Actions
OSHA’s silica rule upheld by D.C. Court of Appeals
Description: On December 22, 2017, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit upheld the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) Obama-era rule protecting workers from exposure to silica dust. In its decision, the court wrote that, “Exposure to silica is one of the oldest known occupational hazards. And the health effects of exposure to silica—most commonly silicosis, a progressive and irreversible lung disease caused by the inflammatory effects of silica—are not a thing of the past. Currently, silicosis is the most prevalent chronic occupational disease in the world.”
Industry groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, challenged many aspects of the rule, including the medical evidence OSHA relied on in promulgating the rule to the feasibility of OSHA’s requirements for preventing workers from silica exposure. The court rejected all of those challenges and upheld the rule’s protections for workers.
Earlier in 2017, while this case was pending, OSHA announced after significant delays that it would begin enforcing most provisions of the silica rule’s standard for construction on September 23, 2017, and will begin enforcing most provisions of the standard for general industry and maritime on June 23, 2018. Now that the DC Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld the rule, there should be no future barriers to OSHA’s ability to enforce this important worker protection regulation.
Fair Economy Impact: OSHA issued this rule to reduce workers’ exposure to cancer-causing respirable crystalline silica. Studies have linked exposure to silica to lung cancer, silicosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and kidney disease. About 2.3 million workers are exposed to respirable crystalline silica in their workplaces, including 2 million construction workers who drill, cut, crush, or grind silica-containing materials such as concrete and stone. Responsible employers have been protecting workers from harmful exposure to silica for years, using widely-available equipment that controls silica dust with a simple water spray to wet the dust down, or a vacuum system to contain the dust. OSHA estimates that the rule will save over 600 lives and prevent more than 900 new cases of silicosis each year, once its effects are fully realized. It is past time for the Trump administration to start taking workers’ sides by enforcing this rule to protect working people’s lives and livelihoods.
NLRB overturns joint-employer standard
Description: On December 14, 2017, the the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) made it more difficult for millions of workers to join together and form a union, by overturning its joint-employer standard established in 2015’s Browning-Ferris Industries case. When two or more businesses co-determine or share control over a worker’s pay, schedule, or job duties, then both of those businesses may be considered joint-employers. The Trump NLRB yesterday weakened the joint-employer standard, making it harder for workers to organize, form unions, and negotiate for higher wages and better working conditions.
Fair Economy Impact: It is hard in today’s economy to bargain for higher wages or better working conditions, especially if your direct employer doesn’t really make those decisions. Under President Obama, the NLRB tried to make it easier for employees by holding each employer responsible when they co-determine what a worker’s wages, hours, and working conditions will be. In yesterday’s decision, the Trump NLRB decided to make it harder than ever for workers caught in alternative employment relationships such as sub-contracting and staffing agencies to bring both businesses who control their daily working conditions to the bargaining table. Moreover, the NLRB’s decision to weaken the joint-employer standard is bad law resulting from a bad process. Ordinarily, before overturning major precedent, the Board invites the public to comment by filing amicus briefs. However, this time, they did not, and instead announced this reversal with no warning or notice and allowed the public had no opportunity to weigh in.
The majority of American workers would vote for union representation if they could. However, the intensity with which employers have opposed organizing efforts, and the continuing tilt of the legal and policy playing field against workers seeking to bargain collectively, has led to a decline in union membership. Yesterday’s decision makes it clear the Trump board will work to further rig the system against working people.
NLRB moves to reexamine union election rule
Description: On December 12, 2017, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) took the first step towards rolling back a 2014 rule that simplified the union election process by which working people can join together to bargain for better wages and working conditions. The NLRB announced the issuance of a Request for Information (RFI), asking for public input on the 2014 election rule. The election rule, which has been upheld by a federal court of appeals, includes a series of reforms which eliminate unnecessary delay in the election process and modernize agency procedures. The NLRB currently has a full five-member Board, with 3 Republicans and 2 Democrats.
Fair Economy Impact: The NLRB protects the rights of most private-sector employees to join together, with or without a union, to improve their wages and working conditions. Employees covered by the National Labor Relations Act are guaranteed the right to form, join, decertify, or assist a labor organization, and to bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing, or to refrain from such activities. The NLRB’s decision to reexamine the rule demonstrates that the Trump board majority has little interest in maintaining an efficient election process for this nation’s workers. Ironically, the NLRB will accept electronic responses to the RFI for the election rule that, if rolled back, will affect the ability of workers to file electronic election petitions.
The majority of American workers would vote for union representation if they could. However, the intensity with which employers have opposed organizing efforts and the continuing tilt of the legal and policy playing field against workers seeking to bargain collectively, has led to a decline in union membership. Today’s announcement makes it clear the Trump board will work to further rig the system against working people.
DOL proposal to change tip pooling rules, allowing employers to take tips
Description: On December 5, 2017, the Trump administration took its first major step towards allowing employers to legally take tips earned by their employees. The current restrictions on “tip pooling,” instituted by DOL in 2011, allow restaurants to pool the tips servers receive but stipulate that the employer may only share pooled tips with other workers who customarily receive tips, such as bussers and bartenders. Employers are prohibited from retaining any of the pooled tips themselves. But the Trump Department of Labor proposed rescinding those restrictions.
At first glance, the proposed rule seems benevolent: restaurants would be able to pool the tips servers receive and share them with untipped employees such as cooks and dishwashers. But, crucially, the new rule would mean that employers are not required to distribute pooled tips to other workers: as long as tipped workers earn the minimum wage, the employer can legally pocket their tips. And basic economic logic dictates that it is highly unlikely that back-of-the-house workers will get more pay. There is currently no limit to what these workers can be paid, so employers are already paying their non-tipped workers what they need to pay to attract workers willing to work in those jobs. Thus, if employers do share some tips with them, it will likely be offset by a reduction in their base pay, leaving their take-home pay unaffected.
Fair Economy Impact: EPI estimates that under Trump’s proposed rule employers will likely pocket $5.8 billion per year of the hard-earned tips of their tipped workers each year — around $1,000 a year per tipped worker. And because women are both more likely to be tipped workers and to earn lower wages, this rule would disproportionately harm them. We estimate that of the $5.8 billion, nearly 80 percent—$4.6 billion—would be taken from women who are working in tipped jobs.
The broad economic effects of this rule are as follows: (1) tipped workers will lose $5.8 billion a year in tips, (2) the take-home pay of back-of-the-house workers will remain largely unchanged, and (3) employers will get a $5.8 billion a year windfall.
Department of Labor announces another delay of the fiduciary rule
Description: The Trump administration’s Department of Labor is actively working to weaken or rescind the “fiduciary” rule (the rule). The latest step in these efforts is an 18 month delay of key provisions of the rule. This delay is on top of earlier delays already put in place this year.
Fair Economy Impact: The rule simply requires financial advisers to provide what most clients probably already think they are receiving: advice about their retirement plans untainted by conflicts of interest. It would prohibit common practices such as steering clients into investments that provide lower rates of return for the client but higher commissions for the adviser. The financial industry strongly opposes this rule because it wants to preserve a system that allows financial advisers to give their clients advice that is in the adviser’s interest rather than the client’s. Conflicted advice leads to lower investment returns, causing real losses—an estimated $17 billion a year—for the clients who are victimized. We estimate that retirement savers who will get or have gotten bad advice during the various delays imposed by the Trump administration will lose a total of $18.5 billion over the next 30 years. Further, the rule is being delayed with the clear intent of never fully implementing it. Instead, the Trump administration is buying time until they can permanently dismantle key elements of the rule. People who have worked hard to save for retirement need and deserve the fiduciary rule to be fully implemented and enforced.
Actions:
- Hearing: Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions May 18, 2017
- Entire rule delayed from April 10, 2017 to June 9, 2017. Key enforcement provisions further delayed until January 1st, 2017, and then even further delayed until July 1st, 2019.
OSHA Delays Electronic Injury Record Reporting Rule
Description: On November 22, 2017, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) announced another delay in its Obama-era rule to Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses, which, when fully implemented, will require covered employers to electronically report injury and illness data that will be made publicly available. The announcement sets December 15, 2017, as the date for compliance — nearly one year later than the original date of January 1, 2017. More importantly, in the same announcement, OSHA declared that intends to “reconsider, revise, or remove portions of that rule in 2018.”
Fair Economy Impact: Pursuant to the Occupational Health and Safety Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. Congress created OSHA as the federal government agency to ensure safe working conditions for America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance.
OSHA’s electronic record keeping rule does not create any new reporting requirements for employers — it simply requires employers that are currently required to keep OSHA injury and illness records to electronically submit their records to OSHA. Improving data collection and dissemination of injury and illness incidents in America’s workplaces will allow OSHA, employers, employees, employee representatives, other government agencies, and researchers to identify patterns and remove workplace hazards, and prevent worker injuries and illnesses.
In 2015 alone, nearly 5,000 workers died on the job. If in 2018, OSHA rescinds or weakens this rule, it will mean that patterns of unsafe working conditions may be harder to detect, making workplaces even more dangerous for working people.
Senate confirms David Zatezalo to the Mine Safety and Health Administration
Description: On November 15, 2017, the U.S. Senate confirmed, on a party-line vote, President Trump’s nominee David Zatezalo as the Department of Labor’s Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety. In this position, Zatezalo, who was previously a coal industry executive, will now head up the Mine Safety and Health Administration.
Fair Economy Impact: The U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) is charged with preventing deaths, illnesses, and injuries from mining operations and with promoting safe and healthy workplaces for U.S. miners. Zatezalo is the former chief executive of Rhino Resources, a coal mining company that has been repeatedly cited for safety violations by MSHA. Worker fatalities in mines are on the rise in 2017, so it is more important than ever for MSHA to enforce safety rules to ensure miners lives are not lost on the job. But Trump’s appointment of Zatezalo is another example of Trump putting a fox in charge of the hen house – it remains to be seen whether Zatezalo will side with companies that want to cut corners with their workers’ safety and well-being, or with the very mine workers whose lives depend on him.
Senate confirms Peter Robb as General Counsel to the National Labor Relations Board
Description: On November 8, 2017, the U.S. Senate confirmed, on a party-line vote, President Trump’s nominee Peter B. Robb to be General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board for a term of four years. The NLRB currently has a full five-member Board, with 3 Republicans and 2 Democrats.
Fair Economy Impact: The NLRB protects the rights of most private-sector employees to join together, with or without a union, to improve their wages and working conditions. Employees covered by the National Labor Relations Act are guaranteed the right to form, join, decertify, or assist a labor organization, and to bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing, or to refrain from such activities. The General Counsel is independent from the Board and is responsible for the investigation and prosecution of unfair labor practice cases and for the general supervision of the NLRB field offices in the processing of cases. The General Counsel has the authority to issue charges against employers and unions for labor law violations, and selects the cases that the board will ultimately rule on. Robb has spent much of his career as a management-side labor and employment lawyer.
U.S. House votes on joint employer standard and H.R. 3441, “Save Local Business Act”
Description: On November 7, 2017, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 242 – 181 to pass H.R. 3411, the so-called “Save Local Business Act,” which would roll back the joint employer standard under both the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
Fair Economy Impact: The Save Local Business Act would do nothing to protect small businesses. Instead, the bill would ensure that small businesses are left with sole responsibility for business practices often mandated by large corporations like franchisors. It would establish a joint employer standard that lets big corporations avoid liability for labor and employment violations and leaves small businesses on the hook.
At its most basic, the joint employer standard simply requires that when multiple employers co-determine or share control over a workers’ terms of employment (such as pay, schedules, and job duties), each of those employers is responsible for compliance with worker protection laws. Given the realities of the modern workplace, in which employees often find themselves subject to more than one employer, workers deserve a joint employment standard—under both the FLSA and the NLRA—that guarantees these basic rights and protections.
A weak joint employer standard robs workers of their rights, making it impossible for them to effectively collectively bargain or litigate workplace disputes—and it leaves small businesses holding the bag when the large corporations that control their business practices and set their employees’ schedules violate labor law and refuse to come to the bargaining table. If Congress actually supported small businesses and the workers they employ, they would support a strong joint employer standard.
Actions:
- September 13, 2017, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce held a hearing on H.R. 3441
- November 7, 2017, the House voted 242 – 181 to pass H.R. 3411.
DOL to appeal Texas court’s overtime rule decision
Description: On August 31, 2017, Judge Amos Mazzant, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, held that the Obama-era Overtime Rule’s salary level exceeded the Department of Labor’s authority, and concluded that the Overtime Rule is invalid. On October 30, 2017, the Department of Justice, on behalf of the Department of Labor, filed a notice to appeal Judge Mazzant’s decision to the Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
Fair Economy Impact: One reason Americans’ paychecks have not been keeping pace with their productivity is the erosion of labor standards. Case in point: the overtime threshold had been allowed to erode so dramatically that front-line managers who earn $23,660 a year – which is below the poverty level for a family of four – could be asked to work overtime hours without any additional pay. In 2016, the Department of Labor updated the overtime rule that requires employers to pay workers time-and-a-half if they work more than 40 hours per week. The updated overtime rule, which went into effect on December 1, 2016, raises the threshold below which salaried workers are automatically eligible for overtime pay to $47,476, up from $23,660. The 2016 overtime rule will directly benefit 12.5 million working people.
While it is a step in the right direction for the DOL to appeal, the DOL should not be taking action to undo the rule or lower the salary threshold. But when the DOL announced its appeal, it also signaled that it would be weakening the rule by adjusting the salary threshold. If the DOL lowers the salary threshold below the 2016 salary level, then the Trump administration will be again siding with corporate interests over workers.
Senate confirms William Emanuel to the National Labor Relations Board
Description: On September 25, 2017, the U.S. Senate confirmed, on a party-line vote, President Trump’s nominee William J. Emanuel to be a member of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) for a 5-year term. The NLRB now has a full five-member Board, with 3 Republicans and 2 Democrats.
Fair Economy Impact: The NLRB protects the rights of most private-sector employees to join together, with or without a union, to improve their wages and working conditions. Employees covered by the National Labor Relations Act are guaranteed the right to form, join, decertify, or assist a labor organization, and to bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing, or to refrain from such activities. The NLRB is an independent agency whose members will decide cases involving when and how workers can form a union, or what types of concerted activities employees can engage in to try and improve their working lives will be protected by the law. Mr. Emanuel was an attorney at the Littler Mendelson law firm who had regularly represented large employers.
DOL begins enforcing silica rule
Description: After delaying enforcement for months, the Department of Labor announced that it would begin enforcing in the construction industry a final rule on Occupational Exposure to Crystalline Silica. This Obama administration rule lowered workers’ permissible exposure limit to deadly crystalline silica dust. The rule is comprised of two permissible exposure standards, one for Construction and one for General Industry and Maritime. The rule became effective June 23, 2016, and enforcement was to originally scheduled to begin on June 23, 2017, but was delayed by the Trump administration. OSHA announced that it will begin enforcing most provisions of the standard for construction on September 23, 2017, and will begin enforcing most provisions of the standard for general industry and maritime on June 23, 2018.
Fair Economy Impact: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued this rule to reduce workers’ exposure to cancer-causing respirable crystalline silica. Studies have linked exposure to silica to lung cancer, silicosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and kidney disease. About 2.3 million workers are exposed to respirable crystalline silica in their workplaces, including 2 million construction workers who drill, cut, crush, or grind silica-containing materials such as concrete and stone. Responsible employers have been protecting workers from harmful exposure to silica for years, using widely-available equipment that controls silica dust with a simple water spray to wet the dust down, or a vacuum system to contain the dust. OSHA estimates that the rule will save over 600 lives and prevent more than 900 new cases of silicosis each year, once its effects are fully realized. It is past time for the Trump administration to start taking workers’ sides by enforcing this rule to protect working people’s lives and livelihoods.
Trump nominates Wage and Hour Division administrator and Mine Safety and Health Administration head
Description: On September 2nd, President Trump announced his nominees to two key positions at the Department of Labor (DOL). Trump nominated Cheryl Stanton to serve as his Wage and Hour Division (WHD) administrator, a position responsible for enforcing our nation’s basic wage protections. Since 2013, Stanton has headed the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce, an agency that does not handle wage enforcement. Much of her career has in fact been dedicated to representing employers, not workers, in wage and hour cases. Trump also nominated former coal mining executive David Zatezalo to head the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA). Zatezalo formerly served as chief executive of Rhino Resources, a coal company that had numerous clashes with MSHA officials during the Obama administration. Following the Upper Big Branch mine disaster on April 5, 2010, MSHA stepped up its enforcement efforts, and identified a number of health and safety violations at Zatezalo’s company.
Fair Economy Impact: WHD and MSHA are key enforcement agencies within the DOL. WHD is tasked with enforcing Federal minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping and child labor requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act, as well as several other important wage requirements. In an economy where billions of dollars are stolen from workers each year in the form of wage theft, enforcement of these requirements needs to be strengthened, not diminished. Similarly, MSHA carries out the provisions of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977, and mine worker deaths have decreased dramatically since then. However, to date in 2017, twelve miners have died on the job, and 25 died in 2016. By nominating two individuals who have a history of working against the very agencies they will lead, President Trump has shown that he does not intend to strenuously enforce important protections for working people.
Trump judicial nominee would discriminate against LGBT workers
Description: On September 07, 2017, Trump nominated Jeffrey Mateer to serve as a federal district judge in the Eastern District of Texas.
Fair Economy Impact: Jeffrey Mateer has admitted to discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation in two separate speeches from 2015, and has criticized employer-mandated diversity training programs. He also argued that the reasoning in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby, which ruled that closely held for-profit corporations could deny contraceptive coverage to employees based on a religion objection, should be extended to allow employers to legally discriminate against customers and employees based on sexual orientation. Audio and excerpts from these two speeches are available here. With Mateer’s nomination, Trump’s administration is sending a clear signal that it does not value LGBT workers’ rights.
Trump administration stays EE0-1 Pay Data Rule
Description: The Trump administration announced a “review and immediate stay” of the EEO-1 pay data collection rule, which was an Obama-era rule issued by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The rule would have required large companies (with 100 or more employees) to confidentially report to the EEOC information about what they pay their employees by job category, sex, race, and ethnicity.
Fair Economy Impact: By staying the equal pay data rule, the Trump administration is making it harder for employers and federal agencies to identify pay disparities and root out employment discrimination. Further, this decision runs counter to what the research shows—inequities have gotten worse, not better. Even among workers with the same level of education and work experience, black-white wage gaps are larger today than nearly 40 years ago and gender pay disparities have remained essentially unchanged for at least 15 years. In both cases, discrimination has been shown to be a major factor in the persistence of those gaps.
When this rule was first announced, former EEOC Chair Jenny R. Yang stated, “Collecting pay data is a significant step forward in addressing discriminatory pay practices. This information will assist employers in evaluating their pay practices to prevent pay discrimination and strengthen enforcement of our federal anti-discrimination laws.” By staying this rule, the Trump administration has shown that it does not value equal pay for equal work.
Senate confirms Marvin Kaplan to the National Labor Relations Board
Description: On August 2, 2017, the U.S. Senate confirmed, on a party line vote, President Trump’s nominee Marvin Kaplan to be a member of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) for a 5-year term. The NLRB now has four members, and is awaiting a confirmation vote for a fifth member, another Trump nominee, William Emanuel.
Fair Economy Impact: The NLRB protects the rights of most private-sector employees to join together, with or without a union, to improve their wages and working conditions. Employees covered by the National Labor Relations Act are guaranteed the right to form, join, decertify, or assist a labor organization, and to bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing, or to refrain from such activities. The NLRB is an independent agency whose members will decide cases involving when and how workers can form a union, or what types of concerted activities employees can engage in to try and improve their working lives will be protected by the law.
Senate considers Trump nominees to DOL and the NLRB
Description: On July 13, 2017, the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) held a joint confirmation hearing, choosing to consolidate their consideration of Trump’s nominees to the NLRB, William Emanuel and Marvin Kaplan, and his pick for Deputy Secretary of Labor, Patrick Pizzella, into a single hearing.
Fair Economy Impact: The NLRB is an independent agency whose members do not report directly to the president. Instead, board members serve as neutral arbiters of our nation’s labor law. DOL, meanwhile, is a cabinet-level agency whose leaders report directly to the president. In spite of the fundamental different in the agencies’ structure and role, Senate Republicans decided to examine Trump’s nominees in a single hearing, seated on a single panel. The move shortchanged workers who depend on these agencies and the officials who lead them to enforce their rights and protect their freedoms.
House Education and Workforce Committee hearing on joint employer standard
Description: On July 12, 2017, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce held a hearing on Redefining Joint Employer Standards: Barriers to Job Creation and Entrepreneurship.
Fair Economy Impact: The hearing provided Republican members an opportunity to attack the concept of joint employer liability under the nation’s basic labor and employment laws. At its most basic, the joint employer standard simply requires that when multiple employers co-determine or share control over a workers’ terms of employment (such as pay, schedules, and job duties), each of those employers is responsible for compliance with worker protection laws. The hearing focused nearly exclusively on employers and the complexities they might encounter when opening (or considering opening) franchises or considering new business models. However, the joint employer standard is really about ensuring that workers are able to exercise their rights—like the right to a minimum wage or the freedom to choose to join a union. Given the realities of the modern workplace, in which employees often find themselves subject to more than one employer, workers deserve a joint employment standard—under both the FLSA and the NLRA—that guarantees these basic rights and protections.
Department of Labor proposes changes to beryllium rule
Description: The Department of Labor proposed to rescind critical aspects of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) final rule on exposure to beryllium in the workplace. On January 9, 2017, OSHA published its final rule on Occupational Exposure to Beryllium and Beryllium Compounds, which was promulgated to protect employees exposed to beryllium from significant risks of chronic beryllium disease and lung cancer. In the final rule, OSHA issued three separate standards for general industry, for shipyards, and for construction. Under the Trump administration, OSHA is now proposing rescinding aspects of the rule that were intended to protect workers in the construction and shipyards sectors. The DOL announced that OSHA will not enforce the January 9, 2017 shipyard and construction standards without further notice while this new rulemaking is underway
The proposed rollback of this rule follows the DOL’s announced a delay in the effective date of the Occupational Exposure to Beryllium rule from March 21, 2017, to May 20, 2017.
Fair Economy Impact: About 62,000 workers are exposed to beryllium in their workplaces, including approximately 11,500 construction and shipyard workers. The Trump administration’s proposal would rescind important protections in the new rule, which was issued after decades of effort and study, and overwhelming evidence that OSHA’s 35 year old beryllium standard did not protect workers from severe lung disease and lung cancer. Under Trump’s proposal, employers would no longer have to measure beryllium levels or provide medical testing to workers at risk of fatal lung disease. This proposal is another example of Trump’s decision to abandon workers’ rights to come home safe and healthy at the end of the day, and in favor of corporate profits.
Actions:
- Proposal announced on June 27, 2017
Occupational Safety and Health Administration has halted an Obama-era rule requiring employers to submit workplace injury and illness data for posting online
Description: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) further delayed a rule that requires employers to electronically submit injury and illness data that they already record. Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, many employers with more than 10 employees are required to keep a record of serious work-related injuries and illnesses. (Certain low-risk industries are exempted.) Minor injuries requiring first aid only do not need to be recorded. OSHA’s electronic submission rule, which was supposed to take effect Jan. 1, 2017, requires certain employers to electronically submit the injury and illness data that they are already required to record. Some of the data will also be posted to the OSHA website, as “OSHA believes that public disclosure will encourage employers to improve workplace safety and provide valuable information to workers, job seekers, customers, researchers and the general public.” The rule also prohibits employers from retaliating against workers for reporting injuries or illnesses.
OSHA first delayed the rule until July 1, and now proposes to further delay the rule until Dec. 1, 2017.
