"The first two decades of the 21st century saw job opportunities expand and prices for discretionary consumer goods drop. But these gains came at the cost of social contracts in many countries, where working arrangements became more fragile, wages stagnated, and the labour share of income fell. This column argues that the severe economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic have revealed vulnerabilities in the social contract. When the immediate crisis is over, risk may need rebalancing towards an increasing role for institutions and mutualisation."

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