Labor, Exploitation, and the Future of Work

Matt Zwolinski (University of San Diego), Joshua Cohen (University of California, Berkeley)

In March 2020, the landscape of work was transformed for most American workers. Many people lost their jobs. Others were furloughed, or had their benefits reduced. Those who stayed in the workplace were asked to work under new constraints and in a new landscape of risk. Those who had their work move online were required, at the same time, to learn to navigate new technologies, a loss of privacy, and a collapse of the categories of “office” and “home”. In light of these changes, we are prompted to reevaluate classic questions about the nature and value of work, as well as to confront important worries about the future. What makes a job a good job? And where do we go from here? How might (and how should) the landscape of work change? What might workers stand to gain in the post-pandemic world; and what might they stand to lose?

We invite you to join us for a live panel with Professors Joshua Cohen (UC Berkeley and Apple University), and Matt Zwolinski (University of San Diego). Joshua Cohen is a member of the MIT Task Force on the Future of Work. He has published extensively on labor, inequality and democracy, and is an editor-in-chief of the Boston Review. Matt Zwolinski is Director of the University of San Diego’s Center for Ethics, Economics and Public Policy, and has published articles on basic income guarantee, exploitation, and the history of libertarian ideas.

In a conversation moderated by Simone Gubler (University of Nevada, Reno), the panelists will discuss their research on labor, exploitation and work as it bears on unfolding events and the prospect of a post-pandemic world.

This event is part of the PPE in a Time of Pandemic series and is open to the public. To register and receive the zoom link for this event, please fill out the registration form below.