Podcast: Rob Moir And Wendy Keats On An Economy That Better Serves The 99%
Many Covid-19 workforce initiatives proved temporary, like “hero pay” at big-box retailers. But some shifts may become permanent, like flexible work arrangements that allow more people to work from home.
On this week’s Huddle “Home Office” podcast, Mark Leger speaks with Rob Moir, a business professor at the University of New Brunswick in Saint John, and Wendy Keats, executive director of the Cooperative Enterprise Council of New Brunswick, about the value shifts that could reshape the economy and the nature of work and entrepreneurship.
The region has rightly been focused on getting the economy restarted, but how that economy will be reshaped is an important issue as well. Wendy and Rob are both business-minded people, but questions around social justice and equality are always top of mind.
How does the newly restarted economy address income inequality, business ownership structures, the environment, the lack of diversity in our workplaces, and the systemic racism that has been much talked about in the Black Lives Matter Movement? Wendy, Rob and Mark tackle these kinds of issues in their discussion.
These issues have remained unresolved for decades but Wendy remains undaunted. She is going to retire soon and is optimistic about the prospects for real change.
“I am so excited by what I see,” says Wendy. “I’ve been working for decades on community economic development issues and I have never seen such an opportunity, so much motivation and interest and cooperation, and a sense of empowerment. It really warms my heart. I’m on my last year before retirement and I feel like this is just a great time to be leaving things to this younger generation… I just really believe that things are going to move forward in a much better way in the future.”
On the CECNB website, Wendy published an article, How to build an economy for the 99%, that outlines five ways of creating an economy that’s more equitable and environmentally sustainable.
RELATED: How To Build An Economy For The 99%
The Huddle “Home Office” podcast, available on Spotify, Google Play, and Apple podcast platforms, features conversations with New Brunswick and Nova Scotia community leaders, entrepreneurs, analysts and Huddle reporters about the issues and events that accelerate and enrich the growth of the region’s economy and culture.
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Banner image: Cooperative Enterprise Council of New Brunswick Facebook page.