On January 31st, eBay Inc.’s CEO, John Donahoe joined President Obama, Vice President Biden, and other senior officials for a CEO Roundtable at the White House on hiring the long-term unemployed. John and the other participants discussed strategies for how the government and the private sector could work together to create economic opportunity for all Americans – an idea eBay Inc. has long held as a priority and mission for the company.
In his State of the Union, The President announced his initiative to address long-term unemployment. As part of this effort, the President invited top business leaders to the White House to discuss ways to help Americans get back to work. Today, there are approximately 3.9 million long-term unemployed Americans, accounting for about 38% of the unemployed population. Recognizing that businesses succeed and economies grow when we are fully leveraging our workforce, eBay Inc. has endorsed the Administration’s best practices for hiring and recruiting the long-term unemployed.
eBay Inc. was founded on the idea that the human connection can be enhanced by technology to create inclusive commerce that empowers everyone. For years, the eBay and PayPal platforms have provided unique opportunities for the under- and unemployed. As a global Internet company, we believe in encouraging the American entrepreneurial spirit by promoting digital literacy, increasing access to high-speed Internet and opening up the global market to small businesses. Keeping the Internet open and accessible and removing barriers to technology-enabled business are key to creating opportunity that can get Americans back to work!
Following the CEO Roundtable, President Obama and Vice President Biden held a press conference to discuss the partnership with the private sector. Watch the press conference and learn more about the Administration’s initiative.
Later this year our CEO will have another opportunity to travel to Washington to meet with policymakers. Last year, John was appointed by President Obama to the President’s Export Council, which is the principal national advisory committee on international trade. As a member of the President’s Export Council, John will have the opportunity to meet with The President, his senior staff, and other private sector leaders to discuss how the U.S. can better promote exports. According to eBay Inc.'s Commerce 3.0 study, over 90% of commercial US sellers export. John's participation in the Council will give eBay Inc. an opportunity to advance our customers’ interests at the highest levels of the US government.
Read more about eBay’s efforts to engage on these important policy issues on eBay Main Street.