Fair Economy Impact: The Trump Administration’s action in delaying this OSHA rule is a further example of its hostility toward transparency and lack of concern for worker safety. OSHA’s delay follows a petition filed earlier this year by the Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Home Builders, the National Chicken Council and several others industry associations, requesting that the Department of Labor delay the rule and re-open rulemaking. According to former OSHA Assistant Secretary David Michaels, “This action demonstrates that the Trump Administration continues to put corporate interests over worker safety, and shows they have no commitment to following the rule of law.” This delay follows the DOL’s delay of the Silica Rule and re-opening of the Beryllium Rule. Despite his campaign promises to help workers, Trump is not building a pro-worker administration, and workers will pay the price for rolling back these basic safety protections.
Actions:
- Further delay announced on June 27, 2017
- Rule delayed until December 1, 2017
Department of Labor announcement: Rescission of Persuader Rule
Description: When workers seek to organize and bargain collectively, employers often hire union avoidance consultants – also known as “persuaders” – to orchestrate and roll out anti-union campaigns. Union avoidance consultants may engage with workers directly to deliver their anti-union presentations, such as in face-to-face meetings. Or they may attempt to influence workers indirectly by operating behind the scenes, by creating anti-union flyers, speeches, and videos for management to use to communicate with employees.
In 1959, Congress enacted the Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA), which requires employers and union avoidance consultants to publicly disclose to the Department of Labor (DOL) how much money employers paid for anti-union services. But for nearly 50 years, employers have been exploiting a loophole in the law that allows them to avoid reporting indirect anti-union work that union avoidance consultants do behind the scenes. On March 24, 2016, the DOL attempted to close that loophole with its persuader rule, which would have required employers and hired consultants to report their indirect anti-union activities. The rule has not yet been implemented because employer groups tied it up in litigation in federal court in November 2016.
The DOL has now published a notice of proposed rulemaking to repeal the Obama-era rule.
Fair Economy Impact: The persuader rule closed a massive reporting loophole that has allowed employers to keep indirect persuader activity secret. Disclosure of the large amounts of money employers pay to anti-union consultants – sometimes hundreds of thousands of dollars – would allow workers to know whether the messages they hear are coming directly from their employer, or from a paid, third-party consultant. Seeing how much money employers are paying out to these consultants would provide important perspective on employers’ frequent argument that the company cannot afford to pay union wages, and would give workers the information they need to make informed choices as they pursue their right to organize. The persuader rule would have helped level the playing field for workers who want to join together to negotiate with their employer for better working conditions.
Actions:
- DOL published Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to rescind the persuader rule on June 12, 2017
Department of Labor announcement of a delay of the fiduciary rule
Description: The U.S. Department of Labor has implemented a 60-day extension of the applicability dates of the fiduciary rule from April 10 to June 9, 2017. The announcement follows a presidential memorandum issued on February 3, 2017, which directed the department to examine the fiduciary rule to determine whether it may adversely affect the ability of Americans to gain access to retirement information and financial advice.
Fair Economy Impact: The rule simply requires financial advisers to provide what most clients probably already think they are receiving: advice about their retirement plans untainted by conflicts of interest. It would prohibit common practices such as steering investments to companies that pay the adviser a commission. The financial industry strongly opposes this rule because it wants to preserve a system that allows financial advisers to give their clients advice that is in the adviser’s interest rather than the client’s. Conflicted advice leads to lower investment returns, causing real losses—an estimated $17 billion a year—for the clients who are victimized. The delay of the rule, ostensibly to further investigate its impacts, is a thinly veiled attempt to kill it. As part of the rulemaking process that the Department of Labor undertook to finalize the fiduciary rule, the department prepared a 382-page cost-benefit analysis examining in detail the expected economic impact of the rule. This was the culmination of a roughly six-year process that incorporated the feedback from four days of hearings, more than 100 stakeholder meetings, and thousands of public comments. Delaying the rule to revisit questions that have already been so thoroughly investigated is irresponsible and unjustifiable. Delaying the rule will cost retirement savers $3.7 billion over the next 30 years.
Actions:
- Hearing: Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions May 18, 2017
- Rule implementation delayed until June 9, 2017.
- Delay issued April 7, 2017.
Regulatory Integrity Act of 2017: H.R.1004 / S. 951
Description: The act requires agencies to produce a publicly available list of each pending regulation, and similar list of public communications the agency makes about each regulation, and to make reports to Congress. Under the act, any public communication issued by an executive agency that refers to a pending agency regulatory action may not directly advocate (for or against) the pending action, appeal to the public to, or solicit a third party to undertake advocacy in support of or against the pending agency regulatory action. The act also prohibits public communication by an executive agency regarding a pending regulatory action to be directly or indirectly for publicity or propaganda.
Fair Economy Impact: This legislation imposes restrictions on agency communications. Fear of violating the act will likely lead agencies to limit communications on regulatory proposals, depriving the public of information on proposed rules and preventing agencies from the benefit of public engagement.
Actions:
- S. 951 reported out from Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs May 17, 2017
- Received in the Senate March 2, 2017
- H.R. 1004 Passed by the House (246-176) March 2, 2017
Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act: H.R. 26 / S. 21
Description: In order for a major rule to take effect, the agency proposing the major rule must submit its report on the rule to Congress, and Congress must enact a joint resolution of approval within 70 session days or legislative days. A major rule may take effect for 90 days without such approval if the president determines it is necessary because of an imminent threat to health or safety or other emergency, for the enforcement of criminal laws, for national security, or to implement an international trade agreement.
Fair Economy Impact: This legislation shifts regulatory power from agency officials with subject-matter expertise to members of Congress, enabling regulated entities to lobby against proposals that would benefit the public but impose burdens on the entities. Requiring congressional approval of a major rule is counter to rulemaking processes established by the Administrative Procedures Act and will lead to a politicized process.
Actions:
- S. 21 reported out by Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affair May 17, 2017
- Received in the Senate January 6, 2017
- H.R. 26 passed by the House (237-187) January 5, 2017
Congressional Review Act Resolution to block rule Providing for State Savings Initiatives for Private Employees: H.J. Res 66
Description: The resolution would block the Obama-era rule that assists states that create Individual Retirement Account (IRA) programs for private-sector workers. Some states are moving forward with initiatives that would require employers that do not offer a workplace retirement plan to automatically enroll workers in payroll deduction IRAs administered by the state. The Obama-era rule clarifies that such plans, if funded entirely through voluntary employee contributions, are not covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), the federal law governing private-sector employer-sponsored retirement plans.
Fair Economy Impact: An estimated 55 million private-sector wage and salary workers ages 18-64 do not have access to a retirement savings plan through their employers. State and local payroll deduction savings initiatives encourage employees to contribute to tax-favored IRAs through automatic payroll deduction. These savings initiatives provide important assistance to workers in saving for retirement because few workers contribute to a retirement plan outside of work. By clarifying the legal status of these plans, the Obama-era rule allayed concerns that employers, states, municipalities or the plans themselves could take on unwanted liabilities or duties under ERISA. The Government Accountability Office warned that such legal uncertainties could delay or deter states’ efforts to expand coverage.
Actions:
- President Trump signed into law on May 17, 2017
- Senate Passed (50-49) on May 3, 2017
- On March 13, 2017, The White House issued a Statement of Administration Policy indicating that the president would sign the resolution.
- House Passed (231-193) on February 15, 2017
Confirmation of Robert Lighthizer for United States Trade Representative
Robert Lighthizer confirmed by the Senate (82-14) as United States Trade Representative.
Actions:
- Confirmed May 11, 2017
“Working Families Flexibility Act of 2017”: H.R. 1180 / S. 801
Description: The legislation would amend the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) to allow private-sector employers to “compensate” hourly workers with compensatory time off in lieu of overtime pay.
Fair Economy Impact: The legislation does not create employee rights, rather it creates a new employer right – the right to delay paying any wages for overtime work for as long as 13 months. The legislation forces workers to compromise their paychecks for the possibility – but not the guarantee – that they will get time off from work when they need it. At no risk to the employee, the FLSA already allows an employer to grant time off to employees who work overtime. H.R. 1180 adds nothing but delay and risk to the employees’ right to receive extra compensation when they work more than 40 hours in a week.
Actions:
- Passed the House (229-197) on party line vote, May 2, 2017
- On May 2, 2017, The White House issued a Statement of Administration Policy indicating the President would sign the legislation
- Hearing April 5, 2017, in House Committee on Education and the Workforce, Subcommittee on Workforce Protections
- Introduced in Senate April 3, 2017
- Introduced in House February 16, 2017
Confirmation of Alexander Acosta for Secretary of Labor
Alexander Acosta confirmed by the Senate (60-38) as Secretary of Labor.
Actions:
- Confirmed April, 27, 2017
- Approved by Senate HELP Committee (12-11) March 30, 2017
- Hearing on March 22, 2017
President Trump signs “Buy American, Hire American” Executive Order
Description: On April 18, 2017, President Trump signed an executive order calling for a review of government procurement commitments in the World Trade Organization and other trade deals.
Fair Economy Impact: It is important to evaluate American trade policy rules to ensure that they maximize benefits for American workers; however, this executive order fails to outline any remedy for discovered imbalances with foreign countries in government procurement opportunities. The executive order also instructs agencies to look into new rules that could be proposed or existing rules that could be updated to improve the immigration system and root out fraud and abuse. One section of the executive order focuses on the H-1B program, directing agencies to “suggest reforms to help ensure that H-1B visas are awarded to the most-skilled or highest-paid petition beneficiaries.” This is the first clear signal that Trump may propose a regulation to end the process of issuing H-1B visas via random lottery. The nation’s immigration system is in need of reform. However, this executive order offers no concrete reforms.
Congressional Review Act Resolution to block rule Providing for Local Savings Initiatives for Private Employees: H.J. Res. 67
Description: The resolution would block the Obama-era rule that assists municipalities that create Individual Retirement Account (IRA) programs for private-sector workers. Some municipalities are moving forward with initiatives that would require employers that do not offer a workplace retirement plan to automatically enroll workers in payroll deduction IRAs administered by the state or municipality. The Obama-era rule clarifies that such plans, if funded entirely through voluntary employee contributions, are not covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), the federal law governing private-sector employer-sponsored retirement plans.
Fair Economy Impact: An estimated 55 million private-sector wage and salary workers ages 18-64 do not have access to a retirement savings plan through their employers. State and local payroll deduction savings initiatives encourage employees to contribute to tax-favored IRAs through automatic payroll deduction. These savings initiatives provide important assistance to workers in saving for retirement because few workers contribute to a retirement plan outside of work. By clarifying the legal status of these plans, the Obama-era rules allayed concerns that employers, states, municipalities or the plans themselves could take on unwanted liabilities or duties under ERISA. The Government Accountability Office warned that such legal uncertainties could delay or deter local efforts to expand coverage.
Actions:
- President signed into law April 13, 2017
- Senate Passed 50-49 on March 30, 2017
- On March 13, 2017, The White House issued a Statement of Administration Policy indicating that the president would sign the resolution.
- House Passed 234-191 on February 15, 2017
Presidential Memorandum on the Hiring Freeze
Description: The memorandum imposes a freeze on hiring of federal civilian employees. No vacant positions existing at noon on January 22, 2017, may be filled and no new positions may be created. Military personnel are exempted from the hiring freeze. The Office of Management and Budget, in consultation with the Office of Personnel Management, must, within 90 days, recommend a long-term plan to reduce the federal workforce through attrition.
Fair Economy Impact: Federal employees serve the public every day by implementing the federal policies and programs that help America run. This arbitrary hiring freeze hinders the federal government’s ability to serve the American people.
Actions:
- Hiring freeze was lifted pursuant to guidance from OMB Memo, April 12, 2017
- Issued January 23, 2017
Department of Labor announcement of delay of the Crystalline Silica Standard for the construction industry
Description: The Department of Labor announced a 3-month delay in the enforcement of the final rule on Occupational Exposure to Crystalline Silica in the construction industry, which established a new permissible exposure limit for construction workers. The rule is comprised of two permissible exposure standards, one for Construction and one for General Industry and Maritime. The rule became effective June 23, 2016, and enforcement was to begin on June 23, 2017. The Department stated that its decision to delay enforcement was based on the desire to conduct additional outreach to the regulated community and to provide additional time to train compliance officers.
Fair Economy Impact: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued this rule to reduce workers’ exposure to cancer-causing respirable crystalline silica. Studies have linked exposure to silica to lung cancer, silicosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and kidney disease. About 2.3 million workers are exposed to respirable crystalline silica in their workplaces, including 2 million construction workers who drill, cut, crush, or grind silica-containing materials such as concrete and stone. Responsible employers have been protecting workers from harmful exposure to silica for years, using widely-available equipment that controls silica dust with a simple water spray to wet the dust down, or a vacuum system to contain the dust. OSHA estimates that the rule will save over 600 lives and prevent more than 900 new cases of silicosis each year, once its effects are fully realized. The final rule already had a built-in, one-year grace period to give employers time to adjust their practices. Further delaying enforcement of this rule needlessly puts workers’ lives at risk, and is unfair to responsible employers who do not cut corners with health and safety.
Actions:
- Announced on April 6, 2017
- Enforcement delayed until September 23, 2017
Neil Gorsuch Confirmed to the Supreme Court
Description: The Senate confirmed President Trump’s nominee Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court
Fair Economy Impact: On April 7, 2017, the Senate confirmed Trump’s choice, Neil Gorsuch, to fill the vacant seat on the Supreme Court. This confirmation will significantly affect this nation’s workers. Over the next few terms, the Supreme Court is likely to decide several cases that will dramatically impact workers’ rights, and will issue decisions that could undermine the foundational legal principles workers rely on to have a voice in their workplaces. Significant cases involving collective bargaining, forced arbitration, and employment discrimination are all either already on the docket for the next term or likely to be on the docket in the coming years. And Gorsuch has a record of ruling in favor of employers in workers’ rights cases.37
To highlight one example: Gorsuch was questioned extensively at his confirmation hearing about his dissent in the TransAm Trucking, Inc. v. Administrative Review Board case.38 The majority of a three-judge Tenth Circuit panel upheld an Administrative Review Board ruling in favor of a truck driver who refused to follow his supervisor’s orders to either drag his trailer—which had frozen brakes—or remain with the stranded trailer (in subzero temperatures with no heat) until a repair person arrived. Because he was experiencing symptoms of hypothermia, the driver unhitched the trailer from the truck and drove to a gas station. He was fired for violating company policy by abandoning his trailer while under dispatch. However, under the Surface Transportation Assistance Act, a truck driver may not be fired for refusing to operate a vehicle when he reasonably fears for his or others’ safety. An administrative law judge, the Administrative Review Board, and the Tenth Circuit majority held that the driver had been unlawfully fired. Only Gorsuch dissented.
Gorsuch’s dissent in this case suggests a hostility to fundamental worker protections. In his dissent, he describes health and safety goals as “ephemeral and generic” and views a worker having to wait in subzero temperatures with no access to heat while experiencing symptoms of hypothermia as merely “unpleasant.” This language indicates that Judge Gorsuch does not understand workers’ lives or the laws that protect them. His dissent should raise serious concerns for working men and women about his treatment of protections in other labor and employment laws.
Actions:
- President Trump nominated Neil Gorsuch on January 31, 2017
- Senate Confirmed on April 7, 2017
U.S. Department of Labor announces plans to protect American workers from H-1B program discrimination
Description: The H-1B program provides temporary, nonimmigrant U.S. work visas for college-educated workers and fashion models from abroad. The Department of Labor announced it will use its existing authority to initiate investigations of H-1B program violators, in coordination with the departments of Homeland Security and Justice; consider changes to the Labor Condition Application for future application cycles; and continue to engage stakeholders on how the program might be improved to provide greater protections for U.S. workers, under existing authorities or through legislative changes.
Fair Economy Impact: While it is important to attract skilled, talented workers to the United States, the reality is that the biggest beneficiaries of the H-1B program are outsourcing companies that have hijacked the system—using between one-third to one-half of the visas—to replace thousands of U.S. workers with much-lower-paid H-1B workers while also sending tech jobs abroad. In addition, these outsourcing companies rarely provide H-1B employees with a path to permanent residence and citizenship. Reforms to the H-1B visa program that would help achieve a fair economy would include making the program fairer for U.S. workers, who should have the first opportunity to apply for jobs in the United States, and fairer to H-1B workers, who deserve fair pay for their work according to U.S. wage standards and who should not have to fear retaliation and exploitation by employers.
Actions:
- Issued April 4, 2017.
DOL announcement of enhanced oversight of H-1B guestworker program
Description: On April 4, 2017, the Trump Department of Labor (DOL) announced a recommitment to using its existing enforcement authority on the H-1B visa program—a guestworker program for workers in professional occupations.
Fair Economy Impact: American employers have for too long used temporary guestworker visa programs to carve out an ever-larger zone in labor markets where workers are powerless to assert their rights. DOL announced it will initiate investigations of employers, engage stakeholders on the program, look into abuses of the program by H-1B-dependent employers (those with large shares of their workforces composed of H-1B workers), and also consider changes to the Labor Condition Application to improve transparency in the H-1B process.
Immigration policy should aim to provide fair pay and benefits to American workers and immigrants, not simply to provide employers with cheap labor from workers who are virtually indentured to them. DOL’s announcement did not provide specific information about its plan or about how DOL will conduct this enforcement given the massive cuts to the Labor Department included in President Trump’s proposed fiscal year 2018 budget. So while it is encouraging that the Trump DOL has signaled that it will examine the H-1B program, it remains to be seen whether this announcement will lead to enhanced enforcement that would benefit U.S. workers. Furthermore, the Trump administration’s criminalizing and scapegoating of immigrants has created a political climate in which meaningful immigration reforms are much more difficult to achieve.
Congressional Review Act resolution to block the Department of Labor’s rule titled, “Clarification of Employer’s Continuing Obligation to Make and Maintain an Accurate Record of Each Recordable Injury and Illness”: H.J. Res. 83 / S.J. Res. 27
Description: The resolution blocked an Obama-era rule that involves an employer’s duty to keep accurate logs of workplace injuries and illnesses. Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, many employers are legally required to keep records of workplace injuries and illnesses, and to maintain those records for 5 years. The Obama-era rule clarified that an employer could be issued a citation and fined for failure to properly record a workplace injury/illness any time during that 5-year period. The resolution nullified this rule.
Background: Since the early 1970s, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has required many employers to keep careful records of workplace injuries and illnesses, and to maintain those records for 5 years. If an employer’s injury/illness logs are inaccurate – for example, if a worker is injured on the job and the employer fails to log it – OSHA can issue a citation and fine. For the past 40 years, OSHA had been issuing those citations any time within the 5-year period that the illness/injury record is required to be kept.
In 2012, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that if a worker got injured, OSHA only had six months to check an employer’s log and issue a citation if the injury was not recorded. That meant that even though employers must maintain injury/illness records for five years, if OSHA inspectors do not catch the employer’s record omission within the first six months after the injury, the employer will get off the hook. Since OSHA inspections generally take longer than 6 months, the court’s ruling made it a lot harder for OSHA to punish companies for bad record keeping. One of the judges on the court, though, wrote that OSHA could issue a new rule clarifying employers’ recordkeeping duties.
In response, OSHA promulgated the rule to allow OSHA to resume what it had been doing for the last 40 years: citing an employer for failure to log an injury/illness anytime within the entire 5-year period that the record of injury must be kept. This rule created no new record keeping requirements for employers, it just allowed OSHA more time to do its work.
Fair Economy Impact: When Congress passed, and President Trump signed, the resolution to block this rule, they gave employers a get-out-of-jail free card when employers fail to maintain – or falsify – their injury/illness logs. These records are not just paperwork: If an employee is injured on the job (say cut or burned, or worse, suffers an amputation or fatality) then it is the employer’s duty to record that injury and investigate what happened. Failure to keep injury records means that employers, OSHA, and workers cannot learn from past mistakes, and makes it harder to prevent the same tragedies from happening to others in the future.
Actions:
- President Trump signed into law April 3, 2017
- Senate Passed (50-48) on March 22, 2017
- House Passed (231-191) on March 1, 2017
- On February 28, The White House issued a Statement of Administration Policy indicating that the president would sign the resolution.
Congressional Review Act resolution to block rule establishing appropriate occupations for drug testing: H.J. Res. 42/S.J. Res. 23
Description: The resolution blocks the Obama-era rule establishing rules for drug testing applicants for unemployment insurance (UI) benefits. The rule is the result of a 2012 bipartisan compromise that provided for an extension of certain UI benefits, a payroll tax cut, and Medicare provisions. As part of the deal, states were permitted to drug test UI applicants who had been discharged from their last job for drug use or whose only suitable work opportunity is in a field that regularly drug tests workers. The rule directed the secretary of labor to determine which occupations regularly drug test. The Department of Labor issued a rule defining such “occupations” as those that are required, or may be required in the future, by state or federal law, to be drug tested.
Fair Economy Impact: This rule would have clarified circumstances under which individuals filing for unemployment benefits may be subjected to drug testing. Mandatory drug testing for UI applicants is arguably unconstitutional and unnecessarily stigmatizes jobless workers. Conditioning receipt of UI benefits on this type of requirement fundamentally challenges our nation’s UI system, creating the perception that workers do not earn unemployment insurance. However, workers earn the right to unemployment insurance benefits through prior participation in the workforce. Workers only access their earned benefit when they lose their job and are working to find a new one. This rule would have benefited workers who have lost their jobs. The repeal of this rule will benefit opponents of unemployment benefits, and employers seeking reduced payroll taxes (payroll taxes help finance unemployment benefits).
Actions:
- President Trump signed into law on March 31, 2017
- Senate passed (51–48) on March 14, 2017
- House passed (236–189) on February 15, 2017
- On February 7, the White House issued a Statement of Administration Policy indicating that the president would sign the resolution.
President Trump signs Executive Orders on U.S. trade policies
Description: On March 31, 2017, President Trump signed two executive orders focused on evaluating trade policy:
- Presidential Executive Order Regarding the Omnibus Report on Significant Trade Deficits and;
- Presidential Executive Order on Establishing Enhanced Collection and Enforcement of Antidumping and Countervailing Duties and Violations of Trade and Customs Laws.
Fair Economy Impact: Any reexamination of U.S. trade policies and their effects on workers is welcome and long overdue. But the impact of these executive orders on U.S. workers remains unclear. The first order directs the secretary of commerce and the White House National Trade Council to identify practices that contribute to the U.S. trade deficit with different countries. The second order calls for stepping up collection of anti-dumping and countervailing duties, focusing on small fines for past unfair trade practices.
The first executive order does little beyond delay much-needed reform. The causes of trade imbalances are well known. Chief among these is the inflated value of the U.S. dollar. If the president were truly interested in adopting trade policies that would benefit U.S. workers and our economy, he would address currency valuation now instead of requesting additional evaluation of the issue.
The second executive order is similarly off the mark about protecting American workers. While enforcement of fair trade practices is critical to safeguarding U.S. workers and our economy, a focus on past unfair trade practices does nothing to ensure that trade policies are complied with in the future. And while recovering fines for past unfair trade practices will have some economic benefit, that benefit will be small compared with the U.S. goods trade deficit. Consider that the estimated total uncollected fines between 2001 and 2016 of $2.8 billion are the equivalent of a 0.1 percent tariff. It is unlikely that focusing on past unfair trade practices and uncollected fines will have any meaningful benefit for our nation’s workers and our economy moving forward.
Department of Labor announcement of a proposed delay of the rule for Examination of Working Places in Metal and Nonmetal Mines
Description: The U.S. Department of Labor announced a delay in the effective date of the Final Rule for Examination of Working Places in Metal and Nonmetal Mines from May 23, 2017, to July 24, 2017. The final rule, if implemented, would improve miners’ safety and health by requiring mine operators to: (1) conduct working place examinations to identify hazards before work begins in an area, (2) notify affected miners of hazardous conditions that are not corrected immediately; and (3) record the locations examined, the adverse conditions found, and the date of the corrective action. The department stated that the delay will allow the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to further review and consider the rule, as required by a Jan. 20, 2017, White House memorandum, “Regulatory Freeze Pending Review.”
Fair Economy Impact: This announcement delays critical workplace examinations exposing more miners to unsafe work conditions. From January 2010 through mid-December 2015, there have been 122 miners killed in 110 accidents at metal and nonmetal mines.
