Full Employment Caucus

Representative John Conyers, Co-Chair

About

The Congressional Full Employment Caucus

 

Co-Chaired by Rep. John Conyers, Jr., Rep. Frederica Wilson, and Rep. Marcy Kaptur

 

The Full Employment Caucus’ Mission Statement

 

The Full Employment Caucus will work to ensure all Americans who want to work have access to a job. The Caucus will address the serious social issues of unemployment, such as loss of dignity, purpose and self worth, and an inability to meet basic needs, as well as the economic impacts of large scale and chronic unemployment that challenge pockets of America. The Caucus will explore and study diverse ideas to create, advance, and sustain a variety of employment opportunities.  Ultimately, it will pursue policies that will advance and maintain a level of full employment. To advance this goal, the Caucus will:

 

1.   Regularly host expert economists, academics, and policymakers to discuss proven job-creating proposals and implement strategies for their adoption here on Capitol Hill;

2.   Organize events throughout our districts to engage with community groups and constituents to build knowledge and understanding of achieving full employment;

3.   And work with media to encourage a national focus on the struggles of the average unemployed and underemployed American, emphasizing how government can act to their benefit.

 

Actions and Events

 

Panel events:

  • Employment: A Human Right, 12/10/13. Panelists; Dean Baker, Co-Director, Center for Economic and Policy Research; John Cavanagh, Director, Institute for Policy Studies; Phil Harvey, Professor of Law and Economics, Rutgers University; Thea Lee, Deputy Chief of Staff,  AFL-CIO;  Larry Mishel, President, Economic Policy Institute.
  • Bipartisan Solutions to Long-Term Unemployment, 6/24/14. Panelists: Betsey Stevenson, White House Council of Economic Advisors; Michael Strain, American Enterprise Institute; Judy Conti, National Employment Law Project; and Heidi Shierholz, Economic Policy Institute [now Chief Economist at Dept. of Labor].
    • The Youth Unemployment Crisis: What Congress Can Do, 7/14/14. Panelists: Sarah Audelo, Generation Progress; Kisha Bird, Campaign for Youth, Center for Law and Social Policy; Elisabeth Jacobs, Washington Center for Equitable Growth; Mala Thakur, National Youth Employment Coalition; Jennifer Wang, Young Invincibles.
    • Bipartisan Briefing: Modernizing America’s Unemployment Rate, 12/12/14. Panelists: Erica Groshen, BLS Commissioner; Diana Furchtgott-Roth, Manhattan Institute for Policy Research; Alan Krueger, Former Chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers; Elise Gould, Senior Economist, Economic Policy Institute
    • A Full Employment Agenda for the 114th Congress, featuring Prof. Robert Reich, 03/28/15

 

Actions:

  • 21-Member Congressional letter to Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen urging greater focus on full employment, which is part of the Fed’s dual mandate
  • 30-Member Congressional letter to Pres. Obama requesting: updates to minority hiring goals for contractors on federally-funded projects; revision of apprenticeship regulations with focus on improving access for women and minorities; and strengthening HUD Section 3 workforce regulations to help communities of color get contracts for public-housing construction.
  • 16 -Member Programmatic Letter to Appropriations Subcommittee Urging Support for President Obama’s FY16 Budget Request for the Bureau of Labor Statistics