All Together Now: Leveraging Firms to Increase Worker Productivity Growth

I describe a new policy that endows firms with limited-duration, virtual shares in their own workers’ future realized earnings growth. The policy seeks to leverage employers to address a key challenge of the modern world: increasing worker skills well into adulthood. I label the policy “generalized experience rating” (GER) because it builds on the more narrow experience rating long embodied in the US unemployment insurance system. GER can be interpreted as a Pigouvian tax, and as a mandate alleviating an adverse selection problem. I discuss many design issues and potential unintended consequences. I conclude the policy may warrant further research.