Service Employees International Union hires former US Labor Department chief economist

Janelle Jones is set to join the Service Employees International Union as chief economist.

She takes up the new role after stepping down in January from her prior post as chief economist at the U.S. Department of Labor.

Jones announced the job change in a note on Twitter, and said she would start work at SEIU on Sept. 6.

“As they say, some professional news: starting 9/6, I’ll be chief economist @SEIU! I am honored & excited to join an organization that represents millions of workers, most of them Black & brown women. Much like the women who continue to influence so much of my economic thinking,” she said.

Jones added: “I’ve had a great career so far but the only thing missing is working *inside* the Labor Movement. And I can’t think of a better, more consequential time to do it.”

She moves to the union after stepping down as top economist at the Labor Department in January. Jones was one of several Black economists picked by the Biden administration, and her research focused on ensuring a more equal recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Jones was previously an economic analyst at the Economic Policy Institute and has worked as an analyst at the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

The Service Employees International Union is made up of about two million members across the healthcare, public and property services sectors.