Actions:
- Announced on March 27, 2017
- Delayed until July 24, 2017
- Further delayed until October 2, 2017
Congressional Review Act resolution to block Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces rule: H.J. Res. 37/S.J. Res. 12
Description: The resolution blocks the Obama-era rule that requires federal contractors to disclose workplace violations—specifically violations of federal labor laws and executive orders that address wage and hour, safety and health, collective bargaining, family medical leave, and civil rights protections. The rule directs that such violations be considered when awarding federal contracts. In addition, the rule mandates that contractors provide each worker with written notice of basic information including wages, hours worked, overtime hours, and whether the worker is an independent contractor. Finally, the rule prohibits contractors from requiring workers to sign pre-dispute arbitration agreements for discrimination, harassment, or sexual assault claims.
Fair Economy Impact: Currently, there is no effective system to ensure that taxpayer dollars are not awarded to contractors who violate basic labor and employment laws. As a result, the federal government awards billions of dollars in contracts to companies that break the law. This rule would have helped ensure that federal contracts (and taxpayer dollars) are not awarded to companies with track records of labor and employment law violations. Workers, taxpayers, and law-abiding contractors would have benefited from this rule. Contractors with records of cutting corners by violating labor and employment laws will benefit from the congressional resolution blocking this rule.
Actions:
- President Trump signed into law on March 27, 2017.
- Senate passed (49–48) on March 6, 2017.
- House passed (236–187) on February 2, 2017.
- On February 1, the White House issued a Statement of Administration Policy indicating that the president would sign the resolution.
Tribal Labor Sovereignty Act of 2017: H.R. 986 Rep. Rokita (R-IN) / S. 63 Sen. Moran (R-KS)
Description: The legislation amends the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) to provide that any enterprise or institution owned and operated by an Indian tribe and located on the tribe’s land is not considered an employer under the NLRA.
Fair Economy Impact: The legislation would deprive thousands of workers of protections they receive under the National Labor Relations Act. Workers employed by for-profit tribal enterprises would lose the right to collectively bargain for better wages and working conditions as well as the right to engage in protected concerted activity with their coworkers. Many other federal employment statutes apply to for-profit tribal enterprises, including the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.
Actions:
- Hearing: U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Education and the Workforce – HELP Subcommittee March 29, 2017
- Introduced in House February 9, 2017
- Introduced in Senate January 9, 2017
Department of Labor announcement of delay of beryllium rule
Description: The Department of Labor announced a delay in the effective date of the Occupational Exposure to Beryllium rule from March 21, 2017, to May 20, 2017. The department stated that the delay will allow the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to further review and consider the rule, as required by a Jan. 20, 2017, White House memorandum, “Regulatory Freeze Pending Review.”
Fair Economy Impact: It remains to be seen what the impact will be of this delay, or if the administration attempts to further delay this health and safety rule. OSHA had issued this final rule to prevent chronic beryllium disease and lung cancer in American workers by limiting their exposure to beryllium and beryllium compounds. The rule contains standards for general industry, construction, and shipyards. About 62,000 workers are exposed to beryllium in their workplaces, including approximately 11,500 construction and shipyard workers. This is an important rule to protect workers.
Actions:
- Announced on March 22, 2017
- Delayed until May 20, 2017
Fair and Open Competition Act (FOCA Act): H.R. 1552 Rep. Ross (R-FL) / S. 622 Sen. Flake (R-AZ)
Description: The bill would prohibit the federal government from requiring project labor agreements on federally funded construction projects. A project labor agreement (PLA) is a pre-hire collective bargaining agreement with one or more labor organizations that establishes the terms and conditions of employment for a specific construction project.
Fair Economy Impact: Prohibiting the use of project labor agreements when awarding federal construction contracts would most likely lead to lower wages for the employees who work on federal construction projects. Because unions’ collective bargaining power has been eroded over the years, construction wages are lower today than they were in 1970, despite 40 years of economic growth and a higher national income. Prohibiting workers having a seat at the table to negotiate a project labor agreement would put less money in construction workers’ pockets.
Actions:
- Introduced in House March 15, 2017
- Introduced in Senate March 14, 2017
President Trump’s 2018 Budget Blueprint
Description: President Trump proposed drastic cuts to worker protection agencies in his fiscal 2018 budget blueprint.
Fair Economy Impact: The Trump administration’s budget blueprint for fiscal year 2018 proposes a 20 percent cut ($2.5 billion) to funding for DOL—the department tasked with enforcing the majority of this nation’s worker protection laws and administering our job training and workforce development programs. The budget outline fails to specify how that cut will be allocated across DOL’s worker protection agencies, but the magnitude of the cuts makes it clear that the Trump administration does not value DOL’s enforcement programs. Programs likely to suffer are the Wage and Hour Division (which enforces minimum wage protections and protects workers from wage theft), OSHA (which enforces worker safety protections including inspecting worksites for hazardous working conditions), and the Employee Benefits and Security Administration (which safeguards workers’ retirement savings). While it is unlikely that this proposal will be reflected in actual funding levels, it reveals Trump’s priorities when it comes to our nation’s workers.
Actions:
- President Trump released proposed budget on March 15, 2017
Executive Order on a Comprehensive Plan for Reorganizing the Executive Branch: EO 13781
Description: The executive order instructs the director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to propose a plan to reorganize governmental functions and eliminate unnecessary agencies, components of agencies, and agency programs. Within 180 days of the date of the order, the head of each agency must submit to OMB a proposed plan to reorganize the agency, if appropriate, in order to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability of the agency. Reorganization plans must focus on the costs of agency programs, and whether some or all of the functions of an agency, a component, or a program are appropriate for the federal government or would be better left to state or local governments or to the private sector.
Fair Economy Impact: The order is a direct attack on the administrative agencies that are charged with protecting everything from the air we breathe, to the water we drink, to the food we eat, in addition to safeguarding our homes, our workplaces, our health, and our economy. Take the Department of Labor, for example, which administers a variety of federal labor laws including those that guarantee workers’ rights to safe and healthful working conditions, a minimum hourly wage and overtime pay, freedom from employment discrimination, unemployment insurance, and other income support. Allowing the Trump administration’s political appointees to target agencies and agency programs for elimination based on costs—not benefits—gives them free rein to put profits ahead of people.
Actions:
- Issued March 13, 2017
National Right-to-Work Act: H.R. 785 Rep. King (R-IA) / S. 545 Sen. Paul (R-KY)
Description: The bill would allow employees who work in a unionized workplace, but decline to become union members, to refuse to pay a fair share fee to the union that represents all employees in the workplace, union members and nonmembers alike. The term “right-to-work” does not mean everyone is guaranteed a job, but instead means employees can work at a unionized workplace without paying any contribution to the union that negotiates for their benefits. Currently, the National Labor Relations Act permits each state to choose whether it wants to allow these so-called “right to work” arrangements, and many states have passed “right-to-work” laws prohibiting fair share payments in the state. This bill seeks to prohibit fair share payments nationwide.
Fair Economy Impact: This bill would undermine unions’ bargaining strength by making it harder for workers’ organizations to sustain themselves financially. For example, since unions are required by law to represent both members and non-members, unions must spend their resources to represent non-members when they file grievances against the employer. This creates a free-rider problem for unions, who must expend resources to assist workers who do not pay their fair share in union dues. It is also unfair to union members who do pay their fair share in dues. This legislation would further weaken unions and the workers they represent while continuing to strengthen corporate profits for shareholders and CEOs. Because unions are able to negotiate higher pay, wages are 3.1 percent lower in so-called “right-to-work” states, for union and nonunion workers alike, even after accounting for differences in cost of living, demographics, and labor market characteristics.
Actions:
- Introduced in Senate March 7, 2017
- Introduced in House February 1, 2017
OIRA Insight, Reform, and Accountability Act: H.R.1009 Rep. Mitchell (R-MI)
Description: The act codifies and revises the centralized regulatory review process, currently required under executive order, for the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) within the Office of Management and Budget to. Under the act, OIRA must chair the Regulatory Working Group that assists agencies with regulatory issues, publish a unified agenda of each agency’s regulations that are under development or review, and review each agency’s significant regulatory actions. With these requirements, OIRA’s review is expanded to include the significant regulatory actions of independent regulatory agencies. Excluded from OIRA’s review are the Government Accountability Office, the Federal Election Commission, the governments of the District of Columbia and of the territories and possessions of the United States, and government-owned contractor-operated facilities.
Fair Economy Impact: The legislation imposes numerous, burdensome requirements on agencies engaged in rulemaking. Furthermore, it undermines independent agencies, some of which are responsible for holding Wall Street accountable (the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for example), by requiring that those agencies report to the Office of the President when issuing a regulation. This requirement politicizes agencies that are congressionally mandated to act independent of the administration.
Actions:
- Received in the Senate March 2, 2017
- Passed by the House (241-184) March 1, 2017
Searching for and Cutting Regulations that are Unnecessarily Burdensome Act (SCRUB Act): H.R. 998 Rep. Smith (R-MO)
Description: The SCRUB Act would establish a “Retrospective Regulatory Review Commission,” consisting of political appointees, to identify regulations to eliminate or modify to “lower the cost to the economy.” When targeting regulations for elimination, the commission would consider only the costs associated with the rule, as opposed to conducting a true cost-benefit analysis. For example, the bill directs the commission to consider if there is a less costly alternative to the rule—without requiring that they also consider the benefits of potential alternatives.
Fair Economy Impact: This legislation focuses on the costs associated with a regulation as opposed to balancing costs with the benefits to the public—including worker health and safety, consumer protection, and environmental protection.
Actions:
- Received in the Senate March 2, 2017
- Passed by the House (240-185) March 1, 2017
Executive Order on Enforcing the Regulatory Reform Agenda: EO 13777
Description: The order mandates that the head of each agency (other than those agencies given waivers) designate an agency official as its Regulatory Reform Officer (RRO) to oversee the implementation of regulatory reform initiatives and policies. The RRO is charged with ensuring that agencies effectively carry out regulatory reforms. The order also requires that each agency establish a Regulatory Reform Task Force. These task forces are required to identify existing regulations for replacement or repeal, with a focus on the costs of regulations and job impacts.
Fair Economy Impact: The order requires the identification of regulations for repeal based largely on the cost of the regulation, rather than whether the regulation provides a public benefit. The economic impact of a regulation depends not just on the costs of the rule, but also the benefits to workers, safety, health, the environment, and other public goods. Focusing on lowering the costs to business places corporate interests ahead of workers’ interests in a safe workplace and the public’s interest in a healthy environment.
Actions:
- Issued February 24, 2017
Hearing: Federal Wage and Hour Policies in the Twenty-First Century Economy
U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Education and the Workforce – Workforce Protections Subcommittee, “Federal Wage and Hour Policies in the Twenty-First Century Economy”
Actions:
- Hearing on February 16, 2017
Hearing: Restoring Balance and Fairness to the National Labor Relations Board
U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Education and the Workforce – HELP Subcommittee, “Restoring Balance and Fairness Needed to the National Labor Relations Board”
Actions:
- Hearing on February 14, 2017
Rewarding Achievement and Incentivizing Successful Employees (RAISE) Act: H.R. 987 Rep. Rokita (R-IN) / S. 155 Sen. Rubio (R-FL)
Description: The legislation amends the National Labor Relations Act to permit employers who are a party to a collective bargaining agreement to provide additional pay to individual employees covered by the collective bargaining agreement without negotiating with the union.
Fair Economy Impact: The legislation attacks collective bargaining and unions. Collective bargaining agreements establish the terms and conditions of employment for bargaining unit employees. Permitting employers to reach separate agreements with individual workers outside of the collective bargaining process defeats collective bargaining. Workers covered by collective bargaining agreements are more likely to earn higher wages, receive paid leave, and have employer-provided health care.
Actions:
- Introduced in House February 9, 2017
- Introduced in Senate January 17, 2017
Presidential Memorandum on Fiduciary Duty Rule
Description: The memorandum directs the secretary of labor to examine the fiduciary rule and “prepare an updated economic and legal analysis concerning the likely impact of the Fiduciary Duty Rule.” According to the memorandum, if the labor secretary determines that the rule is likely to harm investors, will result in “dislocations or disruptions within the retirement services industry,” or “cause an increase in litigation,” then the labor secretary should begin the administrative process to rescind or revise the rule.
Fair Economy Impact: The rule simply requires financial advisers to provide what most clients probably already think they are receiving: advice about their retirement plans untainted by conflicts of interest. It would prohibit common practices such as steering investments to companies that pay the adviser a commission. Opponents of the fiduciary rule want to preserve a system that allows financial advisers to give their clients advice that is in the adviser’s interest rather than the client’s. Conflicted advice leads to lower investment returns, causing real losses for the clients who are victimized.
Actions:
- Issued February 3, 2017
Executive Order on Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs: EO 13771
Description: The order mandates that for every new regulation issued, at least two prior regulations be identified for elimination. For fiscal 2017, heads of all agencies are directed that the total incremental cost of all new regulations, including the cost savings associated with eliminating the two prior regulations, must be no greater than zero—unless otherwise required by law or consistent with written advice of the director of the Office of Management and Budget.
Fair Economy Impact: President Trump’s “2-for-1” executive order requires federal agencies to assess whether a regulation is worthwhile based solely on costs – regardless of the benefits of the regulation. The executive order mentions costs 18 times, but never once mentions benefits. This emphasis on costs threatens regulations that protect workers, consumers, and the environment. Compliance with rules is part of the overall cost of conducting business in a way that doesn’t cause harm to workers and the environment. Rules that, for example, prevent workplace injuries provide great benefits to workers who would otherwise bear the costs of injury, through emergency room visits, medical bills, and absence from work.
Actions:
- Issued January 30, 2017
Davis-Bacon Repeal Act: H.R. 743 Rep. King (R-IA) / S. 244 Sen. Lee (R-UT)
Description: The legislation repeals the Davis-Bacon Act, which requires that workers engaged in federally funded construction projects be paid no less than the local prevailing wage as determined by the Secretary of Labor.
Fair Economy Impact: Davis-Bacon prevailing wage protections ensure that the federal government, as a major buyer in the construction sector, does not drive down local construction-worker wages.
Actions:
- Introduced in House January 30, 2017
- Introduced in Senate January 30, 2017
Presidential Memorandum Streamlining Permitting and Reducing Regulatory Burdens for Domestic Manufacturing
Description: The memorandum directs the Secretary of Commerce to solicit comments from the public (for period not to exceed 60 days) concerning federal actions to streamline permitting and reduce regulatory burdens for domestic manufacturers. The memorandum also directs the Secretary of Commerce to develop a permit-streamlining action plan and send it to the president within 60 days of outreach process.
Fair Economy Impact: While the impact on the economy remains to be seen from this memorandum, any plan presented regarding regulations on domestic manufacturing must ensure basic safeguards for workers in order to achieve a more fair economy.
Actions:
- Issued January 24, 2017
Presidential Memorandum Regarding Withdrawal of the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership Negotiations and Agreement
Description: The memorandum immediately withdraws the United States as a signatory to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and directs permanent withdrawal from TPP negotiations. The memorandum instructs the U.S. Trade Representative to pursue, wherever possible, bilateral trade negotiations.
Fair Economy Impact: It is critical to a fair economy that trade agreements include meaningful and enforceable worker protections. Further, it is critical for trade agreements to stop intentionally eroding protections for American workers’ wages and jobs while simultaneously providing explicit protections for corporate profits. Going forward, there is no reason to think, however, that a renewed focus on bilateral agreements will be better for American workers if those new agreements do not contain protections for workers.
Actions:
- Issued January 23, 2017
Presidential Memorandum on Regulatory Freeze Pending Review
Description: The memorandum instructs agency heads to send no regulation to the Federal Register until a department or agency head appointed or designated by the president reviews and approves the regulation, and to withdraw pending regulations not yet published. The memorandum temporarily postpones, for 60 days from the date of memo, rules published that have not taken effect.
Fair Economy Impact: The memorandum is similar to memos issued by previous administrations when first entering office.
Actions:
- Issued January 20, 2017
Trump nominated Andrew Puzder for Secretary of Labor
Description: On January 20, 2017—his very first day in office, Trump officially nominated his choice for secretary of labor: Andrew Puzder, CEO of a company with a record of labor law violations.
Fair Economy Impact: Trump failed U.S. workers with his nomination of Andrew Puzder. Puzder, then-CEO of CKE Restaurants (the parent company of Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s), has opposed raising the minimum wage and the overtime threshold, criticized paid sick time proposals and health and safety regulations, and headed a company with a record of violating laws and regulations that protect workers’ wages, safety, and rights. While his nomination was ultimately withdrawn, Trump’s original selection made a powerful statement—the president was prepared to support a labor nominee who is hostile to policies that would benefit our nation’s workers. Instead of nominating someone who respects and follows the law and who would be committed to enforcing our labor and employment laws, Trump sent a clear message with his first nomination: the Trump administration does not value America’s workers.
Miners Protection Act of 2017: S. 175 Sen. Manchin (D-WV)/ H.R. 179 Rep. McKinley (R-WV)
Description: This bill amends the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 to transfer certain funds to the Multiemployer Health Benefit Plan and the 1974 United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) Pension Plan to provide health and pension benefits to retired coal miners and their families.
Fair Economy Impact: The United Mine Workers of America health care and pension fund faces insolvency because of a string of coal-industry bankruptcies. This looming insolvency would leave thousands of retired miners without the retirement and health care benefits they earned. Pension and health care obligations should be honored as part of a fair economy.
Actions:
- Introduced in Senate January 17, 2017
- Introduced in House January 3, 2017
Regulatory Accountability Act of 2017: H.R. 5 Rep. Goodlatte (R-VA)
Description: The Regulatory Accountability Act of 2017 includes significant changes to the rulemaking procedures that apply to all federal agencies. These include requirements to analyze “any substantial alternatives” to a rule identified by “interested persons,” hold public hearings on “high impact rules” at the request of any individual, and choose the lowest-cost alternatives that meet statutory objectives. It also ends the precedent of judicial deference to agencies on statutory and regulatory interpretations.
Fair Economy Impact: This legislation provides potentially regulated entities and their allies with unprecedented power to interfere with and delay the regulatory process. The bill requires agencies to consider costs associated with rulemaking as opposed to balancing costs with public benefits.
Actions:
- Received in the Senate January 12, 2017
- Passed by the House (238-183) January 11, 2017
Expert analysis
September 6, 2011
Welcome to ‘Working Economics’
September 6, 2011
Business economists differ from House orthodoxy on regulation, uncertainty, and tax hikes
September 6, 2011
Schools confront poverty, why don’t education policies?
September 7, 2011
Fixing schools, creating jobs
September 7, 2011
Georgia Works doesn’t work
September 7, 2011
The U.S. doesn’t lack the right workers, it lacks work
September 7, 2011
Blue Chips falling on my head, ouch!
September 7, 2011
Job impact: Rough rule of thumb
September 8, 2011
President’s new initiatives could boost employment by more than one million, on top of impact from extensions of temporary provisions
September 8, 2011
Double-dip? It doesn’t really matter
September 8, 2011
Famous economists agreeing with us — the first in an occasional series
September 8, 2011
As Super Committee begins work, a push to include job creation
September 8, 2011
Please don’t do it on the employer side of the payroll tax
September 8, 2011
How to assess a jobs plan
September 8, 2011
Frantic about jobs? Really?
September 8, 2011
How effective is President Obama’s jobs plan?
September 8, 2011
Obama’s American Jobs Act is mostly on the mark
September 8, 2011
A quick look at the job impact of the president’s proposals
September 8, 2011
How big is the job gap? Let’s just say this one goes to 11
September 9, 2011
It’s not ideology, it’s the money
September 9, 2011
The long and winding road to the American Jobs Act
September 9, 2011
Looking ahead to next week’s Census release of income, poverty and health insurance data
September 12, 2011
A dire prediction: The achievement gap will grow
September 12, 2011
Boeing and House Republicans abuse their power
September 12, 2011
Obama’s ‘billion-dollar’ rules could provide annual benefits approaching $200 billion
September 13, 2011
By the numbers: 2010 income, poverty, and health insurance coverage
September 13, 2011
Already a lost decade: Working-age household income down more than 10% since 2000
September 13, 2011
Recession continues to take its toll on America’s children
September 13, 2011
Deep poverty at all-time high
September 14, 2011
Paying for job creation the right way
September 14, 2011
Payroll tax cuts – just how much bang for buck?
September 14, 2011
Young adults increase employer-sponsored insurance as their employment rates fall: Evidence the Affordable Care Act works
September 15, 2011
Deficit “super-committee” must focus on jobs too
September 15, 2011
More revenue should be raised from those at the top, not at the bottom
September 15, 2011
Millions of jobs left on the table
September 15, 2011
Greedy geezers?
September 15, 2011
Young children and unemployment
September 15, 2011
Contrary to misinformation campaign, NLRB Boeing ruling consistent with long-established labor law
September 16, 2011
When did the meltdown really begin?
September 16, 2011
Fixing upside-down tax breaks should be a no-brainer, but…
September 16, 2011
Macroeconomics is not a religion
September 19, 2011
Inequality and income losses in the recession: It’s all about lost work
September 19, 2011
Romney’s jobs plan is long on rhetoric, short on solutions
September 19, 2011
Five reasons for progressives to like Obama’s Super Committee proposal
September 19, 2011
Buffett Rules!
September 20, 2011
EPA and the economy: Much ado about 0.1 percent
September 20, 2011
Ending our militaristic foreign policy saves money
September 20, 2011
Enamored with debt numerology
September 20, 2011
Don’t depend on the kindness of corporations
September 21, 2011
Another repatriation holiday will decrease employment and revenue
September 21, 2011
Helping out the Fed
September 21, 2011
Basic macroeconomics for Republican congressional leaders, part II
September 21, 2011
Snapshot: Disturbing trends in median wealth of households
September 22, 2011
What’s UI got to do with it?
September 22, 2011
American Community Survey paints a bleak landscape
September 23, 2011
Effective tax rates, now in color!
September 23, 2011
Signs of health reform success on anniversary of provisions for young adults
September 23, 2011
All workers—including black youth—benefit from a tight labor market
September 23, 2011
State Department’s review of J-1 program sponsors leaves much to be desired
September 26, 2011
A bet over No Child Left Behind
September 27, 2011
Nine reasons to invest more in the nation’s infrastructure
September 27, 2011
State unemployment trends — spinning our wheels and spinning the data
September 27, 2011
Regulatory uncertainty not to blame for our jobs problem
September 27, 2011
Health insurance premiums continue to rise far faster than workers’ earnings and overall inflation
September 28, 2011
Less money, less marriage
September 28, 2011
Are hedge-fund managers making my health insurance premiums expensive?
September 29, 2011
Government losses a big part of state unemployment increases
September 29, 2011
Nine-nine-nine nonsense
September 30, 2011
Really, that’s all you got?
September 30, 2011
We’re not in Mayberry any more
October 3, 2011
China’s currency manipulation reached record level in June 2011
October 3, 2011
Poll shows support for increasing Social Security benefits
October 4, 2011
The bad economy is not just a state of mind
October 4, 2011
Truly shared sacrifice includes Wall Street
October 5, 2011
American Enterprise Institute authors say Social Security and pensions are a bargain
October 5, 2011
“That’s where the money is”
October 5, 2011
Eric Cantor cares about poverty?
October 6, 2011
Progressive counter-pressure for the Fed?
October 6, 2011
China’s People’s Bank: The lady doth protest too much
October 6, 2011
So’s your mother. And Reagan. And you’ve never run a business!
October 6, 2011
The H-2B guestworker program puts downward pressure on American wages
October 7, 2011
Quick Take: Miserably low job growth
October 7, 2011
The teacher gap
October 7, 2011
Could currency legislation lead to a trade war? Think again
October 7, 2011
Calculating the cost of war
October 7, 2011
Snapshot: Areas with highest Hispanic unemployment are in Northeast
October 7, 2011
With friends like these…
October 7, 2011
Taxing health benefits no silver bullet: Famous economists agreeing with us, Part 2
October 11, 2011
In bad times, borrowing from yourself doesn’t make you poor
October 11, 2011
Cato on China trade: Looking glass economics
October 11, 2011
Is Grover’s pledge losing gravitas?
