Job loss: Causes, consequences, and policy responses
March 16, 2005
Mr. Moskow, the President and CEO, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, presents his personal views of the causes and effects of the increased rate at which experienced workers have been losing long-held jobs, and programs to ameliorate the adverse consequences on affected employees. Excerpt: “As the pace of technological change quickens, and as more markets open to competition, job displacement is affecting an increasingly diverse group of workers. If we do not attend to the needs of displaced workers, concern about their future may block policies that help improve our overall standard of living. And this could have costly consequences for the economy as a whole if it were to stifle technology and competition. So this is another reason why we need to design policies that support openness to change by helping those who are adversely affected.”