November/December 1998

Review
Jobs and Economic Development
Reviewed by Robert O. Zdenek

Jobs and Economic Development; Edited by Robert Giloth; Sage Publications, 1998. 248 pages.

A rich body of practice and development is evolving on the connections between jobs and economic development. This interest is fueled by the lack of low-wage jobs that offer career potential for low-income residents, businesses and industries developing regional strategies, and public policy changes from an income-centered welfare system to a work-driven system with time limits for benefits.

The recent Sage Publication, Jobs and Economic Development, edited by Robert Giloth of the Annie E. Casey Foundation, is a welcome addition to community economic development literature. Giloth, who directs the Casey Foundation Jobs Initiative, provides the first publication that brings together innovative demand strategies (employers, networks, sectoral/industry) with supply strategies (job readiness, training, and supports). The central theme of each section of this book is the need to move from a narrow job training strategy to a workforce development approach that includes recruitment of firms and job seekers, assessment of individuals, employer-based skills training, development of career leaders, and post-placement strategies.

The promising job-centered strategies featured in this book include focusing on how jobs are created and retained through various sectors, forming social networks to help people access employment, and understanding the regional nature of economies. The book explores the goal of intervening in an industry to create good jobs through home health care and paraprofessional opportunities. Several articles explore how social networks are essential for opening employment opportunities for low-income residents. Informal networks exist in communities, but these articles point to the challenges of developing career ladders through social networks.

Job-centered economic development is becoming an essential competency for community-based development practitioners, whose ultimate mission is to alleviate poverty and create economic opportunities for all our citizens. Unfortunately, most community development corporations are just starting to explore these issues, and are not familiar with the basic elements of employment and workforce development strategies. Such a primer on the strategies and approaches that community-based organizations can pursue in workforce development would make an excellent companion to this useful volume.

Robert O. Zdenek is the vice-president of the National Housing Institute board.