One of the most pressing issues in the American economy is the plight of workers who have lost their jobs because of the changes in the economy. The economy is changing in two key ways. For one, jobs are being lost to innovation. Companies are finding that they can spend less money when they create machines to do jobs that human beings would otherwise do. In addition to that, people are losing their jobs because of outsourcing and offshoring. The goal of companies is to cut their costs, so they are shipping jobs to other countries, where they can pay workers less money and avoid some of the high costs associated with employing an American employee. With this in mind, there are some solutions in mind that might work, and they are each competing. Both sides agree that something should be done about this by the government, but there is little agreement on what should happen.
Some politicians have argued that the answer is to hold on to those jobs, enforcing sanctions and tax raises against companies that try to ship jobs overseas or otherwise eliminate human element. These people propose either tax incentives or financial penalties for companies that do not comply. While this might seem good on the surface, it is truly just kicking the can down the road. Coal miners, for instance, are on the way out, and that remains true even if companies purport that they can provide those coal miners with their old jobs back.
In addition to that solution, some politicians have argued that the best approach is to embrace innovation and the global economy. They argue that the people who have been displaced by innovation and outsourcing should receive training opportunities and the chance to go to school. These people, they argue, should have the unique ability to be a part of the new economy, filling out the new jobs in fields like renewable energy. Importantly, this solution is inclusive, but it also runs into problems. It can be difficult to train and educate people who have not been to school in so long. While it might make sense in ideal to train these people for new jobs, it becomes far more difficult in actuality.
The better solution to this problem is to try to train people and go with the changes in the economy. It seems unlikely that the economy is going to be held back. Rather, the economy is going to become more globalized and more mechanized. Having a solution to put displaced people into new jobs is an excellent idea, but one would have to figure out the right way to provide these people with the training and assistance they need.
Local government has the job of executing the jobs programs. State governments have a responsibility to regulate, and to provide tax incentives for companies to execute the programs. The federal government has the responsibility to do the most in executing this strategy. Importantly, the government will need to provide money for job training for these individuals. The government will also need to provide assistance to people while they are trying to find jobs. This means providing a more robust backing for the social safety net. If the government strategy is going to be playing the long game and providing people with a chance to be a part of the modern economy, they have to provide for people to eat and survive during that time. On top of that, the federal government has the responsibility to provide tax incentives to push for those new green jobs that people will be filling, including providing tax incentives for companies to develop new, sustainable technologies.
- Audretsch, D. B., Lehmann, E. E., & Wright, M. (2014). Technology transfer in a global economy. The Journal of Technology Transfer, 39(3), 301-312.
- Chan, S. (Ed.). (2016). Foreign direct investment in a changing global political economy. Springer.
- Smith, J. W. (2016). The uber-all economy of the future. The Independent Review, 20(3), 383.