October 11, 2011
Congress aims for “continuous improvement” from students
October 12, 2011
Blame who?
October 12, 2011
Clive, don’t change the subject
October 13, 2011
Snapshot: Will outcome of new trade agreements be any better than NAFTA?
October 13, 2011
Persistent and acute state budget deficits? It’s (still) the economy
October 14, 2011
Big recession, big budget deficits
October 14, 2011
Test score gaps refuse to budge, plead poverty
October 14, 2011
California’s governor refuses to add more speedometers to a broken education vehicle
October 17, 2011
Who’s middle class? It depends…
October 17, 2011
Baby steps toward fixing our schools
October 17, 2011
What should have been different this time? The policy response
October 18, 2011
Uh-oh, the peasants are getting angry… time to lie to them about taxes!
October 19, 2011
Plutocrats win big with ‘999,’ while 84 percent of households get hosed
October 19, 2011
How not to make globalization work for America’s workers: A tale of two trade deals
October 19, 2011
Two years into austerity and counting…
October 20, 2011
Snapshot: Incomes rising fastest at the top
October 20, 2011
State and local budget relief mostly helps private-sector workers
October 21, 2011
Macroeconomic Advisers: Republican “jobs” plan creates no jobs
October 21, 2011
Quick clicks: Growing chorus wants the Fed to do more
October 21, 2011
Video: Seniors rapping about Social Security
October 21, 2011
Cantor’s strange way of caring about inequality
October 25, 2011
State “jobs deficits” both a sign of and cause of slow recovery
October 26, 2011
Is Bizarro World already taken?
October 26, 2011
Treasury analysis confirms hollowness of regulatory uncertainty claims
October 26, 2011
CBO joins EPI in providing intellectual support to OWS
October 27, 2011
Return to profitability, new UAW contract reflect the benefits of auto industry’s restructuring
October 28, 2011
Fast investment growth + slow employment growth = no puzzle
October 28, 2011
Perry’s Halloween-timed budget plan should scare the bejesus out of the middle class
October 28, 2011
Once again, the Great Recession explains why today’s economy is so bad
October 31, 2011
New book by Ray Marshall: Value-Added Immigration
November 1, 2011
The chained CPI: Budget treachery
November 1, 2011
Perry’s own model would show that his FULL plan reduces economic growth
November 1, 2011
Rick Perry’s reverse Robin Hood tax plan
November 2, 2011
Video: Honoring the inspiring work of Paul Krugman
November 2, 2011
Perry’s economic analysis of his tax plan should be retracted
November 2, 2011
Social Security and the federal deficit (Part 1)
November 3, 2011
As the manufacturing sector goes, so goes America?
November 3, 2011
There’s more to inequality than education
November 7, 2011
The link between joblessness and social unrest
November 8, 2011
Free money
November 8, 2011
Senate compromise falls woefully short of a jobs plan
November 8, 2011
It’s [not] the economy [that I recognize]
November 9, 2011
Ohio rejects assault on union rights and wages
November 9, 2011
Census tries to better identify poverty and finds what? More of it
November 9, 2011
Social Security and the federal deficit (part 2)
November 9, 2011
Arizona’s message
November 10, 2011
Snapshot: CEOs distance themselves from the average worker
November 10, 2011
Economic benefits from two fuel standard rules alone offset much of modest compliance cost of all Obama EPA rules
November 10, 2011
Fiscal responsibility demands addressing the economic crisis at hand, not the imaginary one
November 14, 2011
How many jobs could Congress save in my state through 2012?
November 14, 2011
Drawing all the wrong lessons from the Euro crisis
November 14, 2011
The timing is right for construction-related environmental jobs
November 15, 2011
The invisible sex
November 15, 2011
New evidence that the chained CPI is unfair to seniors
November 15, 2011
How will the market react to a supercommittee “failure?”
November 15, 2011
In the Beltway, the answer is always “faster deficit reduction!”
November 16, 2011
Democrats’ counter-offer to big domestic spending cuts is… big domestic spending cuts?
November 17, 2011
Bad regulatory diagnosis leads to wrong legislative cure
November 18, 2011
Progressive Caucus hearing on jobs a welcome relief from budget cuts mania
November 18, 2011
Labor-HHS spending bill would make terrible changes in labor law and regulation
November 18, 2011
House votes down BBA measure that would’ve harmed the economy even further
November 21, 2011
America’s infrastructure — ticking time bombs in every state
November 22, 2011
The supercommittee’s real failure
November 23, 2011
Garbage in, garbage out at Heritage and AEI?
November 23, 2011
As Thanksgiving nears, some “perspective” on poverty
November 23, 2011
Video: Where’s the outrage?
November 28, 2011
Getting the economic facts right during the House regulatory debate
November 28, 2011
Eurozone crisis: Dogs and cats living together! Mass hysteria!
November 29, 2011
Ryan’s budget proposals belie concerns about inequality
December 1, 2011
Stop digging us into an ever deeper hole! Or, how not to argue for the payroll tax holiday
December 2, 2011
Public pension scourge is at it again
December 2, 2011
Why falling unemployment may not be making voters happy
December 5, 2011
The J-1 and H-2B guest worker programs hurt young people’s employment prospects
December 6, 2011
What David Brooks gets right – regulations aren’t tanking the economy – and what he misses
December 7, 2011
Supply-side’s abject failure
December 7, 2011
President Obama got it right; Fox news gets it wrong
December 8, 2011
Snapshot: Why the drop in the unemployment rate isn’t what you think
December 8, 2011
I still haven’t run a small business … but the case against regulation is still awfully weak
December 8, 2011
Eliminating Medicare epitomizes penny wise, pound foolish budgeting (it’s bad health policy, too)
December 8, 2011
Vast majority of public supports a legalization program for unauthorized immigrants
December 9, 2011
Seniors are STILL worse off than working-age adults
December 9, 2011
Projected: Nearly 15% of the workforce will be unemployed at some point in 2012
December 12, 2011
Same old, same old: One quick test for what’s serious in job creation proposals
December 12, 2011
Will the real unemployment rate please stand up
December 13, 2011
On fairy tales about inequality
December 13, 2011
Congressional Progressive Caucus picks up where Obama’s speech left off
December 13, 2011
Voodoo economics playbook: Gingrich goes all in
December 14, 2011
Snapshot: Unemployment insurance benefits increase job-search activities
December 14, 2011
The financial crisis didn’t, and won’t, fix inequality
December 16, 2011
Reducing the black-white achievement gap by reducing black unemployment
December 19, 2011
Cleaner, safer air (and some jobs) coming soon: Final “air-toxics rule” still likely to be life-saver, not job-killer
December 20, 2011
Continuing extended UI benefits will make the labor market stronger
December 21, 2011
Top 10 lies about Social Security (from those who just want to dismantle government)
December 21, 2011
House vote will hurt millions of unemployed workers
December 22, 2011
WSJ swings and misses on tax policy
December 22, 2011
Some ugly views about the unemployed among congressional Republicans
December 23, 2011
A minimum wage milestone
December 23, 2011
Thanks, grandma!
December 23, 2011
Worst economic idea of the year?
December 28, 2011
Happy Holidays from EPI
January 3, 2012
A happy (economic) 2012 is far from guaranteed
January 5, 2012
Unpaid internships hurt mobility
January 5, 2012
Mobility remains low as inequality increases
January 6, 2012
Romney’s tax plan for the 1%
January 6, 2012
Consumers need a strong Financial Protection Bureau
January 6, 2012
Capping federal spending at 18% of GDP is still infeasible
January 10, 2012
Shouldn’t everyone be listening to Nouriel Roubini?
January 11, 2012
The NLRB protects the right of non-union employees to fair pay
January 12, 2012
False signals on the need for college graduates
January 12, 2012
Trade and jobs – why make it so hard?
January 12, 2012
Asking the wrong question about presidents and jobs
January 12, 2012
Income inequality is a policy choice
January 13, 2012
Krueger links progressive taxation, income inequality, and economic mobility
January 18, 2012
The Gingrich nonsense
January 19, 2012
Romney may not like government, but he loves its tax subsidies
January 19, 2012
Don’t blame the robots: It’s not productivity growth that’s holding job growth back
January 20, 2012
You can’t measure tax progressivity while ignoring income trends
January 23, 2012
‘Reformers’ playbook on failing schools fails a fact check
January 24, 2012
A firewall has risen
January 24, 2012
Apple execs (like everyone else) overlook global exchange rates
January 24, 2012
Obama’s State of the Union speech sends the right signals
January 24, 2012
Mitch Daniels, deficit peacock
January 25, 2012
State of the Union: Manufacturing a Better Future
January 25, 2012
Discriminatory mortgage lending intensifies racial segregation
January 26, 2012
The Fed’s longer-run goals: Defining success down?
January 27, 2012
Maybe Reagan was onto something…
January 30, 2012
Massive tax cuts don’t square with professed concerns about public debt
January 30, 2012
Austerity’s effect on state job growth
January 31, 2012
A minimum-wage increase in Illinois: Helping working families in the Land of Lincoln
January 31, 2012
Record low capacity utilization in electric sector inconsistent with “regulations kill jobs” mantra
January 31, 2012
It’s not time to cut back on extended unemployment insurance
January 31, 2012
Are federal workers overpaid?
February 2, 2012
On Wilson’s muddled defense of the top 1%
February 2, 2012
Bush-era tax cuts remain the obstacle to fiscal sustainability
February 2, 2012
Obama’s SOTU claim is right: Regulations can improve the free market
February 2, 2012
SNAP for the economy
February 3, 2012
Tracking GDP and jobs: When repeating the same thing over and over actually provides useful information
February 3, 2012
‘Increase and Index the Minimum Wage Week’
February 3, 2012
On Brooks’ muddled defense of the top 1%
February 3, 2012
The ‘end of the segregated century?’
February 3, 2012
Another win for the 1%: ‘Right to work’ signed into law in Indiana
February 7, 2012
Romer argues against ‘special treatment’ for U.S. manufacturing (gasp, somebody smart is wrong on the Internet!)
February 7, 2012
Unpaid internships: A scourge on the labor market
February 7, 2012
The tax expenditure of the 1%
February 8, 2012
‘Nonsense fact’ about union workers used in Super Bowl ad
February 8, 2012
A cheaper dollar is not enough
February 9, 2012
Auto industry roars back, everyone cheers (except anti-government conservatives)
February 9, 2012
Myths of structural unemployment: The construction dimension
February 10, 2012
Lessons from testifying before the GOP House: Don’t assume people know basic economic principles
February 10, 2012
More lessons from testifying: Must explain that one person’s income is another’s cost
February 13, 2012
No, NYT, there’s been no expansion of government benefits, no ‘entitlement society’
February 13, 2012
China responsible for bulk of the U.S. trade deficit in non-oil manufactured goods
February 13, 2012
President Obama’s FY 2013 budget: The Buffett Rule and progressive tax reform
February 13, 2012
A budget for adults (especially those who’d like a job)
February 14, 2012
David Brooks’ bad example
February 14, 2012
Working spouses cause inequality? Can this emerging zombie lie be killed?
February 14, 2012
Don’t cut the non-security discretionary budget!
February 14, 2012
Exports and growth: Running harder and falling behind
February 14, 2012
Labor Department tackles guest worker problems
February 15, 2012
Bad Apple labor practices: Promises have been made before
February 15, 2012
Morals, money and book promotion
February 16, 2012
The president’s jobs package would indeed create jobs
February 16, 2012
Congress’ arbitrary ‘compromise’ on UI benefits
February 16, 2012
CBO, CRS, EPI find toxics and other EPA rules have benign economic effects
February 17, 2012
Whitewashing the Apple
February 17, 2012
Unemployment of 8.3% is unacceptably high, no matter when and for whom
February 17, 2012
The Recovery Act: Evidence of success three years out
February 22, 2012
Coordinated investment as an alternative to doubling down on austerity’s failure
February 24, 2012
A closer look at Asian-American income
February 24, 2012
Where is the ‘shared sacrifice’ in this framework for corporate tax reform?
February 24, 2012
CBO shows ARRA’s continued positive impact
February 24, 2012
Post editorial criticizes Md. schools, public pensions, school boards, teacher unions, and Gov. O’Malley — but misses all targets
February 27, 2012
Arne Duncan’s policies have yet to match his rhetoric
February 27, 2012
Rein in the debt tax preference, raise some revenue
February 28, 2012
Nation, you’ll want to watch this
March 1, 2012
The myth of rising domestic spending strikes again!
March 2, 2012
Reagan, Keynes, government spending, jobs. Redux.
March 2, 2012
Pushing back against illegal unpaid internships
March 6, 2012
Economic growth will not come to Mitt Romney’s rescue
March 6, 2012
The top 1% recoups lost ground
March 6, 2012
Cuts to state and local governments are particularly hard on women
March 7, 2012
Montana judge’s actions provide an opportunity to confront the origins of America’s racial divide
March 7, 2012
Mankiw swings and misses in defense of Romney’s carried interest
March 8, 2012
A jobs bill in substance or acronym only?
March 9, 2012
Are Liberal Arts majors dragging college grads down?
March 9, 2012
High-scoring, low-income students no more likely to complete college than low-scoring, rich students
March 9, 2012
Charles Murray’s failure by design
March 13, 2012
The myth of the rich, hungry Chinese consumer
March 14, 2012
U.S. sends the right message with WTO complaint on China’s illegal restrictions on rare earth exports
March 15, 2012
China continues to lean against the wind on need for currency revaluation
March 16, 2012
Public investment and the social contract
March 16, 2012
Wisconsin one year later
March 19, 2012
State Department right to ban Alaskan fish processing jobs from J-1 visa Summer Work Travel program
March 21, 2012
What’s good for Apple is … just good for Apple
March 21, 2012
Ryan’s budget cuts would cost jobs
March 22, 2012
Report to Congress confirms large benefits, modest costs of new EPA rules
March 23, 2012
Economists arguing that there is indeed such a thing as a free lunch … as long as people are willing to eat it
March 28, 2012
Congressional Progressive Caucus’ Budget for All addresses our national priorities
March 28, 2012
An economically and fiscally responsible budget from the Congressional Progressive Caucus
March 28, 2012
Congressional Progressive Caucus budget would boost employment by millions—unlike the Ryan budget
March 29, 2012
Harkin bill would revive the American Dream
March 30, 2012
Infrastructure is win-win-win-win
April 1, 2012
One million workers stand to benefit from NY’s proposed minimum wage hike
April 2, 2012
Who’s guarding Apple’s Foxconn chicken coop?
April 3, 2012
Fair Labor Association report leaves big questions about change at Apple/Foxconn
April 3, 2012
Nothing screams fiscal charlatan like a $4.5 trillion tax cut financed by gimmicks
April 4, 2012
What to do about the eurozone?
April 4, 2012
Apple’s employees in China don’t work 70 hours a week because they want to
April 5, 2012
Unemployment rising too fast, then falling too fast … going forward, it should (unfortunately) be just right
April 5, 2012
Business groups lobby to relax rules on much-abused guest worker program
April 6, 2012
Washington Post misdiagnoses causes of retirement insecurity
April 6, 2012
Were some of ARRA’s jobs eaten by rising hours?
April 9, 2012
The worst recession in 70 years, not the worst recovery
April 9, 2012
Social Security privatizer Pozen attacks public employee pensions
April 10, 2012
Memo to the Times: Hold the funeral march for U.S. manufacturing
April 10, 2012
Latinos versus the Census Bureau: When racial categorizations clash
April 11, 2012
Robert Lawrence misleads the New York Times on manufacturing
April 11, 2012
Thank God for trial lawyers
April 12, 2012
Panel on tax fairness and reform helps address common misperceptions
April 12, 2012
It’s true, the Buffett Rule won’t lower unemployment by itself (but it’s still worth doing)
April 12, 2012
Since when does each and every budget policy proposal have to singlehandedly eliminate the deficit?
April 13, 2012
A rising tide for increasing minimum wage rates
April 13, 2012
The utter wrongness of people who complain about double-counting Medicare savings
April 13, 2012
Sure, it’s weak, but this ‘so-called recovery’ is no weaker than the last one, Greg Mankiw
April 16, 2012
Tax breaks for saving
April 17, 2012
Did Greg Mankiw really just brandish his $170 textbook as evidence of the benefits of unfettered competition?
April 17, 2012
With tax day upon us, file these numbers away
April 18, 2012
Apple’s iPhone profits dwarf its labor costs
April 20, 2012
Cutting public investments to protect “the children” — or, when the cure is much worse than the malady
April 20, 2012
Why resurrect budget dinosaurs and bad economic policy?
April 20, 2012
The fashion industry’s illegal unpaid internships
April 23, 2012
The 2012 Social Security trustees report in a nutshell
April 24, 2012
Romney opposes the Buffett Rule? Why would that be?
April 24, 2012
Sequestration will slow the recovery and job growth, period
April 25, 2012
Attempt to block labor election modernization goes down in flames
April 25, 2012
Austerity in the UK — losing the argument and the economy
April 26, 2012
Understanding the wedge between productivity and median compensation growth
April 26, 2012
Glenn Kessler’s wrong call on Romney’s Buffett Rule chicanery
April 26, 2012
The Social Security trustees report—now what?
May 1, 2012
Apple’s executive pay, profits, and cash balance show ability to assist its factory workers
May 2, 2012
It’s executives and the finance sector causing surging 1% income growth!
May 2, 2012
Racial inequality and the black homicide rate
May 3, 2012
What world of fiscal policy is Michael Gerson inhabiting?
May 3, 2012
Video: Paul Krugman discusses his new book
May 4, 2012
Underemployment isn’t a ‘myth’ for recent college grads
May 7, 2012
How Romney can show support for working women
May 7, 2012
Addressing price parity concerns
May 7, 2012
What we should talk about when we talk about Social Security
May 7, 2012
Depressing graph of the day: The long-term unemployed
May 8, 2012
Price of a diploma: Class of 2012 faces tough job market, rising costs, and increasing debt
May 9, 2012
Andrew Biggs is at it again
May 10, 2012
Grasping at Chinese straws
May 10, 2012
Organized business’s knee-jerk opposition to paid sick days legislation
May 10, 2012
Senate health committee hearing stresses importance of paid sick time
May 11, 2012
Larry Summers shrewdly reframes tax simplification
May 11, 2012
Paging the congressional ophthalmologist
May 14, 2012
Video: Cambridge Forum discussion on the U.S. and globalization
May 15, 2012
Addressing unfair expectations for the next wave of educators
May 16, 2012
Bernard ‘B’ Rapoport remembered
May 16, 2012
Misguided views of Social Security emerge at fiscal summit
May 17, 2012
Social Security advocates go on the offensive
May 17, 2012
Speaker Boehner pledges to hijack the debt ceiling and jeopardize recovery again
May 21, 2012
What happens if you tighten your belt …
May 22, 2012
Don’t let Congress fast-track another tax cut
May 22, 2012
Latinos and the good jobs crisis
May 24, 2012
Alan Simpson isn’t ‘saving Social Security’
May 24, 2012
Management—bad management—crippled the auto industry’s Big Three, not the UAW
May 24, 2012
Does just arguing over the debt ceiling damage recovery? Maybe
May 24, 2012
Getting to a better Fed is about more than just Jamie Dimon
May 25, 2012
Increasing New Jersey’s minimum wage helps the economy and the state’s lower-income earners
May 25, 2012
Four disturbing consequences of Pelosi’s tax retreat
May 25, 2012
One more time: Public debt incurred when the economy is depressed does not damage the economy
May 29, 2012
Conservatives say CEO compensation levels are fine now that it takes 10 hours to earn a typical worker’s annual compensation
May 29, 2012
How’s that immigrant-bashing thing workin’ for ya?
June 1, 2012
New York Times pension reporter ignores inconvenient truths
June 1, 2012
Center for Public Integrity makes a strong case for more regulation and better enforcement
June 4, 2012
We still have a long way to go to achieve racial equality
June 5, 2012
Adding to Joe Nocera’s piece: A revival of the labor movement is necessary to preserve our democracy
June 5, 2012
Union decline and rising inequality in two charts
June 5, 2012
‘Simplistic Keynesians’ still right about the economy
June 6, 2012
Not all debt is created equal, David Brooks
June 6, 2012
The long-term budget outlook has improved dramatically over the last three years
June 7, 2012
Fiscal hawks’ double standard for Social Security cuts vs. tax cuts
June 7, 2012
Claims about the efficacy of fiscal stimulus in a depressed economy are based on as-flimsy evidence as the Laffer Curve?! Seriously false equivalence
June 8, 2012
Update to yesterday’s blog post “Fiscal hawks’ double standard for Social Security cuts vs. tax cuts”
June 14, 2012
Job chart in Romney’s economic plan seems wrong still funky
June 14, 2012
Congress should fix Postal Service pension problem it created
June 15, 2012
Another suicide at Apple’s key supplier in China
June 15, 2012
New Fed data shows families falling even farther behind in retirement saving
June 18, 2012
Failure to stimulate recovery is costing trillions in lost national income
June 19, 2012
NLRB uses new tool to help us understand our rights
June 20, 2012
Wealth losses by race and ethnicity
June 21, 2012
Supreme Court contorts itself to deny overtime protection to 90,000 pharmaceutical employees
June 25, 2012
Apple’s shine is fading
June 27, 2012
U.S. net debt hits $4 trillion in 2011—the cumulative toll of a generation of trade deficits
June 27, 2012
Emanuel misses the mark with ‘Children’s Opportunity Fund’
June 28, 2012
Supreme Court’s decision valuable because it upholds important safety net legislation
June 28, 2012
The mandate lives and conservatives weep that Americans don’t have to pay more for health coverage
June 28, 2012
The efficiencies of publicly provided health care, revisited
June 29, 2012
Foxconn is no exception: New report finds labor violations common throughout Apple’s supply chain
June 29, 2012
Combating foreign currency manipulation would boost manufacturing and U.S. jobs
June 29, 2012
A Solow system
June 29, 2012
David Brooks thinks that the ACA should be replaced with … lots of stuff already in the ACA
July 2, 2012
Another reminder that good regulations save lives
July 6, 2012
Three years into recovery, just how much has state and local austerity hurt job growth?
July 6, 2012
Obama gets tough on China’s unfair tariffs on U.S. auto exports
July 6, 2012
On health care reform, Mitt Romney knows better
July 9, 2012
Robert Samuelson says the economy isn’t allowed to have the Keynesian cures it needs because of … Keynesians (from the 1960s)
July 12, 2012
The ‘technology did it’ zombie has arisen
July 16, 2012
Wages and Social Security
July 17, 2012
Inequality, exhibit A: Walmart and the wealth of American families
July 18, 2012
The five serious flaws of Bowles-Simpson
July 18, 2012
80% of jobs created since the recession’s end have gone to men?
July 19, 2012
Nearly 3 years, and counting: Minimum wage increase helps working families and the economy
July 20, 2012
Happy birthday, CFPB
July 20, 2012
Confirming the further redistribution of wealth upward
July 26, 2012
Investigations reveal forced labor of immigrants but Congress won’t allow the Labor Department to combat it
July 27, 2012
Potential failure
August 2, 2012
The folly of the GOP’s ‘tax reform’ agenda
August 3, 2012
Keep your government hands on my Medicare!
August 6, 2012
Investment, employment trends belie claims that regulation and ‘too much government’ impede recovery
August 7, 2012
High cost and high debt for students at for-profit colleges
August 8, 2012
For-profit colleges have the poorest students and richest leaders
August 9, 2012
DHS initiative for young unauthorized immigrants is cost-effective and benefits American workers
August 9, 2012
Bill Keller and Third Way’s misinformed and ironic baby boomer bashing
August 10, 2012
Making the tax code work for the middle class
August 13, 2012
What a Romney-Ryan budget would mean for Americans
August 14, 2012
Parade Magazine decries poor state of public school facilities
August 14, 2012
The State Department just created about 4,000 jobs in Alaska
August 14, 2012
Lessons from the French: It’s time to tax high-frequency trading
August 14, 2012
Paul Ryan on Social Security
August 17, 2012
In what way is a college degree valuable in a recession?
