Fighting Poverty With Jobs: Projecting the Impacts of a National Subsidized Employment Program

Jobs are at the heart of our nation’s debates around poverty and economic security. In recent months, several policy makers have discussed proposals for ambitious jobs programs, including Representative Ro Khanna, and Senators Cory Booker, Kirsten Gillibrand, and Bernie Sanders. In this brief, we examine how a national subsidized jobs program would affect poverty rates. Our analysis is modeled on the comprehensive employment program put forth by California Rep. Ro Khanna. In this joint report by the Georgetown Center on Poverty and Inequality and the Center on Poverty and Social Policy, we find that such a program would reach millions of U.S. workers left behind in today’s economy, reducing the poverty rate among participants by nearly half. Results also show a marked aggregate reduction in the national poverty rate.