Abstract
In 2001Joseph Stiglitz was awarded the Nobel Prize for economics. In his article entitled “The global crisis, social protection and jobs” originally published in "International Labour Review", Vol 148 (2009) and which is reproduced here, he notes that the policy responses to the global financial meltdown and the collapse of aggregate demand had largely been driven by domestic interests. Resurgent protectionism, bank bail outs and national stimulus packages were distorting competition and incentives, to the detriment of developing countries, much-needed spending on social protection and, ultimately, rapid global economic recovery. Warning against underestimation of the job-destruction potential of the current crisis, Stiglitz argues for a truly global stimulus package, together with a rethink of economic paradigms and regulatory policies, financial assistance to developing countries, a less constraining IMF, and stronger social protection as an automatic stabilizer of economies.