At Least He Has a Job

Daniel Alexandre Protoraro has an awful summer job.  But at least he has a job. His American counterpart might not. Canada’s unemployment rate is 7.4 percent (it would be 6.2% if calculated with the American method)  America's is 9.2 percent. And Protoraro’s own story, provides a case study as to why the U.S. unemployment rate is higher than Canada's. Protoraro's outbound telemarketing work doesn’t really exist in the United States.

Since 2004’s Do-Not-Call registry went into effect, outbound telemarketing for commercial products like newspaper subscriptions has basically ceased south of the Canadian border. (Canada also has a do not call list, but newspapers are exempt from it.)

There’s no doubt that the U.S. national do-not-call registry is hugely popular and reflected the people’s will. The legislation implementing it passed overwhelmingly and even members of Congress who voted against it (those with big telemarketing centers in their districts) often voiced personal support for the idea. That said, creating the list  directly destroyed jobs. In fact, since the list’s creation effectively banned a profitable commercial activity without creating any obvious new opportunities, its job destroying effects are a lot easier to parse out than those of, say, new environmental regulations would be.

My point isn’t that America should ditch its do-not-call list but, rather, that Protoraro’s ability to get a job that wouldn't exist in the United States is an excellent example of how government regulations have consequences for the job market.