This piece draws a line between investment in climate infrastructure and the opportunity to invest in good jobs, achieving climate goals by investing in workers, families, and communities.

This piece features video excerpts from interviews with the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment Northwest Workforce Area, as well as Carpet One Floor and Home, to hear about their partnership in a small business advising pilot aiming to improve job quality.

This publication compiles seven lessons for small business prospecting, recruitment, and ongoing engagement. The lessons outlined in this tool are based on our experience working with Pacific Community Ventures and workforce partners to conduct job quality-focused business advising pilots with small businesses across the country. Although there is no one-size-fits-all approach to developing relationships with employers, we have found that asking lots of questions and tailoring engagement to the local context is key.

This article discusses the growing use of subcontracting work in the tech industry and the negative consequences this “fissuring” has had on job quality for workers.

This tool provides information about ALICE households, an acronym for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, and Employed. These are households that earn above the Federal Poverty Level but not enough to afford their most basic needs, including housing, food, transportation, and health care. The tool provides a national overview and state- and county-level information about the percentage of ALICE households. Users can explore data by household factors including age, family composition, and race/ethnicity. United for ALICE has also published research focused on financial hardship in Black households. This tool has relevance for policymakers and employers focused on policies and practices related to wages. Organizations who support workers or employers may also find this tool useful.

This article investigates the impact of employee ownership on business and worker outcomes, including links to improved productivity, pay, job stability, and firm survival. The article dives further into the effects and causation relationship, as well as the challenges presented by employee ownership.

An interview with Kevin Oxley, owner of Carpet One Floor and Home and a regional business coordinator with the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE). Carpet One Floor and Home was part of a pilot, a collaboration between the Aspen Institute Economic Opportunities Program, Pacific Community Ventures (PCV), and the CDLE, focused on advancing job quality among small businesses. A part of EOP’s Reimagine Retail Initiative, with the support of Walmart, the pilot deepened relationships between small businesses and workforce organizations in the pursuit of improving jobs and boosting businesses’ bottom lines. The pilot paired small businesses recruited by CDLE’s business services team with good jobs advisors from PCV’s business advising network to implement strategies from their new Good Jobs Good Businesses Toolkit. Businesses also received specialized state and regional support and resources from the CDLE business services team. Kevin and Carolyn share experiences with this pilot, the impact of the pandemic on businesses like Carpet One, and how collaborative and creative partnerships that improve job quality can benefit workers and businesses across the country.

This shared definition of job quality was created collaboratively by leaders in business, labor, workforce development, and policy as part of the Good Jobs Champions Group, an initiative of the Aspen Institute Economic Opportunities Program and the Families and Workers Fund. The definition provides a framework for understanding job quality, dividing the components of a good job into three categories: economic stability, economic mobility, and equity, respect & voice.

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) of 1938 established the federal minimum wage and overtime pay, created a standard work week, and prohibited children’s employment in dangerous conditions. But the FLSA doesn’t cover everyone — the legacy of biases against professions largely occupied by women and people of color — and it has suffered setbacks over the years. In this event, panelists discuss what what lessons we can learn from the FLSA, innovations to create a more just economy that rewards work fairly, and how we can restore the commitment to a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work.

One year after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, about half of non-retired adults said its lingering consequences would make it harder for them to meet their financial needs and goals. This event focuses on what companies can accomplish when they strive to improve the financial health and resilience of their workers. Senior executives from major companies discuss how they came to prioritize this issue, some of the surprises and challenges encountered, and lessons that others can build on. The companies represented on the panel are part of the Worker Financial Wellness Initiative, which was launched in October 2020 by PayPal and JUST Capital, in collaboration with the Financial Health Network and Good Jobs Institute.