The Great American Jobs Scam: The Myth of Job Creation

Greg LeRoy talked about his book The Great American Jobs Scam: Corporate Tax Dodging and the Myth of Job Creation, published by Berrett-Koehler Publishers. He argued that large companies are making false promises of good jobs and higher tax revenues to state and local governments in exchange for huge tax breaks. In his book Mr. LeRoy explains that companies such as Raytheon in Massachusetts, Dell in North Carolina, IBM in New York State, and Wal-Mart in many states have participated in scams known as “job blackmail.” The author defines this blackmail as the promise to create good paying jobs in exchange for subsidies from the government, but after getting subsidies, the companies downsize, outsource, or relocate existing jobs and call them “new.” After he spoke, Mr. Leroy answered questions from members in the audience. close