Washington, DC—The Center for American Progress’s President and CEO, John Podesta, issued the following statement today on the creation of the “Just Jobs” network:
One of the biggest challenges facing the United States and the global economy is unemployment. That’s why the Center for American Progress is launching the Just Jobs Network, which will explore how best to extend the benefits of economic integration and trade to all of the workers who power the global economy. The Center for American Progress is delighted to undertake this new endeavor for an initial period of two years with the support of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The International Labor Organization estimates that there are approximately 212 million unemployed workers across the globe, and this figure does not include the many workers excluded from labor statistics who are in the informal or unregulated economy, especially in developing countries. Behind these data are real people, their families, and communities that are at the receiving end of this economic contagion.
In a world closely connected through technology and flows of people, goods, services, and capital, everyone—thought and policy leaders, labor, businesses, and civil society—must work together to address this urgent challenge.
The network’s primary aim will be to focus on generating and maintaining momentum behind the creation of “just jobs” — jobs complete with labor rights, appropriate remuneration, social protections such as health care and pensions, and opportunities for economic mobility.
Institutions and policy experts from around the world will undertake a periodic analysis of employment policies and labor markets in their respective areas and regions of expertise. The Just Jobs Network will be a platform for members to share knowledge and experiences and collectively draw attention to and gather international momentum behind the creation of just jobs for development and as a necessary means to make economic integration and trade work better for more people.
Read the new papers from the Center for American Progress on “Just Jobs” here: The Case for Just Jobs by John Podesta and Sabina Dewan Beyond Moral Justification, by Isha Vij and Sabina Dewan Social Protection Is a Necessity, Not a Privilege, by Sabina Dewan Bringing Coherence to the Promotion of Just Jobs Around the World, by Sabina Dewan
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