AI-Era Employment, Productivity & Civic Dividend Act
Category: Jobs / Technology — Jobs / Technology
Summary
Manage AI-driven job loss with retraining, 24–36 month wage continuity, and a transparent blockchain-based civic dividend fund that returns some automation savings to citizens.
What this proposal changes
- Requires employers with 50+ workers to file AI-displacement impact assessments before deploying automation that eliminates roles.
- Establishes a 24–36 month wage-continuity bridge for displaced workers, funded by a levy on automation-derived productivity gains.
- Creates a Civic Dividend Fund to distribute a portion of corporate automation savings as annual payments to BC residents.
- Mandates a publicly auditable blockchain ledger for dividend-fund inflows and disbursements.
Arguments for
- Addresses the distributional gap where productivity gains from AI accrue to capital while workers bear the transition costs.
- Transparent blockchain accounting reduces opportunities for fund mismanagement.
- Wage continuity bridge buys time for retraining without forcing workers into immediate poverty.
Arguments against
- Automation levy may discourage business investment and slow productivity growth in BC relative to other jurisdictions.
- Defining 'AI-driven displacement' precisely enough for auditable enforcement is technically and legally complex.
- Universal dividend payments could reduce labour-market participation incentives if not carefully calibrated.
Cost & implementation
Levy rate and fund size TBD based on automation-gain modelling. Administrative infrastructure estimated at $20–40 million initial capital; ongoing costs covered by levy revenues.
Jurisdiction & legal authority
BC has jurisdiction over provincial labour standards and corporate taxation. A productivity levy may require coordination with federal CRA. Blockchain public ledger falls within provincial authority.
How to vote
Visit cascadia.vote/questions/pnwc-A2 to cast your vote: Yes, No, or Maybe.
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