August 20, 2012
Bankrupt! No, not the U.S. economy, just the policy discussion about it
August 22, 2012
Segregation, the black-white achievement gap, and the Romneys
August 22, 2012
What does health care have to do with the wage slowdown? Not much
August 22, 2012
What do Social Security, Medicare and public investments have in common? They make us richer
August 22, 2012
MAPI report on regulation is latest example of business-sponsored junk science
August 23, 2012
Bad economics leads to bad H-2B guest worker legislation
August 24, 2012
Apple in China: Failing to make good on its commitment?
August 27, 2012
Health reform and the $716 billion lie
August 28, 2012
Key goals of 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom are still unmet
August 29, 2012
Paul Ryan is not (and has never been) a deficit hawk
August 30, 2012
Congress: Put emergency unemployment compensation in the continuing resolution
August 30, 2012
How much will the Ryan Medicare voucher cost you?
September 5, 2012
Seniors spend almost three times more on out-of-pocket health costs
September 6, 2012
Elizabeth Warren on why you should read State of Working America too many American families are struggling to get ahead
September 6, 2012
Would full passage of Obama’s Jobs Act have added another million jobs?
September 7, 2012
Card check survives as way to choose a union
September 10, 2012
iPhone 5 is being produced under harsh working conditions still in violation of basic labor rights
September 10, 2012
Tax cuts, and debt, and arithmetic: Oh my!
September 12, 2012
By the numbers: New Census Bureau data on poverty, income, and health insurance coverage
September 12, 2012
Want to understand today’s inaction in solving economic problems? Read The State of Working America
September 12, 2012
Hispanic and single-black-father families see declines in poverty
September 13, 2012
Lessons for Chicago: It takes a cake, and the truly disadvantaged need extra frosting
September 13, 2012
Chicago’s schools and the polite Pinkertons of educational reform
September 14, 2012
Teacher accountability and the Chicago teachers strike
September 14, 2012
The value of Fed-talk
September 14, 2012
Items I wish the education pundits would read
September 17, 2012
One year of Occupy Wall Street
September 17, 2012
Obama tackles illegal Chinese auto parts subsidies
September 18, 2012
No, we’re nowhere close to the limits of effective fiscal stimulus
September 18, 2012
Five facts about the 47 percent
September 19, 2012
Romney’s regressive socioeconomic philosophy is nothing new
September 20, 2012
Majority of elderly households fall into category maligned by Romney
September 20, 2012
New evidence of disturbing working conditions in iPhone production
September 20, 2012
2011 American Community Survey shows continuing hardship throughout the U.S.
September 24, 2012
Foxconn riot, strikes, coerced student labor, and more: All’s not well with iPhone 5 production
September 24, 2012
What we read today
September 25, 2012
Retirement proposals a big step forward
September 25, 2012
Nearly four years in, what do cost-benefit data show for the major Obama EPA rules, and what do they imply for the economy?
September 25, 2012
Video: Collective bargaining and shared prosperity in Michigan
September 25, 2012
Recent federal regulation coincides with manufacturing employment gains
September 25, 2012
What we read today
September 26, 2012
Rare conservative-progressive agreement: Corporate capture of the government is a bad thing
September 26, 2012
Social Security, Medicare and life expectancy
September 26, 2012
Obama’s budget policies would be better for growth than Romney’s
September 27, 2012
A ‘lost decade’ for nearly every state
September 27, 2012
Pension report misses obvious causes of underfunding
September 27, 2012
Which candidate’s plans are more Keynesian?
September 28, 2012
Share of households owning stocks declined over the last decade
September 28, 2012
Multipliers, yet again
September 28, 2012
Romney heavily exploits tax loopholes while slamming others for not paying income taxes
September 28, 2012
Another right-wing attack on public workers
September 28, 2012
What we read today
October 1, 2012
Barry Commoner, visionary environmentalist, teacher and activist dies at 95
October 1, 2012
What we read today
October 2, 2012
Capping federal spending at 20 percent of GDP would decimate state budgets
October 2, 2012
What we read today
October 3, 2012
No debate here, just facts on the presidential candidates’ economic policies
October 3, 2012
The payroll tax cut is likely to expire—let’s replace it with better stimulus
October 4, 2012
Checking Alabama’s ‘status’: HB 56 no cure for a sick labor market
October 4, 2012
Obama too quiet on job creation track record
October 4, 2012
Even more mathematically impossible tax promises
October 4, 2012
What we read today
October 5, 2012
The outrageous attack on BLS
October 5, 2012
‘Generational’ accusations are nearly always wrong
October 5, 2012
Who has the better solution to the 300,000 teacher gap?
October 5, 2012
Transporting black men to good jobs
October 5, 2012
Robert Samuelson is drinking Mitt Romney’s tax cut Kool-Aid
October 10, 2012
Digging deeper into the BLS data: It was the ‘job creators’ and those in ‘real America’ that led to the job growth
October 10, 2012
Real hourly wage growth: The last generation
October 11, 2012
Joel Klein’s false stories
October 11, 2012
Walmart strikes dramatize third-world inequities
October 11, 2012
Romney budget hides nearly $9 trillion of painful consequences
October 12, 2012
The ACA unequivocally increases insurance coverage
October 12, 2012
Remembering Paul Wellstone
October 12, 2012
How much do you really pay in taxes?
October 16, 2012
Only a minority of Americans think there is too much regulation
October 16, 2012
What we read today
October 17, 2012
False equivalence in candidates’ budgetary unknowns
October 17, 2012
What we read today
October 18, 2012
Celebrate the Clean Water Act
October 18, 2012
Fighting waste and abuse in defense contractor pay
October 19, 2012
Romney’s evasive language hides his tax cut for the rich
October 22, 2012
House Republicans block remedy for China’s job-killing currency intervention
October 22, 2012
What we read today
October 22, 2012
Notes for tonight’s debate: Faster growth without growing budget deficits requires a more competitive U.S. dollar
October 22, 2012
No, we don’t need China to finance budget deficits
October 23, 2012
Schumer’s spot on: 1986 is the wrong model for tax reform
October 23, 2012
Anti-regulatory malarkey
October 23, 2012
Not dead yet: Currency management and the need for a more competitive dollar
October 24, 2012
More reasons why China’s currency should remain a live issue
October 24, 2012
How revenue-neutrality would change the employment impact of Romney’s budget plan
October 24, 2012
What we read today
October 25, 2012
What we read today
October 26, 2012
Outcome of presidential election will impact judicial review of vital federal regulations
October 26, 2012
Robert Samuelson on government jobs: They exist, but people who recognize them are like flat-earthers
October 31, 2012
Heritage Foundation’s view on China trade and jobs is like old wine that’s aged badly
October 31, 2012
Government has flouted its obligation to affirmatively further fair housing
October 31, 2012
What we read today
November 1, 2012
Worrying about the fiscal cliff just leads to victory dances from Keynesians…
November 1, 2012
What we read today
November 2, 2012
Center for Immigration Studies goes political on jobs numbers
November 2, 2012
GOP senators to Congressional Research Service: Research? We don’t need no stinking research
November 5, 2012
Enacting a ‘grand bargain’ doesn’t equate to navigating the fiscal obstacle course
November 7, 2012
Don’t let the lame duck session undercut necessary financial oversight
November 8, 2012
What does President Obama’s re-election mean for the ‘fiscal cliff?’
November 9, 2012
Is job creation on Obama’s second-term agenda?
November 9, 2012
Congressional Budget Office confirms EPI’s findings on the fiscal obstacle course
November 13, 2012
Boehner’s talking about accelerating deficit reduction, not avoiding the fiscal obstacle course
November 13, 2012
One million veterans would benefit from raising the minimum wage to $9.80
November 14, 2012
Did NAFTA raise U.S. incomes? Not for most
November 14, 2012
What we read today
November 14, 2012
New Census poverty data shows what is at stake in the fiscal debate
November 15, 2012
Recommendations for successfully navigating the fiscal obstacle course
November 15, 2012
Five job creation policies for handling the fiscal obstacle course and slowing deficit reduction
November 19, 2012
The fiscal cliff and downgrading U.S. debt
November 19, 2012
Since when do we congratulate ourselves just for not going over a cliff?
November 20, 2012
Rush Limbaugh and other unbalanced observers blame ‘the union’
November 20, 2012
What we read today
November 21, 2012
Better pizza, bitter politics
November 21, 2012
What we read today
November 21, 2012
Immigration reform and indentured guest workers don’t go together
November 26, 2012
WaPo ignores facts on Social Security COLA
November 27, 2012
For fairness and job creation, the Buffett Rule is a no-brainer
November 27, 2012
Inequality is not just about taxes and education
November 27, 2012
What we read today
November 28, 2012
True deficit hawks would be worried with jobs and recovery first
November 29, 2012
In dispute of the ‘labor dispute’
November 29, 2012
President Obama wants to cut domestic spending and protect public investments, but his budget only cuts
November 30, 2012
Obama’s opening bid is both familiar and sound
November 30, 2012
A good first step, but full recovery would still be far, far away
November 30, 2012
What we read today
December 3, 2012
What we read today
December 5, 2012
Fixing a problem that doesn’t exist: Special interest STEM immigration bills are not needed
December 5, 2012
Want jobs? Kill the Bush tax cuts and extend Emergency Unemployment Compensation
December 6, 2012
6 reasons why the debt ceiling should be scrapped
December 6, 2012
An economy that works for the middle class won’t happen on its own
December 7, 2012
Don’t be fooled, Michigan: ‘Right to work’ is just plain wrong
December 7, 2012
The black birth rate converges on the white rate
December 7, 2012
What we read today
December 10, 2012
Latinos lead in insufficient work hours
December 11, 2012
What we read today
December 13, 2012
What we read today
December 13, 2012
Right-to-work-for-less passes in Michigan
December 14, 2012
Ease of doing business in U.S. and record corporate profits contradict Chamber’s regulatory complaints
December 17, 2012
American Immigration Council is wrong about H-1B fraud rules
December 17, 2012
Reading the tea leaves on financial markets and fiscal austerity
December 17, 2012
What we read today
December 18, 2012
If you’re writing about the ‘fiscal cliff,’ you need to read The State of Working America
December 18, 2012
Social Security has no place in ‘fiscal cliff’ negotiations
December 18, 2012
The unkindest cut
December 18, 2012
On International Migrants Day, remember that guest worker programs aren’t the solution for immigration reform
December 19, 2012
A Social Security cut could lead to higher Latino and black elder poverty
December 19, 2012
What we read today
December 20, 2012
Let the Bush tax cuts expire, there are better options
December 20, 2012
French investigative report adds to concerns that conditions faced by iPhone 5 workers remain dire
December 21, 2012
The middle class does NOT extend up to $400K
December 21, 2012
Impact of proposed Social Security cut on blacks and Hispanics, take 2
December 21, 2012
Fiscal fiasco: The first to be hurt will be the unemployed
December 21, 2012
The 15 worst economic ideas of 2012
December 21, 2012
Boehner’s ‘Plan B’ would result in an austerity-induced recession
December 24, 2012
Litigation reveals extensive abuse of guest workers in the U.S.
December 26, 2012
Minimum wage indexing protects nearly a million low-wage workers this New Year
January 2, 2013
Let’s be straight on ‘investing in our middle class’
January 2, 2013
So the ‘fiscal cliff’ has been addressed. The next priority should be to address the fiscal cliff.
January 2, 2013
More fiscal implications of a rising capital-share of income
January 3, 2013
At $250B, costs of occupational injury and illness exceed costs of cancer
January 3, 2013
At best, budget deal suggests decelerating anemic growth, labor market deterioration
January 4, 2013
What we read today
January 7, 2013
The Bush tax cuts are here to stay
January 7, 2013
Strengthening the EITC and raising the minimum wage should go hand-in-hand
January 8, 2013
What we read today
January 9, 2013
NYT story emphasizes Apple’s positive statements, obscures ongoing labor abuses
January 9, 2013
Michelle Rhee gets a failing grade on her report card
January 9, 2013
Michigan’s ‘right-to-work-for-less’ legislation: Bad for workers, undemocratic, fundamentally immoral
January 10, 2013
With friends like these: The carbon tax edition
January 10, 2013
Unpaid internships: Denying opportunities and exploiting young workers
January 10, 2013
What we read today
January 11, 2013
Private-sector pension coverage fell by half over two decades
January 11, 2013
Don’t be fooled by Apple’s PR: Workers strike against sweatshop conditions
January 14, 2013
Job polarization in the 2000s?
January 14, 2013
Timing matters: Can job polarization explain wage trends?
January 14, 2013
Missing in action: Growth and shared prosperity
January 14, 2013
What we read today
January 15, 2013
International tests show achievement gaps in all countries, with big gains for U.S. disadvantaged students
January 15, 2013
Occupation employment trends and wage inequality: What the long view tells us
January 16, 2013
AARP comes out against COLA cut
January 16, 2013
Apple’s own data reveal 120,000 supply-chain employees worked excessive hours in November
January 16, 2013
What we read today
January 18, 2013
Are the job polarization data robust?
January 18, 2013
The congressional GOP has smothered a more rapid economic recovery
January 23, 2013
Huge disparity in funding for immigration enforcement vs. labor standards
January 24, 2013
The importance of revenue revisited: Minimizing the drag of austerity
January 25, 2013
When and what kind of deficit reduction matters most: The danger of aggressive 10-year deficit targets in the current budget debate
January 25, 2013
Louisiana retirement plan ruled unconstitutional
January 29, 2013
What we read today
January 30, 2013
Today’s teachable GDP moment: Slower government spending => slower GDP growth
January 30, 2013
Guestworker expansions don’t belong in comprehensive immigration reform
January 31, 2013
How raising Maryland’s minimum wage will benefit workers and boost the state’s economy
January 31, 2013
What we read today
February 1, 2013
Debt stabilization does not require $1.4 trillion, $1.5 trillion, or any other single number
February 1, 2013
Immigration system should meet labor market needs and reform guest worker programs
February 4, 2013
Immigration reform should invest in labor standards enforcement and electronic employment verification—not more border security
February 5, 2013
The UK is showing us why austerity is dangerous, but are we paying attention?
February 5, 2013
The Progressive Caucus’s sensible approach to sequestration: Prioritizing jobs and growth
February 6, 2013
CBO report shows two vastly different baselines moving closer together
February 8, 2013
What we read today
February 11, 2013
The president can end currency manipulation with the stroke of a pen, halving the U.S. trade deficit and creating millions of jobs
February 12, 2013
What we read today
February 13, 2013
President Obama throws his support behind increasing the minimum wage
February 13, 2013
Immigration reform and the minimum wage
February 13, 2013
Signing trade deals is a terrible jobs strategy
February 14, 2013
Who would be affected by President Obama’s proposed minimum wage increase?
February 14, 2013
Top 10 users of H-1B guest worker program are all offshore outsourcing firms
February 15, 2013
Regular people are smarter than pundits, at least when it comes to Social Security
February 15, 2013
Putting a $9 minimum wage in context
February 19, 2013
Strengthening Social Security for all
February 19, 2013
What we read today
February 20, 2013
Close to slavery
February 20, 2013
American job seekers think increasing the minimum wage would be good for them, and the country
February 20, 2013
What we read today
February 21, 2013
The PhD bust
February 21, 2013
Obama and Abe should address currency manipulation and Japanese trade barriers
February 22, 2013
Problems in the high tech labor market
February 22, 2013
What we read today
February 26, 2013
New Investigation Finds Alarming Conditions at Three Apple Suppliers
February 27, 2013
What we read today
February 28, 2013
GOP sequester position derails recovery (again)
February 28, 2013
Sequestration was never about fiscal responsibility
February 28, 2013
Does the Immigration Innovation Act Help Offshore Outsourcing Firms? Financial Advisory Firm Says Yes
March 1, 2013
What we read today
March 4, 2013
For 20-somethings, the no-limits, no-pay job
March 5, 2013
A $10.10 minimum wage would give economy (and more low-wage workers) a bigger boost
March 5, 2013
Asian American unemployment highest in Nevada and California; disadvantages in four states
March 5, 2013
What we read today
March 6, 2013
Raising the minimum wage could improve public health
March 7, 2013
In support of the Fair Minimum Wage Act
March 7, 2013
What we read today
March 12, 2013
Ryan proposes another path to fewer jobs and slower growth
March 14, 2013
Is Japan really ready for free trade?
March 14, 2013
What we read today
March 15, 2013
Big win for workers in Portland and (hopefully) Philadelphia
March 15, 2013
Path to Prosperity? How about Path of Austerity
March 15, 2013
CEOs explain how H-1B visa hurts U.S. competitiveness
March 18, 2013
House Democratic budget would also boost employment
March 19, 2013
What we read today
March 20, 2013
To chain or not to chain
March 21, 2013
David Brooks is wrong on the CPC’s Back to Work budget
March 22, 2013
Aggressively targeting a full recovery is the least risky thing you can do: Back to Work Budget edition
March 22, 2013
Manufacturing employment: Nothing to see here, move along…
March 26, 2013
Striking J-1 students want justice from McDonald’s and U.S. State Department
March 26, 2013
Senate Democratic budget overly focused on deficit reduction
March 26, 2013
The Murray budget falls short on funding domestic programs
March 27, 2013
What we read today
March 28, 2013
Time to end the reign of terror of scary upward-sloping graphs
March 28, 2013
Working as designed: High profits and stagnant wages
March 28, 2013
The sequester, the Ryan budget and practically all other spending cuts actually make the debt situation worse
March 29, 2013
Kerry drinks the trade Kool-Aid, but trade agreements do NOT create jobs
March 29, 2013
What we read today
April 2, 2013
Why the W-Visa agreement should be welcomed
April 2, 2013
New hope for workers in immigration deal between AFL-CIO and Chamber of Commerce
April 2, 2013
Why the 400,000 new ‘low-skilled’ work visas business wants is a ridiculously high number
April 2, 2013
What we read today
April 4, 2013
No, New Tax Cuts Will Not Pay for Themselves
April 5, 2013
Unshackle
April 8, 2013
How to stomp on promising developments in the economy: Austerity
April 8, 2013
Leaked ESPN memo asks employees to take one for the team
April 11, 2013
President’s budget “compromises” on job-growth too
April 12, 2013
The Obama budget’s misguidedly lower revenue target
April 12, 2013
Will the birthday bump prevent an increase in senior poverty from the chained CPI?
April 12, 2013
Dark Age budgeting: Social Security back on the table
April 15, 2013
How High Should Top Income Tax Rates Be? Getting the Fight Right
April 15, 2013
Tax Day 2013: For the vast major, it’s all about the expired payroll tax cut
April 15, 2013
What we read today (Tax Day edition)
April 16, 2013
The Working Families Flexibility Act is a fraud
April 16, 2013
The Reinhart and Rogoff magical 90 percent threshold loses its magic?
April 17, 2013
Gang of Eight bill delivers on bold, broad legalization of undocumented workers
April 17, 2013
A slight bit of substance on the Reinhart and Rogoff 90 percent debt threshold
April 18, 2013
Kids vs. seniors: an Urban myth
April 18, 2013
More on missing downward price pressure (hint, blame corporate profits)
April 18, 2013
Fox News wannabe: Washington Post disses France
April 22, 2013
What we read today
April 23, 2013
How far from full labor market recovery are we? Part I
April 24, 2013
$100 billion to Apple shareholders, any to Apple workers?
April 24, 2013
What we read (and watched) today
April 26, 2013
How far from full recovery are we, Part II: Housing to the rescue?
April 26, 2013
Workers Memorial Day thoughts
April 26, 2013
(Final?) Notes on the Reinhart/Rogoff saga
April 29, 2013
What we read today
April 30, 2013
Why do so many people want to only pursue the expensive ways to fix job-quality?
April 30, 2013
The missing workers: how many are there and who are they?
April 30, 2013
Reinhart and Rogoff couldn’t justify austerity before it was debunked
April 30, 2013
What we read today
May 1, 2013
Building a Tax Code for Today
May 1, 2013
175,000 jobs a month won’t make us whole until 2020
May 1, 2013
Will Apple follow in Nike’s failed footsteps?
May 2, 2013
Winning the intellectual debate on austerity while losing the policy debate
May 3, 2013
What we read today
May 7, 2013
Sequester cuts to Emergency Unemployment Insurance Compensation will likely cost around 30,000 jobs
May 8, 2013
What we read today
May 10, 2013
Looking ahead on the FY2014 budget
May 10, 2013
The best thing for mom this Mother’s Day: a raise
May 13, 2013
Brookings H-1B Report’s Flawed Analysis & Flawed Process
May 13, 2013
Senate immigration bill’s key innovations for high-skilled workers are in jeopardy
May 14, 2013
What we read today
May 17, 2013
Sequestration, detailed
May 17, 2013
What we read today
May 20, 2013
Nostalgic for the Gatsby era? (Surprise! You’re living in it.)
May 20, 2013
What we read today
May 21, 2013
Apple’s advice on corporate tax reform: more tax breaks, please!
May 22, 2013
In one chart: we have a demand problem, not a skills problem
May 24, 2013
Differences between House Republicans’ and Senate Democrats’ proposed funding allocations reveal their priorities
May 24, 2013
Why we should tax overseas corporate income
May 29, 2013
No cause for relief—austerity will indeed drag hard on the economy in 2013 and 2014
May 29, 2013
Ongoing joblessness: A national catastrophe for African American and Latino workers
May 29, 2013
Economic policy is largely being driven by obstructionism, not economic advisers
May 30, 2013
Previewing the Social Security Trustees Report
May 31, 2013
Economic expansion versus economic recovery
May 31, 2013
Social Security’s challenges continue to be modest and manageable
May 31, 2013
What we read today
June 5, 2013
Sheesh, Everyone’s a Chart Critic
June 7, 2013
Still Polishing Apple: Second FLA report misleads on labor rights progress
June 7, 2013
I’d be a damn fool to jump off a cliff
June 7, 2013
More thoughts on the value of cutting corporate tax rates
June 7, 2013
Recent impacts on grant funding to state-level programs
June 7, 2013
I see the future
June 10, 2013
Why Our Schools Are Segregated
June 10, 2013
CAP’s rethinking of the grand bargain path is good. Now CAP should rethink their role in putting us on that path.
June 10, 2013
What we read today
June 11, 2013
Equal Pay Act turns 50: What are the forces holding back the wages of both women and men?
June 11, 2013
Employers: Pay your interns. Labor Department: Bust them if they don’t!
June 12, 2013
A step forward for the rights of interns
June 13, 2013
J-1 exchange visitors deserve labor rights and human trafficking protections
June 14, 2013
How much can tax policy curb income inequality growth? Maybe a lot
June 14, 2013
Rise in college completion welcome – but not driven by rising college wage premium or ‘sheltering’
June 17, 2013
Ongoing State Jobs Deficits—Keeping State Employment Gains in Perspective
June 17, 2013
More Empty Rhetoric on Public Investment and Discretionary Spending: Fred Hiatt Edition
June 18, 2013
What We Read Today
June 19, 2013
Senator Merkley Takes on H-2B Guestworker Abuses
June 20, 2013
7-Eleven‘s Modern Day Plantation System
June 20, 2013
Debating the Rise of the Top 1 Percent
June 20, 2013
Rigorous Research is Needed to Eventually Inform Better Economic Policy, Regardless of Political Realities
June 20, 2013
Tackling Youth Unemployment With Amendments to the Senate Immigration Bill
June 21, 2013
Hybrid or Frankenpension?
