Title

Does "Trickle Down" Work?: Economic Development Strategies and Job Chains in Local Labor Markets

Year

2004

Abstract

Persky, Felsenstein, and Carlson explore a new framework for evaluating state and local economic development efforts. They propose a method, referred to as the “job-chains approach,” that they say clarifies the potential justifications for economic development subsidies as well as the limitations surrounding these efforts. This innovative approach addresses not only the number of job vacancies created as a result of a subsidized business investment or expansion, but also the extent to which gains are achieved by the unemployed and the underemployed, whether skilled or unskilled.

Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Labor Markets and Trickle Down
  3. The Problem with Impact Analysis: Counting Everything,Valuing Nothing
  4. Delving beneath the Surface: Job Chains in the Evaluation of Local Economic Development
  5. Operationalizing a Job-Chains Approach - Extensions
  6. Job Chains - Implications for State and Local Economic Development Policy

ISBN

9780880993081 (pbk.) ; 9780880993098 (Cloth)

Subject Areas

EMPLOYMENT and COMPENSATION; Job security; REGIONAL ISSUES; Business incentives; Tax incentives; Regional and urban studies; Urban issues