ABSTRACT
In 2012, the World Bank declared that “Jobs” were the solution to tackling world poverty, but by 2019, right before the pandemic, the watch-cry was “Protect people, Not jobs.” One reason was that two-thirds of the world’s working population of 3.3 billion worked in the informal sector, in “vulnerable” work, with no formal job to speak of. Another reason was that most of the people in a formal job were struggling to make ends meet, trapped in grinding, working poverty. COVID-19 has shone a spotlight under fault lines like these, in “the job.” A great disruptor, COVID, has not only killed jobs; it has also turbo-charged the speed of automation, the rise of digital platforms and gig work, and a backlash against inequalities. In its wake, we may see a Great Resignation. In work psychology, we should question sacred cows like “job” selection, placement, and evaluation. In policy terms, “Decent Work” is a moral and ethical commitment by the International Labour Organization to provide a baseline of criteria for acceptable work conditions. But an energizing goal for the world of work could be Sustainable Livelihoods. “Livelihoods’ are multi-faceted and inter-connected, with social protections like Basic Income and Living, not unjust subsistence (“Minimum”) wages. Resonant with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, “Sustainable” means inter-generational, inter-connected, and respectful of our ecosystem environment.
