn from the job creation menu include:
- Small businesses are an important source of employment in all countries around the world. Policies to support new and expanding small enterprises are vital to job creation worldwide.
- Spending on infrastructure is a win-win for countries looking to create jobs. Not only has it proven effective at putting people back to work in the short run, but better infrastructure also helps economies run more smoothly.
- Recognizing that women are important drivers of economic growth, more countries are adopting gender-sensitive policies to make it easier for women to enter and stay in the labor market.
- Countries around the world are struggling with high levels of youth unemployment. Many are exploring schemes to subsidize the hiring of young workers and to train and match young people to employment opportunities.
Click here to view the International Job Creation Policy Menu
To speak with a CAP expert on this topic, please contact Katie Peters at [email protected].
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