June 24, 2013
Americans want fewer high-tech guestworkers, not more
June 25, 2013
Greg Mankiw Forgets to Offer Data for his Biggest Claim
June 25, 2013
Celebrating 75 Years of the Fair Labor Standards Act
June 25, 2013
What the Fisher Decision Ignores: “Diversity” Should Not Replace Integration as Our Goal
June 27, 2013
Mankiw, Kaplan, CEO Pay and the Defense of the 1 Percent
June 28, 2013
Coming Soon to the Big Apple – Paid Sick Days, as New York City Council Overrides Bloomberg Veto
June 28, 2013
Tipped Workers Deserve a Raise As Well
June 28, 2013
Inequality Is Real. Inequality.is Shows You How to Fix It.
June 28, 2013
What We Read Today
July 1, 2013
CEOs Recovering Well, Workers Not So Much
July 1, 2013
Congress Should Act Today to Keep Student Loan Interest Rates Low
July 3, 2013
Four Years Into Recovery, Austerity’s Toll is At Least 3 Million Jobs
July 5, 2013
If Today’s Jobs Report is Taken as Yet Another Excuse for Inaction, It Will Be Truly Bad News
July 5, 2013
What We Read Today
July 8, 2013
Does Value-Added Trade Have Any Implications for Trade Policy?
July 8, 2013
Council on Foreign Relations Wades into Education Debates, but Misses the Big Picture
July 8, 2013
Government–Not Business–Has Been the Source of Breakthrough Innovation
July 9, 2013
Is a “Blank-slate” Approach the Right Way to Reform our Tax Code?
July 10, 2013
North Carolina Slashes Aid to Job Seekers
July 11, 2013
Gearing Up for the Next Debt Ceiling Fight
July 12, 2013
Senate Immigration Legislation Would Improve Human Trafficking Protections for Guestworkers
July 12, 2013
Every Day, Low Wages
July 12, 2013
What We Read Today
July 16, 2013
Scapegoating the NLRB
July 17, 2013
Immigration Legislation Would Improve the Labor Market by Protecting Undocumented Workers from Employer Retaliation
July 17, 2013
Prices Drop as the Affordable Care Act is Implemented
July 18, 2013
McDonald’s Employees Don’t Need Financial Planning, They Need Raises
July 18, 2013
What We Read Today
July 19, 2013
The Compensation/Productivity Link Is Indeed Broken for the Vast Majority of American Workers
July 22, 2013
Of Final Candidates, Yellen Should Be Next Fed Chair
July 23, 2013
Hope and Cash, Investment and Policy: Jeep and the Future of Detroit
July 23, 2013
President Obama Needs to Ground “Middle-Out” Economics in Broad-Based Wage Growth
July 24, 2013
Easily Sharable Minimum Wage Graphics
July 24, 2013
The President’s Speech Shows He’s Better at the ‘Whereas’ than the ‘Therefore’ Part of the Resolution.
July 25, 2013
Mobility and Inequality
July 25, 2013
Government Can Make Internships More Accessible by Paying for Them
July 25, 2013
The President’s Economic Speech in 10 Charts (And More)
July 26, 2013
What We Read Today
July 29, 2013
President Obama Recognizes the Economic Demands of the “Unfinished March”
July 30, 2013
Social Security is the Most Effective Anti-Poverty Program in the U.S., In One Chart
July 30, 2013
Does a Grand Bargain Have to Include a Bad Bargain?
July 31, 2013
New Study Documents Serious Labor Rights Violations at Apple’s Second Largest Supplier
August 1, 2013
What to Watch on Jobs Day
August 1, 2013
The Next Federal Reserve Chairperson
August 1, 2013
Detroit’s Pension Problems: Not as Bad as They’re Portrayed
August 1, 2013
Deficit Reduction: It’s Not the Economy, Stupid
August 2, 2013
The National Labor Relations Board Now Has All Five Members
August 2, 2013
Why Citizenship Matters: Getting to the Bottom Line
August 2, 2013
Walmart Fight is About the Degradation of Work in America
August 2, 2013
What We Read Today
August 5, 2013
Detroit: Pensions, Racism and Bankruptcy
August 5, 2013
What is Smart about Budget Cuts that Push More People into Poverty?
August 5, 2013
Inflating Detroit’s Pension Liabilities, Part 2
August 14, 2013
Complacent Consensus on China
August 15, 2013
What We Read Today
August 16, 2013
Once Again, American Manufacturing Suffers from Lots of Things, but Excess Blue-Collar Pay Isn’t One of Them
August 16, 2013
New York Times Op-ed Blames the Victims of Detroit’s Decline
August 20, 2013
Bankruptcy Judge Should Respect Michigan’s Constitution Even If Michigan Governor Rick Snyder Doesn’t
August 22, 2013
Education Investment (Not Low Taxes) is Key to State Prosperity
August 22, 2013
Another Week, Another Ill-Considered Attempt To Undercut Regulations
August 22, 2013
Cato Study Distorts the Truth on Welfare and Work
August 23, 2013
Slow Wage-Growth Just One More Sign of How Big a Problem the Profit-Biased Recovery Is
August 23, 2013
What We Read Today
August 26, 2013
Ignoring Cheap Ways to Boost Middle-Class Living Standards
August 26, 2013
Fifty Years Later: How Far Have We Marched?
August 27, 2013
Labor Department Should Crack Down on Illegal Unpaid Internships
August 27, 2013
The Unfinished March Toward a Decent Minimum Wage
August 28, 2013
Broken Promises and Continuing Worker Abuses as Apple and its Suppliers Miss Deadline
August 28, 2013
EPI Family Budgets: Why More Tools Are Better Than One
August 29, 2013
Economy Boosting Jobs
August 30, 2013
What Should You Be Earning?
September 4, 2013
Budget Debates Matter: The Difference in GOP and Democratic Levels of Discretionary Spending for 2014 Translates into Nearly 1 Million Jobs
September 4, 2013
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Public Sector Job Growth
September 5, 2013
Mayor Gray Should Sign the Large Retailer Accountability Act
September 6, 2013
How Much We Have Backslid
September 6, 2013
What We Read Today
September 9, 2013
Workers’ Pay Hasn’t Always Lagged Productivity Growth
September 10, 2013
Entitlement Spending, Part I: Looking Back
September 12, 2013
Top 1 Percent Receive Record High Share of Total U.S. Income
September 13, 2013
2012 Income Numbers: What to Expect Next Tuesday and Why It Matters
September 13, 2013
ACA Implementation Advice: Encourage Timely Reports Of Income Changes
September 13, 2013
Social Welfare Spending, Part II: Looking Forward—It’s Still All About Health Costs
September 13, 2013
What We Read Today
September 13, 2013
Mayor Gray’s statement in support of his veto of the LRAA should embarrass him
September 16, 2013
Flawed Diagnoses and Inappropriate Cures in Education
September 16, 2013
5 Years Later: The Crisis We Averted and the One We Didn’t
September 17, 2013
Incomes and Poverty Stable as Wage Stagnation Continues
September 17, 2013
By the Numbers: Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage 2012
September 17, 2013
Obama Administration Issues Home Care Rule
September 18, 2013
The Week in Federal Reserve News: No Taper!
September 18, 2013
New iPhones, Same Old Working Conditions
September 19, 2013
In Light Of Census Numbers, Cutting SNAP Would Be Irresponsible
September 20, 2013
Slow economic recovery reflected in stagnant income and poverty data
September 20, 2013
Ending corporate tax avoidance/evasion could reduce our long-term revenue problem
September 24, 2013
Austerity, Not Uncertainty, Is the Scary Part of Fiscal Showdowns
September 24, 2013
A Brad DeLong Smackdown of Sorts
September 25, 2013
What We Read Today
September 26, 2013
The Radicalism of Today’s Austerity in One Chart
September 27, 2013
We Have a Deficit Problem: It is too small to fuel a robust economic recovery from the Great Recession
September 27, 2013
You Know What is Totally Not Crazy? An INFINITY TRILLION DOLLAR COIN!
September 27, 2013
Expanding on Inequality for All
September 30, 2013
What We Mean When We Talk About Middle-Out Economics
September 30, 2013
GOP Members of Congress Use Fiscal Showdown as Leverage to Damage Middle-Class Economic Security, One More Time
October 1, 2013
Shutdown Hurts Parkgoers and Local Businesses
October 1, 2013
Socialized Medicine: The Horror Movie
October 1, 2013
We Can Do Something to Spur a More Rapid Recovery—Combat Foreign Currency Manipulation
October 1, 2013
How Big a (Macroeconomic) Deal is the Government Shutdown?
October 1, 2013
Proposed California Laws Will Protect Immigrant Workers Even if Federal Reform Fails
October 3, 2013
Note to Fiscal Policymakers: Multipliers are Definitely Still Large
October 3, 2013
Obamacare Isn’t Causing an Increase in Part-Time Employment, In One Chart
October 3, 2013
Basket Cases
October 4, 2013
No Jobs Day
October 4, 2013
Washington Post Editorial Board Pegs Minimum Wage to 1959 Living Standards
October 4, 2013
The Good and the Bad in Obamacare’s Mandates
October 4, 2013
Growing Together, Growing Apart
October 4, 2013
What We Read Today
October 7, 2013
Union Membership and the Income Share of the Top Ten Percent
October 7, 2013
Hitting the Debt Ceiling: An Anti-Stimulus at Least Twice as Large as the Stimulus in the Recovery Act
October 7, 2013
Are “We” Broke?
October 8, 2013
Who, Exactly, Has Benefited from Mississippi’s Anti-Unionism? Not Its Workers.
October 8, 2013
Does “Poverty” Cause Low Achievement?
October 8, 2013
There They Go Again: More Political Theater
October 9, 2013
New EPI Economic Indicator: Monthly Updates of the Number of “Missing Workers” and What the Unemployment Rate Would Be If They Were Looking for Work
October 10, 2013
The “True” Unemployment Rate Is the One BLS Releases Every Month*, But It’s Not the One “True” Measure of Labor Market Slack
October 11, 2013
Very Late in the Game Debt Ceiling Basics
October 11, 2013
Welfare Isn’t Too Generous—Wages Are Too Low
October 15, 2013
A Temporary Cease-Fire
October 15, 2013
Oh No, Not Again
October 16, 2013
The Policy Danger Posed by Luddites Whose Comfortable Existence Is Threatened by Economic Reality
October 18, 2013
You Can’t Put a Price on an Offer That Doesn’t Exist
October 21, 2013
Replace Some of the Sequester by Closing Tax Loopholes
October 24, 2013
Alt Underemployment
October 25, 2013
What We Read Today
October 28, 2013
Finding Some Good News About Health Reform
October 28, 2013
EPI Submits Amicus Brief on Civil Rights Case to SCOTUS
October 30, 2013
Racial Underrepresentation In Construction: How Do The Union And Nonunion Sectors Compare?
October 30, 2013
Food Stamps: ARRA’s Last Stand?
October 30, 2013
Comparing the DC Minimum Wage Proposals
October 31, 2013
DC Minimum Wage Part 2: The Tipped Minimum Wage—Separate, But Not Equal
October 31, 2013
New Research Yields Old Results
November 1, 2013
Dear Tim Cook: Fraction of Icahn Request Could Significantly Address Apple’s Labor Rights Violations
November 1, 2013
Transatlantic Free Trade Agreement: Job Claims Are Pure Baloney
November 5, 2013
A Daily Reminder That Thousands Die In Preventable Workplace Deaths Every Year
November 7, 2013
Health Insurance Exchanges Will Go a Long Way Toward Fixing the Broken Health Care System
November 8, 2013
Don’t Blame the Robots for Slow Job Growth In 2000s
November 12, 2013
Indian IT Outsourcing Firm Pays Biggest Immigration Fine in History
November 13, 2013
We Have Skilled Construction Workers−They Need Jobs
November 13, 2013
The United States Postal Service is Waking Up
November 14, 2013
House Signals Opposition to Proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership
November 14, 2013
The Jobs Gap May Be Bigger for Men, But Within Industries Men are Still Gaining More than Women
November 14, 2013
Is There Any Reason Not to Release the ACA Prices?
November 15, 2013
Actually, the Fed Can Do Something (Lots, Even) About Inequality
November 15, 2013
Uwe Reinhardt on Cost-sharing
November 20, 2013
Brief Discussion of Senator Baucus’s Discussion Draft
November 21, 2013
Either AEI Has Forgotten Basic Statistics or They Are Advocating For More Collective Bargaining
November 21, 2013
Our Debt is Not a Problem We Need to Solve Right this Second
November 22, 2013
Responding to an Uninformed Critique
November 22, 2013
In Debate Over ”Secular Stagnation,” Don’t Let Legitimate Concerns Over Inequality Let Austerity Off the Hook
November 25, 2013
On Social Security, Elizabeth Warren Gets It Mostly Right
November 26, 2013
Unpaid Internships: Bad for Business, Bad for Interns
November 26, 2013
Giving Thanks for Small Things: A Little Light in the Dark Corridors of Power
November 27, 2013
Still a “Perfect Match”—Increasing Tax Fairness to Finance Job Creation
December 1, 2013
“PISA Day”—An Ideological and Hyperventilated Exercise
December 2, 2013
Help Bring the Facts to the Fight for Working People: Support EPI on Giving Tuesday
December 2, 2013
Apple Ignores Code of Conduct as Factory Workers in China Work Illegal, Excessive Overtime
December 3, 2013
The Stem, the Flower, and Corporate Greed
December 4, 2013
President Obama Hits the Right Notes
December 4, 2013
Economic Populism Still the Right—and the Winning—Choice
December 5, 2013
The Courts Deny the Rights of Workers to Collective Action
December 5, 2013
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Even Without Furloughed Workers, Government Employment is Still Too Low
December 6, 2013
Lies, Damn Lies, and Retirement Savings
December 9, 2013
NAFTA’s Impact on U.S. Workers
December 9, 2013
More Than Three-Quarters of Workers Missing from the Labor Force Are Under Age 55
December 10, 2013
Ratio of Job Seekers Remains Extremely Elevated—No Time to Cut Unemployment Benefits
December 10, 2013
Shockingly Little Progress on Breaking the Glass Ceiling
December 11, 2013
Leaving Extended Unemployment Benefits Out of the Budget Deal is Cruel and Stupid
December 11, 2013
Unemployment Insurance Isn’t the Problem, It’s the Solution
December 11, 2013
Avoiding a Government Shutdown Falls Far Short of What American Families Need
December 12, 2013
How to Raise $1 Trillion in Revenue Without Waiting on “Tax Reform”
December 12, 2013
Truth As Well As Reconciliation
December 13, 2013
Law To End Abuse of Farmworkers Needs Strengthening
December 13, 2013
Apple Fails to Deliver on Key Labor Rights Promises, but the Company’s Chosen Labor Rights Monitor Finds Little Fault
December 13, 2013
Our Fiscal Policy Is A Mess. Here’s How to Clean it Up.
December 13, 2013
The Budget Deal Loosens Austerity’s Grip on the Labor Market—But by Just a Bit
December 15, 2013
On That Income Inequality and Income Growth Thing Out There
December 16, 2013
Inequality: Not Really a Distraction, and Unambiguously Bad for Average Growth for the Vast Majority
December 16, 2013
The Burden of Proof in the Inequality/Growth Debate
December 17, 2013
Another Apple Supplier in China Admits Gross Violations of Worker Rights
December 18, 2013
Spending on Public Investments: Too Low but Getting Lower
December 18, 2013
Do Native Americans Face Discrimination in the Labor Market?
December 20, 2013
Jobs of the Future Look like Today’s Jobs
December 20, 2013
North Carolina’s Failed Experiment in Cutting Unemployment Benefits
December 23, 2013
2013 Was a Wild Ride for Anyone Who Follows Immigration—and 2014 Will Be Too
December 24, 2013
Detroit’s Deals with Financial Institutions Led to Disaster
December 24, 2013
What We Read Today
December 31, 2013
Listicle: The 13 Best and Worst Economic Policy Ideas of 2013
January 2, 2014
4.5 Million Workers Start the New Year with Higher Pay
January 3, 2014
NAFTA, Twenty Years After: A Disaster
January 3, 2014
The Skills Shortage Myth: A Public Relations Tool for Bad Corporate Citizens
January 7, 2014
African American Poverty: Concentrated and Multi-Generational
January 8, 2014
Inequality Is the Main Cause of Persistent Poverty
January 8, 2014
Markets, Wages, and Fighting Poverty
January 9, 2014
What to Watch on Jobs Day: The Sixth Anniversary of the Great Recession, and What the Seventh Might Look Like
January 9, 2014
Senator Rubio: Wrong Diagnosis, Wrong Policy Prescriptions
January 10, 2014
Fast Track Legislation: Dead On Arrival?
January 10, 2014
A Viper Lurking in the Farm Bill: So-Called Sound Science Provision Carries Anti-Regulatory Poison
January 15, 2014
Six Flags Wants an Exemption From a Minimum Wage Increase
January 15, 2014
Class War: The View From the Board Room
January 15, 2014
No Matter How We Measure Poverty, the Poverty Rate Would Be Much Lower If Economic Growth Were More Broadly Shared
January 16, 2014
Partnership or Putsch?
January 16, 2014
Seth Harris’s Legacy: Lives Saved, Wages Restored, Pensions Secured, and a More Effective U.S. Department of Labor
January 17, 2014
New Analysis of the Labor Market Outcomes of Employment- and Family-Based Immigrants Can Improve Policymaking
January 17, 2014
Recommitting to Dr. King’s Goals Would Help All Working Families
January 22, 2014
The Robots Are Here and More Are Coming: Do Not Blame Them for our Wage or Job Problems
January 23, 2014
Are House Republicans Sore Winners?
January 24, 2014
What to Look for in the State of the Union
January 24, 2014
The Federal Government Shouldn’t Directly Contribute To America’s Job-Quality Problem
January 27, 2014
Life Is Worse In Right-To-Work States
January 27, 2014
The Tight Link Between the Minimum Wage and Wage Inequality
January 28, 2014
Good Eric Schmidt vs. Evil Eric Schmidt
January 29, 2014
Five Years of Lilly Ledbetter and Still More Work Needs To Be Done
January 29, 2014
The President Drills Down to the Core Challenge: Creating Good Jobs and Raising Wages
January 29, 2014
Green Cards for Detroit? Interesting Idea, but Mostly a Distraction
January 29, 2014
Holding Out For a Better Retirement Plan
January 30, 2014
Scratching Just One Level Below Surface, Growth Numbers Look a lot Less Impressive
January 30, 2014
Equal Pay for Women and a Higher Minimum Wage Will Move the Economy Forward
January 30, 2014
Assessing the New Republican “Standards for Immigration Reform”
January 31, 2014
Who Wins From Trade?
January 31, 2014
Raising the Maryland Minimum Wage Will Benefit Nearly Half a Million Workers and Modestly Boost the State’s Economy
February 3, 2014
There Are Plenty of Ways to Cut the Budget. Food Stamps Shouldn’t Be One That Congress Can Agree On.
February 3, 2014
The Overall Employment to Population Ratio: Not the Best Summary Indicator, But Not That Misleading, Either
February 3, 2014
Senators from States with High Long-Term Unemployment Will Decide the Fate of Emergency Unemployment Compensation
February 4, 2014
No, the CBO Did Not Find That the ACA Kills Jobs
February 4, 2014
Latest CBO Report is a Clarion Call for a Growth Agenda
February 5, 2014
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Yes, We Should Still Be Worried About the Labor Force Participation Rate
February 5, 2014
Court of Appeals Hands Victory to U.S. Workers
February 6, 2014
What to Watch on Jobs Day, Part 2: January Is Benchmark Month
February 6, 2014
New Pessimism About Immigration Reform in 2014
February 6, 2014
The Minimum Wage is Effective and Well Targeted
February 7, 2014
The December 2007 Level of Employment is Not a Useful Benchmark
February 7, 2014
My Favorite Measure of Labor Market Health is Looking a Little Better
February 12, 2014
Mobility Needs To Do More Than Stagnate To Indicate U.S. Economy Is Performing for Low- and Moderate-Income Families
February 12, 2014
Raising the Federal Minimum Wage to $10.10 Will Not Lead to Job Loss
February 14, 2014
Increasing the Minimum Wage to $10.10 Will Make Low-Wage Workers and Their Families Better Off
February 14, 2014
Yellen Era Begins With Good Sense and Predictable Pushback
February 17, 2014
Cheers for the Recovery Act on its 5th Birthday, Jeers for the Anti-Recovery Act We’ve (Implicitly) Passed in the Past Three Years
February 18, 2014
Is the Retirement Crisis a Mirage?
February 18, 2014
Our Projected Revenue Problem Only Gets Worse, but the Health Care Problem Gets Better
February 19, 2014
Inequality in the States
February 20, 2014
CBO Report Shows Low-Wage Workers Would Be Better Off With a Minimum Wage of $10.10
February 20, 2014
Chained CPI COLA Cut Out of the President’s Latest Budget: Another Bit of Good News for Social Security
February 21, 2014
Mapping Inequality
February 21, 2014
Want to Lower The Deficit? Forget Sequestration, Keep Slowing Federal Health Care Cost Growth
February 21, 2014
Most of the Decline in Labor Force Participation in the Last Six Years is Cyclical
February 21, 2014
Is the Retirement Crisis a Mirage? (Part 2)
February 24, 2014
The UAW was Right to Appeal the Election Decision in Tennessee
February 24, 2014
Misdirection on Assortative Mating and Income Inequality
February 25, 2014
America Without Unions
February 25, 2014
Detroit’s Bankruptcy Reflects a History of Racism
February 26, 2014
A Strong Precedent for a Better Accountability System
February 26, 2014
NYT Reporters’ Anti-Public Pension Bias Leads to Faulty Conclusions
February 27, 2014
Camp Plan Shows Once Again that Lowering Tax Rates Shouldn’t Be an Economic Priority
March 4, 2014
Elderly Women the Most Vulnerable, Social Security the Most Protective
March 4, 2014
Ending Currency Manipulation Would Substantially Erase State Jobs Deficits
March 4, 2014
The President’s Budget: More Investment in Our Future is Needed
March 6, 2014
What To Watch on Jobs Day: 6.5 Percent Threshold Is Obsolete
March 6, 2014
Fixing the Gender Wage Gap Is a Crucial Step for Women, But Not the Only Step
March 6, 2014
Ending Currency Manipulation—Just Follow the Money
March 7, 2014
Unemployment in February Remains Elevated Across the Board
March 7, 2014
Hillary Clinton Speaks Out For Young Workers
March 10, 2014
Currency Manipulation: The Real Story vs. House of Cards
March 12, 2014
Raise the Pay of Hard-Working Americans with an Update of the Overtime Rules
March 12, 2014
Socioeconomic School Integration Is a Worthy Goal, but Racial Segregation Presents Added Challenges
March 13, 2014
Are We Really on a Rapid Glide-Path to Full Employment?
March 13, 2014
Nondefense Discretionary Spending and the CPC Budget
March 14, 2014
A Glimmer of Sanity on Unemployment Insurance in the Senate—Hopefully It Won’t Be Snuffed out in the House
March 14, 2014
Still Not Ready for Prime Time: Tax Reform and Dynamic Scoring
March 14, 2014
U.S.-Korea Trade Deal Resulted in Growing Trade Deficits and Nearly 60,000 Lost Jobs
March 15, 2014
Current Maryland Minimum Wage Law and Proposed House Version of Reform Have Too Many Loopholes and Exemptions
March 18, 2014
A Progressive Budget that is Decidedly Mainstream
March 19, 2014
J-1 Summer Work Travel Program Still Poorly Regulated
March 27, 2014
The President’s Budget Proposal: Jobs, Jobs, Jobs
March 27, 2014
The Lost Decade of Wage Growth for Women
March 28, 2014
Jump Starting Real Wage Growth for Women: Increasing the Minimum Wage and Improving Overtime Laws
March 28, 2014
Supreme Court Is Set To Decide on Home Care Workers’ Right to Organize
March 28, 2014
NLRB Rightly Grants College Athletes Union Membership
March 31, 2014
Romney Economic Advisor Andy Puzder Gets Overtime Pay Law Wrong
April 1, 2014
By Ignoring Economic Reality, Ryan Budget Would Slow Recovery, Cost Jobs
April 1, 2014
How Severe Are the Ryan Budget’s Spending Cuts?
