Jobs and Justice: Public Service Agenda for Full Employment (UNISON Full Employment)

Walk through almost any town in Britain and there is evidence of unmet social need: young people sleeping rough, streets unswept, school classes too large and long hospital waiting lists. Yet, unemployment levels remain stubbornly high. And those out of work include builders, nurses, teachers and care staff, public service workers, whose skills could be productively employed in the service of the community. This volume is the first in a UNISON full employment series, published in association with Lawrence and Wishart, which includes studies in 1996 on childcare, full employment and "green growth". It argues that full employment remains a feasible goal, but requires political commitment and co-ordinated action. There are chapters on: the economics of public intervention at national and European levels; detailed case studies on investment in housing, energy, transport, childcare and care for the elderly; and the role of active labour market politics.