Ayanna Pressley Revives $25-an-Hour Federal Job Guarantee as AI Job-Loss Fears Grow
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Oct 23
Ayanna Pressley Revives $25-an-Hour Federal Job Guarantee as AI Job-Loss Fears Grow
1 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Oct 23
Summary
September brought Ayanna Pressley’s renewed push for a federal job guarantee, reviving her 2021 proposal with a federally funded, locally run program paying at least $25 an hour.
AI unemployment warnings are driving the effort: Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei has said disruption could hit within one to five years, while other backers warn millions of jobs could be at risk.
The proposal envisions work in disaster response, childcare, elder care and public art, drawing on New Deal-style public employment as a model for absorbing displaced workers.
Supporters argue the program’s cost would be offset by lower spending on unemployment and related benefits, plus new tax revenue and health gains from keeping people employed.
Related ideas are also emerging, including a Democratic-backed tax on large AI companies and a Cleveland pilot spending nearly $500,000 to lift five drivers’ pay toward $27 an hour.