Working to Reduce Poverty: A National Subsidized Employment Proposal

• Main Authors: Indivar Dutta-Gupta, Kali Grant, Julie Kerksick, Dan Bloom, Ajay Chaudry
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Russell Sage Foundation 2018-02-01
• Series: RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences
• Subjects: employment; subsidized; transitional jobs; work; wraparound services; barriers
• Online Access: https://www.rsfjournal.org/doi/full/10.7758/RSF.2018.4.3.04
• ISSN: 2377-8253; 2377-8261

Subsidized employment programs that increase labor supply and demand are a proven, underutilized strategy for reducing poverty in the short and long term. These programs use public and private funds to provide workers wage-paying jobs, training, and wraparound services to foster greater labor force attachment while offsetting employers’ cost for wages, on-the-job training, and overhead. This article proposes two new separate but harmonized federal funding streams for subsidized employment that would expand automatically when and where economic conditions deteriorate. Participating states and local organizations would be offered generous matching funds to target adult workers most in need and to secure employer participation. The proposal would effectively reduce poverty among workers during work placements, and improve long-term unsubsidized employment and other outcomes for participants and their families.