April 2, 2014
Unemployment, Schools, Wages, and the Mythical Skills Gap
April 3, 2014
What To Watch On Jobs Day: Returning to Pre-recession Employment in the Private Sector is Not That Great
April 3, 2014
College Completion: Why Getting Kids in the Door Isn’t Enough
April 3, 2014
Congress Passes Up Yet Another Opportunity to Reconsider Tax Giveaways
April 4, 2014
In March, the Unemployment Rate Masked Some Good News For Once
April 4, 2014
No Signs of a Skill Mismatch in Today’s Jobs Report
April 4, 2014
Certainly No Sign in March of Excessive Wage Growth Which Would Trigger Inflation
April 4, 2014
March Jobs Report Shows Labor Market Still Requires Federal Jobless Aid
April 4, 2014
The State of Black and Brown America
April 4, 2014
Larry Summers, Jeremy Stein, and the Better Off Budget
April 7, 2014
Third Way’s Surprising Retirement Proposal
April 8, 2014
How to Make the Labor Market Work for Women
April 8, 2014
Equal Pay Day: A Reminder that Women (and Men!) Deserve More
April 8, 2014
Equal Pay Transparency
April 9, 2014
As Congress Votes on Budget Proposals, It Is Also Voting on Whether It Understands the Economy
April 9, 2014
Long-Term Unemployment Is Elevated Across All Education, Age, Occupation, Industry, Gender, And Racial And Ethnic Groups
April 9, 2014
The Maryland Minimum Wage Increase Is a Strong Accomplishment, but Not Without Some Failings
April 11, 2014
Something To Keep An Eye On: College Enrollment Has Dropped Substantially Since 2012
April 11, 2014
The Gender Gap on Television
April 15, 2014
Thomas Piketty and Tax Day
April 15, 2014
Thinking About Death and Taxes on April 15
April 17, 2014
A Key Lesson From Piketty: You Can’t Reverse Inequality or Provide Broad-Based Prosperity While Ignoring the Top 1 Percent
April 22, 2014
New BLS Data Show College Enrollment Rates of Recent High School Grads Have Been Dropping Since 2009
April 24, 2014
A Million Veterans Would Benefit from a Minimum Wage Increase
April 28, 2014
Three-Fourths of Job Injuries on Farms Go Unreported
April 28, 2014
Get Rid of Job Killing Tax Extenders; Pay For the Rest
April 29, 2014
Proposed Cuts to Detroit Pensions No Cause for Rejoicing
April 30, 2014
Austerity’s Legacy: GDP is Far Below Potential, and Not Climbing
April 30, 2014
Paul Ryan Still Doesn’t Understand the Scale of the Poverty Problem
May 1, 2014
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Will the Number of Missing Young Workers Decline Again?
May 1, 2014
EPI Stands By the Rigorous Methods and Findings of Its Report on Privately Run Charter Schools and the Rocketship Company
May 2, 2014
Are Today’s Minimum Wage Workers Worth Less?
May 2, 2014
Number of Missing Workers Jumps to All-Time High
May 2, 2014
The African American Labor Force Shows Remarkable Resilience
May 2, 2014
A Decidedly Weird Report
May 5, 2014
No Sign of Labor Shortages in Construction: There are Seven Unemployed Construction Workers for Every Job Opening
May 7, 2014
The President Has This One Exactly Right: Cutting Corporate Taxes Should Not Be a Priority, but Extending Unemployment Insurance Should Be
May 12, 2014
In Memoriam: Lynn Williams
May 15, 2014
California School Board Rejects Rocketship Charter School
May 15, 2014
Wages of Young Female College Grads Are Lower Today Than They Were In 1989
May 16, 2014
The Deep Roots of Skilled Labor Shortages: Anti-Union, Anti-Worker Corporations
May 16, 2014
More Than Half a Million Jobs Are at Risk Due to Unfair Trade in the U.S. Steel Industry
May 19, 2014
In Remembrance of Harry Clay Ballantyne
May 20, 2014
Harris v. Quinn Is About the Right of Home Care Workers to Improve Their Wages
May 21, 2014
Beyond Pre-kindergarten: Evidence and State-Level Action
May 21, 2014
How the Great Society Democratized Our Economy
May 21, 2014
Wage Stagnation among College Graduates and Senator Warren’s Plan to Help
May 22, 2014
Maybe China’s Currency Isn’t Undervalued—Really?
May 23, 2014
Stronger Overtime Rules and Job Creation
May 23, 2014
Don’t Pull the Rug Out from Under PSLF Recipients
May 28, 2014
The Federal Reserve, Full Employment, and Financial Stability
May 29, 2014
Not a Chimera: Global Economic Trends Tend to Have Global Economic Causes
May 31, 2014
Identifying the Channels Through which Regulatory Changes Affect Jobs
June 2, 2014
How Much Should You Be Making?
June 5, 2014
What to Watch on Jobs Day: An All-time High of an Indicator That is Almost Always Rising
June 5, 2014
Statistics that Spin: Foreign Goods to Be Considered U.S. Goods?
June 6, 2014
Women Surpassed Their Pre-recession Employment Peak 9 Months Ago, Men Still Haven’t
June 9, 2014
Most Missing Workers Are Nowhere Near Retirement Age
June 11, 2014
Looking at Segregation Through the Peer Effects Lens
June 13, 2014
If Obama Must Delay Deportation Review, Relief For Unauthorized Immigrants Should Be Bold and Broad
June 17, 2014
Thoughts on the Black Labor Force Participation Rate
June 18, 2014
A Repatriation Holiday to Fund the Highway Trust Fund is Not Only a Bad Idea but a Costly One
June 18, 2014
American Workers Need Overtime Protections
June 24, 2014
Teachers, “Tenure,” Due Process, and Truly Helping Disadvantaged Children
June 26, 2014
What’s at Stake in Harris v. Quinn
June 26, 2014
The Truth Behind Today’s Long-term Unemployment Crisis and Solutions to Address It
June 27, 2014
Tax Gasoline, Save the Highway Trust Fund, and Help the Economy (and the Planet)
June 30, 2014
History Teaches Us We Need Race-Conscious Policies
July 2, 2014
The Court’s Harris v. Quinn Decision Undermines Home Health Care and Further Weakens Collective Bargaining Rights
July 2, 2014
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Five Years Since the Official End of Recession, the Public Sector Jobs Gap Is 1.5 Million
July 3, 2014
The Recovery Turns Five
July 3, 2014
The Recovery Turns Five, Part 2
July 3, 2014
African Americans and Latinos Reap Most of June’s Job Gains
July 8, 2014
What We Read Today: Buffalo Jills Win Against the Bills
July 10, 2014
Anti-Pension Campaigners Use Fuzzy Math and Old Data
July 15, 2014
Commerce Slaps Tariffs on Steel Imports
July 15, 2014
CBO: Don’t Fear the Near-Term Debt Reaper
July 17, 2014
Corporate Inversions Are all about Avoiding Taxes, Congress Should Act Now
July 18, 2014
History Teaches Us to Be Generous in a Refugee Crisis
July 21, 2014
OMB Should Withdraw Proposed Revisions to U.S. Manufacturing and Trade Statistics
July 22, 2014
Corporate Inversions, Tax Rates, Tax Reform, and the GOP
July 25, 2014
Paul Ryan’s New Anti-Poverty Plan: Stumbling onto Some Good Ideas, But Still Lost in the Wilderness
July 25, 2014
Is an Aging Population—or Slow and Unequal Wage Growth—our Biggest Challenge?
July 28, 2014
Congress Takes Steps To Stop Wage Theft By Federal Contractors
July 28, 2014
Can We Have Too Many STEM Workers?
July 28, 2014
Social Security and Medicare Trustees Reports Show the Impact of Slowing Health Costs
July 30, 2014
What To Watch On Jobs Day—Have We Really Kicked It Into A Higher Gear?
July 31, 2014
Hope Springs Eternal, But The Data Is Actually Pretty Mixed About Whether Or Not Recovery Is Accelerating
August 1, 2014
Tightening Labor Market Will at Some Point Strengthen Wage Growth, but No Sign of That Today
August 1, 2014
I So Want to See Accelerating Job Growth, and It Is So Not Happening
August 1, 2014
Remember the Last Time the Fed Tightened After a Recession? I Didn’t Either, So…
August 1, 2014
Thinking Like an RA, Jobs Day Edition: What I’ve learned in the last three years
August 4, 2014
A Primer: What’s Going on with Part-time Work?
August 4, 2014
Should Race-Based Affirmative Action be Replaced by Race-Neutral Preferences for Low-Income Students? The Discussion Continues
August 4, 2014
What I Learned as an EPI Intern
August 5, 2014
Another Reminder About the Stupidity of Austerity
August 7, 2014
American Caesar? Not Even Close: The president has the statutory authority he needs to expand deferred action
August 11, 2014
EPI and AEI Agree: Cutting Jobless Benefits Did Not Boost Employment
August 12, 2014
Brad Delong’s Case for NAFTA: Based on Assumptions, Not on Data
August 12, 2014
The Neoliberal Mind at Work: Brad DeLong’s Muddled Defense of NAFTA
August 12, 2014
I Can’t Tolerate the Nonsense on Corporate Tax Reform Any More
August 13, 2014
What’s Lost in the Market Basket Stories
August 13, 2014
The Top 10 Myths About Social Security
August 14, 2014
A Step in the Right Direction: OMB Will Not Implement Plan to Include “Factoryless Goods Producers” In Manufacturing
August 15, 2014
What You Need to Know about the President’s Legal Authority to Expand Deferred Action for Unauthorized Immigrants
August 18, 2014
What’s at Stake If the Fed Prematurely Raises Rates
August 19, 2014
The Fed Should Continue Its Support for a Jobs Recovery
August 22, 2014
Broadening Agreement That Job Polarization Wasn’t Present in the United States In 2000s
August 22, 2014
A Salute to Jim Jeffords, a True Vermont Progressive
August 25, 2014
The Obama Administration Moves to Protect U.S. Steel Industry from Unfair Trade Practices
August 25, 2014
Back to School: A Useful Guide for Parents and Policymakers to Use School Quality Rankings
August 25, 2014
Another Day, Another Corporate Inversion
August 26, 2014
A Brief but Sad History of Selected Corporate Inversions
August 26, 2014
Job Growth in the Great Recession Has Not Been Equal Between Men and Women
August 27, 2014
Wages Have Fallen for Most Americans in 2014
August 27, 2014
The Dog That Didn’t Bark, or, Why Wages at the Bottom of the Distribution Were the Only Ones That Didn’t Fall over the past Year
August 28, 2014
Why Young People Should Care About a Lame Labor Market
August 29, 2014
Labor Day Hope
September 4, 2014
The United States Leads in Low-Wage Work and the Lowest Wages for Low-Wage Workers
September 4, 2014
What to Watch on Jobs Day: It’s No Longer a Jobless Recovery but It’s Undoubtedly a Wage-Growth-Less Recovery
September 5, 2014
Wages Are Growing Far Below the Fed’s Target
September 5, 2014
Slow Job Growth Should Give Us Pause
September 5, 2014
Unemployment Rate Continues To Be Elevated Across the Board
September 8, 2014
Blockbuster Report on Construction Industry Tax and Wage Cheating
September 9, 2014
The Leisure and Hospitality Sector has the Largest Gap between CEO and Worker Pay
September 9, 2014
Here’s Why We Need to Legalize the Undocumented Immigrant Workforce
September 10, 2014
NAM Publishes Bogus Regulatory Cost Estimates
September 11, 2014
NAM’s “Cost of Regulations” Estimate: An Exercise in How Not to Do Convincing Empirics
September 12, 2014
What to Look for in next Week’s Census Income Data: How Long Will It Take to Claw Back Lost Years of Income Growth?
September 16, 2014
Modest Income Growth in 2013 Puts Slight Dent in More than a Decade of Income Losses
September 16, 2014
The Generation-Long Trend Towards Ever-Greater Income Inequality Continues
September 16, 2014
By the Numbers: Income and Poverty, 2013
September 16, 2014
Real Median Household Incomes for all Racial Groups Remain Well Below Their 2007 Levels
September 16, 2014
Poverty Reduction Stalled by Policy, Once Again: Unemployment Insurance Edition
September 18, 2014
The Fed’s Interest Rate Decisions, Census Data on Income and Poverty… and Occupy Wall Street
September 18, 2014
Across the States, Some Modest Improvements, But Incomes are Still Below Where They Were at the Start of the Millenium
September 18, 2014
ACS Data Show Almost No Improvement in State Poverty Rates
September 18, 2014
2013 ACS Shows Depth of Native American Poverty and Different Degrees of Economic Well-Being for Asian Ethnic Groups
September 23, 2014
Now It’s Explicit: Fighting Inflation Is a War to Ensure That Real Wages for the Vast Majority Never Grow
September 25, 2014
LA Hotel Workers Win $15.37 Minimum Wage: a New Day for Labor in the United States?
September 30, 2014
What’s Up (or Down) With the Boomers’ Retirement Savings?!
October 2, 2014
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Nominal Wages, Teacher Gap, and Upward Revisions
October 2, 2014
Myths and Facts about Corporate Taxes, Part 1: Do American Corporations Pay the Highest Taxes in the World?
October 3, 2014
Walton Family Net Worth is a Case Study Why Growing Wealth Concentration Isn’t Just an Academic Worry
October 3, 2014
Wage Growth Continues to be Sluggish
October 3, 2014
The Unemployment Rate Fails to Take into Account Missing Workers
October 3, 2014
Strong Jobs Numbers for Teachers in September, but Large Jobs Gap Remains
October 3, 2014
How Do U.S. Retirees Compare with Those in Other Countries?
October 7, 2014
Job Openings Are Up, but the Hires Rate Is Down
October 7, 2014
Job Seekers Outnumber Jobs by 2-to-1
October 7, 2014
Labor Market Weakness Is Still not due to Workers Lacking the Right Skills
October 7, 2014
The Ridiculousness of a “Liberal Endgame” on Fiscal Policy
October 8, 2014
Why is the Obama Administration on the Wrong Side of a Wage and Hour Case?
October 8, 2014
Is Corporate America Going to the Poorhouse?
October 8, 2014
Post-recession Decline in Black Women’s Wages is Consistent with Occupational Downgrading
October 10, 2014
New Website Contratados.org Brings Transparency Where It’s Lacking: The International Labor Recruitment Industry
October 13, 2014
Another Measure of the Staggering Wage Gaps in the United States: Comparing Walton Family Wealth to Typical Households by Race and Ethnicity
October 15, 2014
What Led Us to the Troubles in Ferguson?
October 15, 2014
Adjective Quibble: The Long-Term Unemployment Rate is NOT “Sticky” or “Stubborn”
October 16, 2014
Jack Lew Sees No Evil: Treasury Fails To Name China as a Currency Manipulator for the 12th Time
October 16, 2014
Right Thing for Wrong Reason? Why Recent Stock Declines Should Not Motivate Fed Interest Rate Moves
October 20, 2014
Businesses Agree—It’s Time To Raise the Minimum Wage
October 23, 2014
Chair Yellen Is Right: Income and Wealth Inequality Hurts Economic Mobility
October 23, 2014
Corporations Are Stealing Your Constitutional Rights: Forced Arbitration Clauses
October 24, 2014
Myths and Facts About Corporate Taxes, Part 2: Will Congress’s Idea of “Base-Broadening, Rate-Lowering Tax Reform” Fix What’s Wrong With Our Corporate Tax Code?
October 24, 2014
The Top 1 Percent of Wage Earners Falters in 2013—Was it a Temporary Event?
October 28, 2014
High-income Households Pay a Large Share of US Taxes—But This Doesn’t Make Our Tax System Progressive
October 29, 2014
Myths and Facts About Corporate Taxes, Part 3: Are American Companies’ Profits Trapped Overseas?
October 31, 2014
Yes, GDP Is Up. But the Recovery Hasn’t Broken Through.
October 31, 2014
Who Among African Americans is Counted in the Labor Market and in the Voting Booth?
October 31, 2014
New Wages and Salaries Data from the Employment Cost Index Show Yet Again It’s Not Quite Time To Declare Mission Accomplished
November 3, 2014
Myths and Facts About Corporate Taxes, Part 4: Should We Just Scrap the Corporate Tax Code?
November 5, 2014
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Nominal Hourly Earnings
November 7, 2014
Economy Adds Jobs but We Need to Raise America’s Pay
November 7, 2014
Sluggish Wage Growth Not Surprising Given the Slack in the Labor Market
November 7, 2014
Keep the Jobs Coming! People of Color Have Actually Benefited More from Job Growth This Year
November 7, 2014
Jobs Growth Far from Strong: It Will Be 2018 Before the Economy Looks like 2007
November 10, 2014
Here We Go Again: The Polluters and Poisoners Gear Up for the Next Congress
November 12, 2014
Little-Known Temporary Visas for Foreign Tech Workers Depress Wages
November 12, 2014
Education Policy is Civil Rights Policy
November 12, 2014
Is Even EPI Too Cautious on Wage Growth? Goldman Sachs Seems to Think So
November 13, 2014
Information Technology Agreement is Another Job Killer
November 13, 2014
What Getting Serious About Wages Doesn’t Look Like: Bipartisan “Tax Reform” and Trade Deals
November 13, 2014
Jobs Seekers Ratio Holds Steady at 2-To-1
November 13, 2014
Jobs Openings are Down, but the Quits Rate is Up
November 13, 2014
The Number of Unemployed Exceeds the Number of Available Jobs Across All Sectors
November 14, 2014
Parsing the Skills Gap in Job Openings and Hires Data
November 16, 2014
The Stakes are High at the Fed
November 17, 2014
Washington Post “Wage Freeze” Brain Freeze
November 18, 2014
The Fortunes of the Top 1 Percent
November 19, 2014
Fair Work Scheduling: Real Solutions and Phony Ones
November 20, 2014
President Obama’s Executive Action on Immigration Will Improve the Wages and Working Conditions of Unauthorized Immigrants and U.S.-Born Workers Alike
November 20, 2014
Why Tax Cuts Aren’t the Answer to Wage Problems
November 20, 2014
The President’s Actions on Immigration Will Make America Better
November 21, 2014
Amazing Black Friday Deals, Brought to You by the American Taxpayer
November 21, 2014
CPI Shows Real Wages Continue to be Flat
November 25, 2014
Another Holiday Tradition: Arguing Economics at the Dinner Table
November 25, 2014
Extending Bad Fiscal Policy with Tax Extenders
December 3, 2014
Adding Good Tax Cuts to Bad Doesn’t Make Tax Extenders a Good Deal
December 4, 2014
Apple and Camp Bow Wow: Sharing Strategies to Keep Wages Low
December 4, 2014
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Unveiling a New Nominal Wage Tracker
December 4, 2014
It Is Indeed Morally Odious to Put Millions of Americans Through Harrowing Pain for Political Advantage
December 5, 2014
Even At 321,000 Jobs a Month, It Will Be Nearly Two Years Before the Economy Looks Like 2007
December 5, 2014
Nominal Wages Continue to Indicate How Far the Economy is from Full Recovery
December 8, 2014
Growing Trans-Pacific Trade Deficits Set the Stage for Growing Trade-Related Job Displacement
December 9, 2014
A Victory for U.S. and Migrant Workers
December 9, 2014
JOLTS Report Mostly on Trend: Jobs-Seekers-To-Job-Openings Ratio Falls Below 2.0 for the First Time Since the Great Recession
December 9, 2014
Little Change in the Job Openings Data for October 2014
December 9, 2014
Still No Skills Mismatch in the Economy: The Number of Unemployed Exceeds the Number of Available Jobs Across All Sectors
December 10, 2014
Congress Again Rewards Tax Dodgers with a Tax Cut
December 11, 2014
Recovery Is Nowhere Near Accomplished, and the Fed Shouldn’t Tighten Policy Until It Is
December 15, 2014
New Trade Agreements will Take Center Stage in 2015. So Will Bad Arguments Made on their Behalf.
December 15, 2014
The Fed’s Language May Change This Week—Let’s Hope It Doesn’t Signal Interest Rates Going up Sooner
December 17, 2014
Even with Recent Low Inflation, Real Wages Continue to Stagnate
December 18, 2014
20 States Raise Their Minimum Wages While the Federal Minimum Continues to Erode
December 22, 2014
There Should Be Overtime Protection—and Pay—For Anyone Paid Less Than $51,000 a Year
December 23, 2014
Five Things We Could Change if the Real World Worked More like the Fictional World of Annie
December 23, 2014
The Economy Really is Doing a Bit Better—So Let’s Not Ruin It
December 29, 2014
The President Set a Goal of Doubling Exports by 2014—Why Haven’t We?
January 7, 2015
Agribusiness Reveals its Dislike of Deferred Action for Unauthorized Immigrants
January 8, 2015
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Looking Back on 2014
January 9, 2015
December Caps of a Year of Strong Job Growth but Stagnant Wages
January 9, 2015
At an Average of 246,000 Jobs a Month in 2014, It Will Be the Summer of 2017 Before We Return to Pre-recession Labor Market Health
January 9, 2015
Little Sign of a Tightening Labor Market
January 9, 2015
Will the Supreme Court Annihilate One of the Most Effective Tools for Battling Racial Segregation in Housing?
January 9, 2015
Single-Digit Black Unemployment May Not be So Far Away
January 13, 2015
Job-Seekers-to-Job-Openings Ratio Continues its Downward Trend in November
January 13, 2015
Little Change in Hires, Quits, or Layoffs in November 2014
January 13, 2015
Still No Sign of a Skills Mismatch—Unemployment is Elevated Across the Board
January 15, 2015
How to Increase Revenue Without Increasing Taxes
January 16, 2015
White House Breaks Silence on Disability Rule
January 16, 2015
Average Real Hourly Wage Growth in 2014 Was No Better Than 2013
January 16, 2015
Paid Leave is Vital to Families’ Economic Security
January 19, 2015
What I Want to Hear in the State of the Union Address
January 20, 2015
The President’s Twofer
January 20, 2015
Trade Agreements or Boosting Wages? We Can’t Do Both
January 27, 2015
New Data Show Top 1 Percent Really are Different from You and Me
January 29, 2015
Congress, Consider the Facts not Fiction before Voting to Repeal the Medical Device Tax
January 30, 2015
Sluggish Wage Growth Continues Throughout 2014
February 2, 2015
A Great Idea: End the Sequester
February 3, 2015
TPP and Provisions to Stop Currency Management: Not That Hard
February 3, 2015
Ideas Good and Not so Good: Infrastructure Investment and Corporate Taxes
February 3, 2015
Obama’s Budget: Mostly a Political Document, and That’s Just Fine
February 5, 2015
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Signs of a Tightening Labor Market?
February 6, 2015
Nominal Wage Growth Still Far Below Target
February 6, 2015
Much Stronger Job Growth is Needed If We’re Going to See a Healthy Economy Any Time Soon
February 6, 2015
Increasing Labor Force Participation Leads to Fewer Missing Workers
February 10, 2015
Job Openings Were Stronger in 2014 than 2013 or 2012, but We Have Still Not Fully Recovered
February 10, 2015
Layoffs and Quits Hold Steady in December
February 10, 2015
The Unemployed Exceed Job Openings in Almost Every Industry
February 10, 2015
Congress and President Obama Cannot Sit Idly By While Companies Use H-1B Guestworkers to Replace American Workers
February 11, 2015
Less Than Half the Truth: Jobs and Wages in Export Industries
February 13, 2015
A Milestone Week for Apple’s Stock, but Not its Workers
February 13, 2015
Wage Theft by Employers is Costing U.S. Workers Billions of Dollars a Year
February 17, 2015
An Open Letter to Sec. of Labor Tom Perez
February 19, 2015
New Data Show How Firms Like Infosys and Tata Abuse the H-1B Program
February 20, 2015
Designed to Deceive: President’s Economic Report on Trade and Globalization
February 20, 2015
A Glimmer of Positive News: Wages Rose for Bottom 10 Percent (Unlike for Everybody Else)
February 20, 2015
Wages Stagnated or Fell Across the Board in 2014—With One Notable Exception
February 20, 2015
Obama Has Options on Immigration: Litigation Will Delay Executive Actions, But Won’t Stop Them
February 26, 2015
Don’t Be Fooled by the Rise in Real Wages in January
March 2, 2015
New Data Add Fuel to Arguments Against the Trans-Pacific Partnership
March 2, 2015
Right-To-Work Laws: Designed To Hurt Unions and Lower Wages
March 3, 2015
Business Roundtable Study Fails the Laugh Test: The U.S. Trade Deficit has Cost Millions of U.S. Jobs
March 3, 2015
California’s Nurse-to-Patient Ratio Law Reduced Nurse Injuries by More Than 30 Percent
March 4, 2015
The Fed’s “Hammer” Can Be Used to Great Effect to Improve Prospects for Minority Workers
March 5, 2015
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Wages and the Labor Force
March 6, 2015
When Can We Be Sure Labor Force Participation Is Healthy Again?
