by Chuck Bell

Dear Colleagues,

As partners in our work toward an inclusive and just economy for all, I’m writing with exciting news: Rep. Ayanna Pressley has just reintroduced her resolution calling for the creation of a Federal Jobs Guarantee.

We applaud Rep. Pressley in championing a policy that invests in people and advances long-term economic security for all Americans.

The need could not be clearer. Headline unemployment statistics fail to capture the true extent of joblessness in America. The National Jobs for All Network’s monthly Full Count for August shows that 17.1 million Americans were officially unemployed, working part time because they could not find full-time work, or wanted jobs but were not counted in the official unemployment rate—more than twice the 7 million people included in the official count.

A well-designed federal job guarantee can help deliver Good Jobs for All by:

• Eliminating joblessness at scale.
• Reducing poverty and inequality while lowering crime, strengthening families, and revitalizing communities.
• Increasing workers’ bargaining power by removing the threat and vulnerability of unemployment.
• Strengthening local economies, workers’ rights, public trust, and community health.
• Providing stability during recessions and other economic downturns.

This policy is not just part of the broader movement for social justice, civil rights, and a more inclusive economy. It could not be more timely. As artificial intelligence and other forces reshape the labor market, the need for good and plentiful jobs is more urgent than ever.

The public is ready for it. Recent polling conducted by Verasight found that 65 percent of Americans support a federal job guarantee funded through higher taxes on incomes above $200,000. Support rises to 75 percent when the tax applied to incomes over $1 million.

Joblessness is not inevitable. It is the result of policy choices—and we can choose differently. Rep. Pressley’s resolution gives us an opportunity to turn broad public support into political power and move a federal job guarantee from a bold idea to a national commitment. In the richest country in the world, access to a good job should be an economic right, not a privilege reserved for those the market happens to choose. Join us in building the movement to make Good Jobs for All a reality.