Melkert jobs, a unique experiment

Contrary to the still prevailing belief in the Netherlands that the Melkert job project was a failure, we argue based on a political-economic analysis that the Melkert job should be considered an innovative and successful project. It fully acknowledged that a large group of long-term unemployed should not be left in the lurch by creating basic jobs for this group, leading to improved public services. The Melkert job as a basic job thus represents a concrete implementation of the job guarantee, which currently is increasingly gaining interest in Europe.