Introduction

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Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. At May 2020, job retention schemes across OECD countries supported 50 million jobs (OECD 2020).

2. For more on growth in casual and insecure work during the COVID pandemic, see Stanford (2021).

3. The potential application of Nordic-style social benefit delivery within Australia was also considered by Forsyth (2006).

4. Modern arguments for active industry policy are provided by Rodrik (2008), Mazzucato (2013), and Stiglitz et al. (2013).

5. This moniker is commonly invoked to refer to the expansion of automation, robotisation, and data-connected production systems (the ‘internet of things’).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Alison Pennington

Alison Pennington is Senior Economist at the Centre for Future Work, with the Australia Institute. Alison has published research on the evolution of collective bargaining, skills, industrial relations, and gender.

Jim Stanford

Jim Stanford is Economist and Director of the Centre for Future Work, based in Canberra, Australia, and Vancouver, Canada. He is Harold Innis Industry Professor of Economics at McMaster University and Honorary Professor of Political-Economy at the University of Sydney.