Securing the Right to Work at the State or Local Level (2011)
by Philip Harvey
Abstract: This paper explores the feasibility of using direct government job creation to reduce unemployment at the
state or local level without federal funding. I analyze the net cost of the strategy to an implementing state or
local government and propose a plan suitable for use by any size unit of government. The proposed initiative
would create proportionally as many jobs at the state or local level as a federal initiative that created 4.5
million jobs. Over the long run, the proposed plan contemplates allowing a state or local government to
guarantee decent jobs for all of its residents, eliminating all but genuinely frictional employment, and
thereby securing the right to work recognized in international human rights law.