JOBS CRISIS
1. WHY DO WE HAVE A JOBS CRISIS — AND WHAT CAN BE DONE ABOUT IT?
Government of Canada, Canada’s Action Plan.
CCPA Alternative Budget 2014 — shows what the federal government could do if it decided to seriously address Canadians largest social, economic, and environmental concerns. It delivers a plan that would lift 855,000 Canadians out of poverty, reduce income inequality, boost the economy, lower unemployment to 5.4% and still balance the budget one year later than the federal government plan.
Optional:
Stanford, Jim. A Cure for Dutch Disease: Active Sector Strategies for Canada’s Economy
National Union, “Canada Needs a Modern Industrial Strategy”
2. WHAT’S HAPPENING IN THE GLOBAL ECONOMY? Is austerity the answer? What can we learn from the experience of other countries?
Transnational Institute, State of Power 2014 — In its third annual ‘State of Power’ report, TNI uses vibrant infographics and penetrating essays to expose and analyse the principal power-brokers that have caused financial, economic, social and ecological crises worldwide.
Sid Ryan and Alex Himelfarb, “Time to change the conversation on austerity,” Ottawa Citizen, 24 February, 2013
Maria Margaronis: “Greece’s Impossible Choice”
John Nichols, “America’s Youth Uprising”, The Nation, February 15, 2012
George Monbiot, “ If you think we’re done with neoliberalism, think again”
The global application of a fraudulent economic theory brought the west to its knees. Yet for those in power, it offers riches , The Guardian, 14 Jan 2013
Joe Guinan, “Social democracy in the age of austerity: The radical potential of democratizing capital,” Renewal, 10 Feb 2013. pp 1-10.
3. WHAT DO WE NEED TO LEARN? THE ROLE OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING
The Toronto Star sponsored a year-long study into youth unemployment. They investigated whether there was a skills shortage and whether better training programs were the answer… Assess their findings and recommendations. What more did you learn from Alan Sears and James Cairns?
Atkinson series: Surprising lessons on the youth job crisis
Atkinson Series: Skills shortage a self-inflicted wound
Atkinson series: Young job seekers thwarted by lack of a national strategy – Co-op programs, good counsellors, career courses, and workplace training are all part of solution.
Sears, Alan and James Cairns. “Austerity U: Preparing Students for Precarious Lives”. The Bullet. Socialist Project E-Bulletin No. 932. 29 January 2014. Almost everywhere you look around the world, policy-makers are introducing big changes to university systems and pondering deeper transformation. It isn’t surprising that these changes take different forms on campuses in countries as different as Canada, Britain, the United States, Chile, Greece, and India, but there are also important common themes in the change agenda globally.
PUSHING FOR POLITICAL & POLICY CHANGE
– POLICIES TO CREATE MORE & BETTER JOBS
• What do we want in terms of jobs
• What can we do to ensure good jobs for all of us
Read what you need to answer the question that interests you:
1. Rather than working longer and longer hours to cope with our economic insecurity, Ann Duffy suggests that we should begin to question consumerism, indebtedness, and the workaholic mindset.
a) Are we working more? Are we working longer? Do we have less time away from work?
b) What are the impacts on Canadians? How should we spend our time in the future?
Pupo, Glenday and Duffy, The Shifting Landscape of Work.
Chapter 8 – “The Lengthening Shadow of Unemployment”, Ann Duffy
2. Evaluate the Conservative Government’s Economic Action Plan. David Crane says that “We have been relying far too much on the production and export of raw materials, including oil sands oil, and not enough on building a higher-value and more diversified economy, including advanced manufacturing and knowledge-intensive tradable services.” Hill Times, 7 Jan 2012. Do you agree?
Government of Canada, Canada’s Action Plan.
Laxer, James. “Stephen Harper’s Majority Government: Not Looking Out for YOU”, February 7, 2012
Nash, Peggy. .”A New Direction for Jobs and Prosperity”, December 2011.
Stanford, Jim. A Cure for Dutch Disease: Active Sector Strategies for Canada’s Economy
National Union, “Canada Needs a Modern Industrial Strategy”
Campbell, Bruce. “Can Canada Escape a Lost Decade? Massive public investment needed to avert a deeper slump”. Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, January 30, 2012.
3. Is austerity the answer? What can we learn from the experience of other countries?
Sid Ryan and Alex Himelfarb, “Time to change the conversation on austerity,” Ottawa Citizen, 24 February, 2013
Maria Margaronis: “Greece’s Impossible Choice”
John Nichols, “America’s Youth Uprising”, The Nation, February 15, 2012
George Monbiot, “ If you think we’re done with neoliberalism, think again”
The global application of a fraudulent economic theory brought the west to its knees. Yet for those in power, it offers riches , The Guardian, 14 Jan 2013
4. Is social democracy the answer?
Joe Guinan, “Social democracy in the age of austerity: The radical potential of democratizing capital,” Renewal, 10 Feb 2013. pp 1-10.
5. The Toronto Star sponsored a year-long study into youth unemployment. They investigated whether there was a skills shortage and whether better training programs were the answer… Assess their findings and recommendations.
Atkinson series: Surprising lessons on the youth job crisis
Atkinson Series: Skills shortage a self-inflicted wound
Atkinson series: Young job seekers thwarted by lack of a national strategy – Co-op programs, good counsellors, career courses, and workplace training are all part of solution.
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