MMT Richard Murphy recently published a critique of the core policy at the heart of MMT: the Job Guarantee. It was reasoned and balanced, but we believe misrepresented the Job Guarantee in key areas. Here is our response.
Everybody worries about the #JobGuarantee and inflation but look at the wage data.
@patriciapino.bsky.social shows how a phased move to £15/hr is forecast to add minimal inflation while wages for the lowest third rise ~30–35%.
#MMT #Inflation #Wages
We keep debating the wrong things.
Too often the choice is framed as repeating failed strategies or accepting decline. But as @patriciapino.bsky.social puts it:
"The ceiling of our ambition has become self-imposed."
#JobGuarantee #MMT
NAIRU is a concept that puts a number on how much unemployment is "acceptable."
Professor Bill Mitchell explains that this is “archaic”.
Yet it still drives policy decisions that affect millions of lives.
#MMT #NAIRU #Economics
mmtuk.org/job-guarantee
Professor Bill Mitchell on Universal Basic Income:
"I actually hate it."
Not because he's against helping people but because UBI dodges the real question and treats us as consumption units rather than societal members.
#JobGuarantee #MMT #UBI
mmtuk.org/job-guarantee
The official unemployment figures tell us almost nothing.
@patriciapino.bsky.social describes the hidden unemployment crisis and the devastating social costs we're not counting: domestic abuse, unmet needs, broken communities.
So what gives?
#JobGuarantee #MMT #Unemployment
The idea behind the Job Guarantee didn't come from labour economics.
Professor Bill Mitchell explains how a wool buffer stock model sparked one of the most powerful ideas in modern economic policy.
#JobGuarantee #MMT
For decades, policymakers convinced themselves that keeping millions unemployed was necessary to control inflation.
Professor Bill Mitchell explains how NAIRU logic turned unemployment from a problem to be solved into a tool to be used.
mmtuk.org/news/mmtuk-p...
#MMT
Labour's "youth guarantee" forced people into unchosen jobs at minimum wage while companies got subsidised labour.
A universal Job Guarantee is fundamentally different. Here's how.
mmtuk.org/job-guarantee
#JobGuarantee #MMTUK #MMT
Community gardens. Solar panels. Greening our cities.
@ptcherneva.bsky.social on how a Job Guarantee creates work that tackles the climate crisis, without waiting for the private sector to find a profit motive.
mmtuk.org/job-guarantee
#JobGuarantee #MMTUK #MMT
"Every single country could afford this type of program."
Daniel Kostzer explains why a Job Guarantee is counter-cyclical: it shrinks when the economy grows and expands when needed most.
mmtuk.org/job-guarantee
#JobGuarantee #MMTUK #MMT
In 2001, Argentina had 25% unemployment and 55% poverty.
Daniel Kostzer helped design Plan Jefe - an employment guarantee that gave people jobs, not just benefits.
Here's what happened.
mmtuk.org/job-guarantee
#JobGuarantee #MMT #MMTUK
What a month!
MMTUK
- launched as Britain's first dedicated MMT policy organisation
- published the UK Job Guarantee paper
- held our launch event with Prof Bill Mitchell and Patricia Pino
If you want more, please consider becoming a Founder Member: mmtuk.org/donate #MMT
Our UK Job Guarantee paper is now available.
It shows how the UK could end involuntary unemployment, strengthen local economies and anchor wages through a counter-inflationary employment guarantee.
Read the paper: mmtuk.org/job-guarantee
Support this research: mmtuk.org/donate #MMT
"We don't have preventative solutions. We always allow unemployment to develop and then we scratch our heads."
@ptcherneva.bsky.social on why a Job Guarantee prevents social costs rather than trying to fix them after the damage is done.
mmtuk.org/job-guarantee
#JobGuarantee #MMTUK #MMT
Thank you to everyone who attended the MMTUK launch last night.
More briefings, research and events are planned for the months ahead, all funded by our Founder Members.
Help us sustain this work. Become a Founder Member #MMT #MMTUK mmtuk.org/donate
Governments deliberately maintain unemployment to control inflation.
Less bargaining power = slower wages = lower inflation risk.
It's rarely discussed. This clip explains why.
Feat. @ptcherneva.bsky.social & @patriciapino.bsky.social
mmtuk.org/job-guarantee
#JobGuarantee #MMTUK
Tonight. MMTUK celebrates our launch and our Job Guarantee paper. We also look forward to hearing from MMT co-founder Prof. Bill Mitchell.
Friends House, Euston Road, London. Doors 7pm. Free. Registration required.
mmtuk.org/news/bill-mi... #MMT
5/5 The full 58-page policy paper is available to read and download, covering fiscal modelling, institutional framework, and phased implementation.
mmtuk.org/job-guarantee
4/5 Phased in over four years, the programme builds delivery capacity before full national rollout.
Open to all work-eligible adults, it runs alongside existing benefits without changing entitlements. Roles span care, environmental restoration, and community infrastructure.
3/5 It pays for itself.
Based on first-year modelling: net cost per participant is £9,458 to £12,135. Social value generated: £10.1bn to £33.5bn, a social return on investment of 140% to 180%. Costs fall in later years as private hiring strengthens.
2/5 Replacing unemployment with employment.
The programme provides a standing job offer, expanding when private employment falls and shrinking as it recovers. A publicly fixed wage floor anchors prices without leaving people out of work.
1/5 MMTUK has published its Job Guarantee policy paper today.
A permanent, voluntary programme offering paid work at a living wage to anyone willing and able to work.
Up to 4 million people are expected to directly benefit.
#MMT #JobGuarantee #UKjobs
Tomorrow evening. Prof. Bill Mitchell and Patricia Pino launch MMTUK's UK Job Guarantee paper. Friends House, Euston Road, London. 7pm. Free, but registration is required.
mmtuk.org/news/bill-mi... #MMT
Tomorrow we publish our first policy paper: A Counter-Inflationary Job Guarantee for the UK.
No one willing to work should be denied a job.
Watch the film now:
mmtuk.org/job-guarantee
#MMT
Two days until Prof. Bill Mitchell presents MMTUK's Job Guarantee paper.
A counter-inflationary public employment programme for the UK.
Friends House, London. 25 Feb, 7pm.
Free. Register to attend.
mmtuk.org/news/bill-mi... #MMT
Rigorous policy research requires sustained funding. MMTUK is funded by individuals who want evidence-based economic analysis in UK public life.
mmtuk.org/donate #MMT
Parliament debates spending as if it must be funded by tax.
The Treasury spends by crediting Bank of England accounts. New MMTUK briefing by Vincent Gomez on the monetary myths shaping British politics. #MMT
mmtuk.org/research/bri...
Four days to go.
Join Prof. Bill Mitchell and Patricia Pino at Friends House, London, for the launch of MMTUK's Job Guarantee paper.
25 Feb 7pm.
Free.
mmtuk.org/news/bill-mi... #MMT
Job Guarantee roles include home energy retrofits, urban tree planting, community arts projects, recycling initiatives, after-school tutoring and dementia care activities.
All roles are additional to existing public and private provision.
mmtuk.org/job-guarantee #MMT