March 6, 2015
Not a Puzzle—Wages Growth is Sluggish Because Employers Hold All the Cards
March 6, 2015
Business Pushes for Delay, Litigation, and One-Sided Access in Union Elections
March 10, 2015
Moving Towards a Tighter Labor Market, But We Are Not There Yet
March 10, 2015
Hires and Quits Rates Remain Depressed
March 10, 2015
There Are Nearly Six Unemployed Construction Workers for Every Construction Job Opening
March 12, 2015
We Shouldn’t Accept the Unacceptable on Wage Growth
March 12, 2015
By Saving Billions in Retiree Health and Pension Benefits, Auto Bailouts Were an Even Bigger Success Than Acknowledged
March 16, 2015
Cutting Unemployment Insurance Hurts Jobless Workers and Our Economy
March 17, 2015
Wages Are Lower in States With These Laws
March 17, 2015
What’s Wrong with the TPP? This deal will lead to more job loss and downward pressures on the wages of most working Americans
March 19, 2015
Luckily, the Fed Still Seems Patient, if Not “Patient”
March 19, 2015
Austerity as a Hazard to Health: Economic and Otherwise
March 20, 2015
The Senate GOP Budget Looks Good Relative to the House GOP Budget, But Not Relative to Much Else
March 20, 2015
Senate Committee Debates Whether to Allow H-1B Guestworkers to Replace U.S. IT Workers
March 24, 2015
Stark Choices: “People’s Budget” vs. Republican Plan
March 27, 2015
No, Post-NAFTA Trade Agreements Are Not Why the US Trade Deficit Improved After the Mid-2000s
March 30, 2015
Should We Force Integration on Those Who Don’t Want It?, and Other Commonplace Questions about Race Relations
March 30, 2015
U.S.-Korea Trade Deal Resulted in Growing Trade Deficits and More Than 75,000 Lost U.S. Jobs
April 1, 2015
No, We’re Not There Yet!: Why Full Employment is a Better Destination than Full Recovery
April 2, 2015
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Weather-Related Revisions, Thoughts on Austerity, Missing Workers, and Nominal Wages
April 2, 2015
The National Retail Federation Hates the Proposed Overtime Rules (Even Though No One Knows What They Are)
April 3, 2015
The Economy Continues to Pay the Price for Austerity
April 3, 2015
Taking the Fall in Atlanta
April 3, 2015
Method Revisions for the Missing Workers Indicator
April 3, 2015
Total Jobs Sputter in March While Wages Continue to Sing the Same Slow Song
April 6, 2015
H-1B Proponents Hide Abuses Behind Phony Claims
April 7, 2015
Another Month, Same Story: Job Openings Data Little Changed in February
April 7, 2015
The Quits Rate Exemplifies a Far From Strong Economy
April 7, 2015
No Worker Shortages, but Some Sectors Show Improved Opportunities
April 8, 2015
Misleading Math on the Korea Free Trade Agreement
April 9, 2015
10 Senators Join in Bipartisan Call to Investigate H-1B Abuse
April 9, 2015
No Surprise, the Money is Not Rolling in from 401(k)s and IRAs
April 10, 2015
The Opportunity Dodge
April 13, 2015
Fast Track to Lost Jobs and Lower Wages
April 14, 2015
Equal Pay Day: Minding the (Gender Wage) Gap
April 15, 2015
Just Say No to the Estate Tax Repeal
April 22, 2015
No, the TPP Won’t Be Good for the Middle Class
April 22, 2015
New Study Confirms that Right-To-Work Laws Are Associated with Significantly Lower Wages
April 23, 2015
Hatch and Ryan: Chasing Mice and Ignoring the Elephants
April 24, 2015
Sluggish Wage Growth Over the Last Year Is Not Due to the Mix of Jobs Being Created
April 28, 2015
Just the Facts: Trade and Investment Deals Are Bad for Working Families
April 28, 2015
Workers Memorial Day: We Need Strong Workplace Safety and Health Protections
April 29, 2015
Stagnant GDP at the Start of 2015 is the Latest Evidence That the Economy Hasn’t Reached Escape Velocity
April 29, 2015
From Ferguson to Baltimore: The Fruits of Government-Sponsored Segregation
April 30, 2015
Skepticism About Trade Deals is Warranted
May 4, 2015
EPI Applauds the Issuance of Two New Rules Implementing the H-2B Visa Program
May 4, 2015
Minimum Wage Increase Hits the Bulls’ Eye
May 5, 2015
CEA Report Is Simply Not That Relevant to Current Trade Policy Debates
May 6, 2015
A $12 Minimum Wage Would Bring the United States in Line with International Peers
May 6, 2015
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Looking for a Pickup in Job Growth, Signs of Wage Growth, and a Glimpse at the Future for the Graduating Class of 2015
May 7, 2015
Indiana Politicians Act to Drive Down Constituents’ Wages
May 8, 2015
Summing Up the Data on Jobs and Wages
May 8, 2015
A $12 Minimum Wage Would Give More Than One in Four Working Moms a Raise
May 8, 2015
Today’s Jobs Data More Evidence That Currency Manipulation Is Not a Problem That’s Behind Us
May 8, 2015
Black Unemployment Rate Falls to Single Digits in April as Black Men Catch Up to Black Women
May 11, 2015
TPP: Obama’s Folly
May 12, 2015
JOLTS Data Suggest a Sideways-Moving Economy
May 13, 2015
The Policy Failures Exposed by the New York Times’ Nail Salon Investigation
May 14, 2015
Job Prospects Have Improved for Graduates, but the Class of 2015 Still Faces a Challenging Labor Market
May 15, 2015
The TPP Debate: Never Real and No Longer Polite
May 15, 2015
Growing Consensus that Labor Market Slack Remains: The Fed Should Stay the Course and Wait to Increase Rates Until the Weakness Has Lessened Substantially
May 18, 2015
H-1B Visas Do Not Create Jobs or Improve Conditions for U.S. Workers
May 18, 2015
More Notes on the Gains From Trade and Who Gets Them
May 20, 2015
Don’t Blame the Poor for the Faults of Our Economy
May 22, 2015
Head Start’s 50th Anniversary
May 28, 2015
Millennials Aren’t Lazy: Millennials Aren’t Working Because the Economy Isn’t Either
May 28, 2015
Yes, Trade Deficits Do Indeed Matter for Jobs
May 29, 2015
Strong Wage Growth Would Complement the Safety Net in Reducing Poverty
June 2, 2015
New Research Does Not Provide Any Reason to Doubt that CEO Pay Fueled Top 1% Income Growth
June 4, 2015
What to Watch on Jobs Day: What’s at Stake at the Upcoming FOMC Meeting and the Outlook for Young Workers
June 4, 2015
Don’t Forget about High School Grads
June 5, 2015
Yes, the Employment Report Was Decent. But No, The Labor Market Isn’t Strong.
June 5, 2015
More Hope about the Labor Market Can Lead to a Higher Unemployment Rate
June 5, 2015
Don’t Pop the Champagne Corks Yet: Putting Year-over-Year Hourly Earnings Growth in Perspective
June 5, 2015
Et Tu, Mickey Mouse? Disney Pads Record Profits by Replacing U.S. Workers with Cheaper H-1B Guestworkers
June 8, 2015
What Can the TPP Offer Canada? Not Much.
June 8, 2015
On Substance, Martin O’Malley Was Right About American Wages: Don’t Let Nitpicks Convince You That There Is Not A Crisis in American Pay
June 8, 2015
Young Black High School Grads Face Astonishing Underemployment
June 9, 2015
Job Openings Rise as the Hires and Quits Rates Remain Stubborn
June 10, 2015
Pension Politics in Pennsylvania
June 10, 2015
The Politics of Fast Track: Exports, Imports and Jobs
June 11, 2015
TiSA: A Secret Trade Agreement That Will Usurp America’s Authority to Make Immigration Policy
June 13, 2015
TPP Panic: Playing the China Card
June 16, 2015
National Retail Federation Report Suggests Huge Positive Impact for Labor Department Overtime Rules
June 16, 2015
Hatch Should Fix H-1B Visa Program Instead of Expand It
June 16, 2015
The True Cost of Low Prices is Exploited Workers
June 18, 2015
Disney Reverses 35 Layoffs, but No Fairytale Ending for Thousands of Others Displaced by H-1B Visa Program
June 18, 2015
Former Labor Secretaries and EPI Board Members F. Ray Marshall and Robert Reich oppose TPA and TPP
June 22, 2015
Top CEO Compensation Soars, and Why We Do Not Look at “Average CEOs”
June 23, 2015
Hall of Shame: 13 Democrats Who Voted to End Debate on Fast-Track Trade Legislation
June 24, 2015
Time to End the Vicious Cycle of Inequality Begetting Unequal Education
June 26, 2015
Refugees Deserve Support in America, Not Just a Home
June 26, 2015
An Updated Analysis of Who Would Benefit from an Increased Overtime Salary Threshold
June 29, 2015
Are Disability Rates Increasing?
June 30, 2015
What the New Proposed Overtime Rules Mean for Workers
June 30, 2015
Majority of Workers Who Will Benefit from Updated Overtime Rules are Women
July 1, 2015
What to Watch on Jobs Day: The Coast is in Sight, but We’re Still Navigating the High Seas
July 1, 2015
Are Disability Benefits Becoming More Generous?
July 2, 2015
As Summer Jobs Season Begins, Teens Make Headway for the First Time Since 2012
July 2, 2015
The Drop in the Unemployment Rate Is Not a Sign the Tides are Turning
July 2, 2015
Paltry Wage Growth in June Is Another Sign the Economy Is Only Sputtering Along
July 2, 2015
Public Sector Employment Is Stuck in the Doldrums
July 3, 2015
How Overtime Rules Could Help the Middle Class
July 4, 2015
Professor Hubbard’s Claim about Wage and Compensation Stagnation Is Not True
July 6, 2015
Supreme Court: Fair Housing Act Bars Policies that Segregate, even if Segregation is not Intentional
July 7, 2015
The Game Is Rigged Against Hardworking Americans
July 8, 2015
Do Disability Benefits Reduce Work Effort?
July 13, 2015
Clinton Speech Confirms That Presidential Campaigns Will Focus on Wage Stagnation
July 15, 2015
Does Disability Insurance Reduce Labor Force Participation?
July 20, 2015
Do Disability Trends Reflect a Liberalization of the Program’s Medical Criteria?
July 29, 2015
Inequality is Central to the Productivity-Pay Gap
July 30, 2015
Summing up Today’s GDP Data Release
August 4, 2015
Risk Shift and the Gig Economy
August 6, 2015
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Preparing for September’s Fed Meeting
August 6, 2015
Exploring EPI’s Minimum Wage Tracker
August 6, 2015
Paid Sick Leave is a Win for Workers and the Economy
August 7, 2015
Prime-Age Employment-to-Population Ratio Remains Terribly Depressed
August 7, 2015
Slow Wage Growth is Certainly Not a Sign of the “Some Further Improvement” Needed for the Fed to Raise Rates
August 11, 2015
On Immigration, Bernie Sanders is Correct
August 12, 2015
Job Openings Data Suggest the Economy is Chugging Along, Albeit Slowly
August 12, 2015
By Devaluing Its Currency, China Exports Its Unemployment
August 14, 2015
Social Security at 80: Built to Last
August 14, 2015
Four Pinocchios for the Washington Post Fact Checker
August 17, 2015
Congress Must Act to Save the 190,000 to 640,000 U.S. Jobs at Risk Due to Chinese Currency Devaluation
August 17, 2015
Breaking News: The Rich Discover Inequality
August 19, 2015
Soft Bigotry of Low Expectations, U.S. Growth Version
August 21, 2015
Why Nonprofits Shouldn’t Fret Over the New Proposed Overtime Rules
August 24, 2015
How Worried Should We Be About the Stock Market’s Recent Declines?
August 26, 2015
Why Recent Stock Volatility Shouldn’t Factor Into Interest-Rate Hikes
August 27, 2015
Victory for Home Care Workers Bodes Well for Overtime Rule
August 28, 2015
Walgreens’s ‘No Overtime’ Rule: Why I Support Raising the Overtime Threshold
September 1, 2015
NLRB Decision in Browning-Ferris Restores Employer Accountability for Wages and Working Conditions
September 3, 2015
What to Watch on Jobs Day: The Economy Needs to Simmer for a While, Not Cool Off
September 3, 2015
Netflix’s Paid Parental Leave Policy Reflects a Sad Reality Facing Working Families
September 4, 2015
Why a Pro-Worker Agenda is an Anti-Poverty Agenda
September 4, 2015
The Bottom Line of this Jobs Report: The Fed Should Hold the Line and Let the Economy Continue to Recover
September 4, 2015
African American Youth Experienced the Largest Boost in Summer Labor Force Participation and Employment
September 8, 2015
Fisher II—Could a Surprise be in Store?
September 8, 2015
Will Republicans Cut Budgets for Worker Safety, Pension Protection, and Wage and Hour Enforcement?
September 9, 2015
JOLTS Report is Evidence of an Economy Moving Sideways
September 10, 2015
H-2B Wage Rule Loophole Lets Employers Exploit Migrant Workers
September 11, 2015
There’s More to Economic Security than the Official Poverty Measure
September 14, 2015
What to Watch in the Census Poverty and Income Data
September 16, 2015
Income Stagnation in 2014 Shows the Economy Is Not Working for Most Families
September 16, 2015
By the Numbers: Income and Poverty, 2014
September 16, 2015
New Census Data Show No Progress in Closing Stubborn Racial Income Gaps
September 16, 2015
The Real Stakes for This Week’s Fed Decision on Interest Rates
September 17, 2015
Wrong Question Answered Badly: Industry Data Can’t Be Used To Infer Individuals’ Productivity
September 17, 2015
Poverty Day Numbers Show the Need for Higher Wages
September 18, 2015
Workers 65 and Older Are 3 Times as Likely to Die From an On-the-Job Injury as the Average Worker
September 18, 2015
State-Level Data Show Incomes Continue to Stagnate in Households Across the Map
September 18, 2015
In Virtually Every State, the Poverty Rate is Still Higher than Before the Recession
September 22, 2015
Pope Francis reminds us that our economic systems should reflect our moral values
September 24, 2015
Disability and Employment Revisited
September 30, 2015
The Case Against Raising Interest Rates Before Wage Growth Picks Up
September 30, 2015
New Scandals Revealed by the New York Times: How the H-1B Visa is Used to Ship American Jobs Overseas
September 30, 2015
What to Watch on Jobs Day: The Teacher Gap, Wages, and Prime-age EPOP
October 2, 2015
Disappointing Jobs Numbers and Not Enough Teachers
October 5, 2015
Tax on expensive health insurance plans could cut care along with costs
October 7, 2015
Human resources group shoots at Obama overtime rule but misses
October 7, 2015
ACA excise tax on expensive health plans is an unambiguous pay cut
October 9, 2015
Failure to stem dollar appreciation has put manufacturing recovery in reverse
October 9, 2015
Urban Outfitters gets into the holiday spirit by asking its employees to work for free
October 16, 2015
More of the same: JOLTS is continued evidence of a slow moving economy
October 19, 2015
Pennsylvania’s upcoming budget decision highlights the choice facing states across the country
October 22, 2015
The Republican Study Committee wants to ratchet austerity up well past the sequester
October 28, 2015
Does the budget deal include benefit cuts?
October 28, 2015
Disney H-1B Scandal in Spotlight Again: Meet The American Workers Whose Jobs and Careers Were Destroyed by the H-1B Program
October 30, 2015
Disappointing NAEP scores and the questions they raise
November 2, 2015
Forced binding arbitration robs workers and consumers of basic rights
November 3, 2015
Wages for top earners soared in 2014: Fly top 0.1 percent, fly
November 3, 2015
Brookings paper on the Postal Service gets the facts wrong
November 5, 2015
What to watch on Jobs Day: Job growth has only been fast enough to keep up with population growth
November 5, 2015
Where can we find hope for our schools?
November 6, 2015
Looking beyond the topline employment number: Public-sector jobs remain depressed
November 6, 2015
The National Association of Home Builders’ evidence supports DOL’s proposed rule on overtime
November 12, 2015
Hiring lags as economy slows over the summer
November 16, 2015
Bad tax or no tax? The ACA excise tax debate, continued
November 18, 2015
Closing the pay gap and beyond: A brief explanation of the motivation behind EPI’s Women’s Economic Agenda
November 19, 2015
Reauthorizing ESEA: a first step in returning education to its roots
November 19, 2015
Remarks by Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro at the unveiling of EPI’s Women’s Economic Agenda
November 20, 2015
Closing loopholes in Buy American Act could create up to 100,000 U.S. jobs
December 1, 2015
The Department of Homeland Security’s proposed STEM OPT extension fails to protect foreign students and American workers
December 3, 2015
What to watch on Jobs Day: The call for a rate increase is not backed up by wage data
December 4, 2015
December Interest Rate Increase: Will the Fed Raise Rates vs. Should It
December 8, 2015
The labor market still recovering: We should let it
December 8, 2015
Republicans and some Democrats defend financial advice that’s not worth getting
December 15, 2015
Remarks by Josh Bivens on why it is too soon for the Fed to slow the economy
December 15, 2015
States and districts must fulfill the promise of more equity in education offered by new education law
December 15, 2015
No evidence of labor shortages but Congress considering giving H-2B employers access to more exploitable and underpaid guestworkers
December 16, 2015
Labor Department’s common sense fiduciary rule survives the House of Representatives
December 17, 2015
Sen. Mikulski wrecks labor standards in H-2B guestworker program
December 21, 2015
The worst part of the Fed’s rate increase? It wasn’t data-driven
January 7, 2016
What to Watch on Jobs Day: A 2015 Wrap Up
January 8, 2016
Recovery is still in full swing for African American workers
January 8, 2016
The labor market is still moving in the right direction, but has a ways to go before reaching full employment
January 8, 2016
An honest discussion of how to reduce poverty: strengthen the safety net and raise wages across the board
January 11, 2016
National Association of Manufacturers’ criticisms of the Obama overtime proposal all miss their mark
January 12, 2016
The road to full employment is long, but we are moving in the right direction
January 12, 2016
Friedrichs case threatens to push down wages for workers beyond the public sector
January 14, 2016
An annotated reading of Obama’s flawed framing of wage and income problems in the SOTU
January 21, 2016
The lead crisis in Flint will affect the city for years to come
January 21, 2016
14 states raised their minimum wage at the beginning of 2016, lifting the wages of more than 4.6 million working people
January 26, 2016
The Lilly Ledbetter Act is part of a more ambitious women’s economic agenda
January 28, 2016
The Obama administration pushes for a better response to unemployment
January 28, 2016
The labor rights of four million migrants hang in the balance at the Supreme Court
January 29, 2016
NPR report reveals the real reason why agricultural employers prefer guestworkers
February 4, 2016
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Will we finally reach full employment in 2016?
February 5, 2016
Should we care about slow nominal wage growth when price inflation is slow? YES.
February 5, 2016
Despite seemingly stable U.S. trade balance, rapidly growing trade deficits in non-oil goods could lead to American job losses
February 9, 2016
When quitting is a good thing
February 10, 2016
The Fed shouldn’t accept the “new normal” without a fight
February 10, 2016
Workers, and honest employers, need a strong OSHA
February 11, 2016
Republicans (and two Democrats) in Congress want to derail commonsense protections for workers
February 18, 2016
How we can save $17 billion in public assistance—annually
February 26, 2016
Inflation makes proposed minimum wage increases more modest than they appear
March 2, 2016
What to watch on Jobs Day: No evidence for another rate hike
March 4, 2016
Durbin and Sessions agree H-1B guestworker program must be fixed to protect migrant and American tech workers
March 10, 2016
The fastest growth in wage inequality between men happened in 2015
March 15, 2016
Introducing the People’s Budget
March 16, 2016
Fed should keep rates steady to keep targets from turning into ceilings
March 16, 2016
New legislation could help end wage theft epidemic
March 17, 2016
Some good news and some bad news in today’s JOLTS report
March 17, 2016
The president could create 100,000 jobs for young Americans by ending J-1 Summer Work Travel
March 17, 2016
House Republicans cling to false promise of austerity in their budget resolution
March 22, 2016
What second graders can teach us about inequality
March 24, 2016
The long-awaited silica rule is a step forward for workers
March 30, 2016
Are employee contributions essential to unemployment insurance?
March 31, 2016
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Signs of more workers returning to the economy and increases in their wages
April 1, 2016
The U.S. Women’s Soccer Team shows us just how much is at stake in the gender wage gap
April 1, 2016
California and New York’s bold $15 minimum wage proposals are exactly what we need
April 5, 2016
We need to keep translating job openings into hires to reach full employment
April 5, 2016
Treasury acts to curb inversions
April 6, 2016
The first of a wave of junk economic reports about the new overtime rule has washed ashore
April 6, 2016
Commonsense rule to protect investors from conflicted advice survives industry onslaught
April 7, 2016
Putting things in perspective: Bernie Sanders, trade, and poor countries’ access to U.S. markets
April 7, 2016
Trump’s debt proposal is a mix of conventional and unconventional stupidity
April 12, 2016
Wisconsin’s so-called right to work law has been ruled unconstitutional
April 14, 2016
Verizon shows us why strikes—and unions—matter for working people
April 14, 2016
TIME runs incoherent rant on U.S. debt as cover story
April 14, 2016
On renaming the Woodrow Wilson School: The standards of his time, and ours
April 18, 2016
Paul Ryan failed to pass a Republican budget resolution—but that’s good news
April 18, 2016
U.S. trade policy: Populist anger or out-of-touch elites?
April 19, 2016
It’s not a puzzle if American workers oppose trade agreements
April 20, 2016
New legislation would bring transparency to America’s immigration system and help fight human trafficking
April 20, 2016
Clarification on trade and American workers: right criticism, poorly targeted
April 20, 2016
Universities, inequality, and the overtime rule
April 21, 2016
By failing to eliminate the tipped minimum wage, D.C. Mayor Bowser continues a legacy of inequality
April 26, 2016
Tired of economists’ misdirection on globalization
April 26, 2016
How bad are Trump’s policy instincts? He’s taking tax advice from Kansas governor Sam Brownback
April 28, 2016
Workers’ Memorial Day
April 29, 2016
Restoring overtime will benefit millions of working people
April 29, 2016
Weak productivity can be improved by full employment
May 3, 2016
College degrees are not the solution to stagnating wages or inequality
May 4, 2016
ANCOR vastly overstates the impact of the overtime rule on community service providers
May 4, 2016
What to watch on Jobs Day: Wages, wages, and more wages
May 5, 2016
U.S.-Korea trade deal resulted in growing trade deficits and more than 95,000 lost U.S. jobs
May 5, 2016
The White House attacks the spread of abusive non-compete agreements
May 6, 2016
A disappointing jobs report overall
May 9, 2016
Housing segregation undergirds the nation’s racial inequities
May 10, 2016
Hires need to pick up to eat away at the weak employment-to-population ratio
May 12, 2016
Explaining to Kevin Drum why we’re not happy about young high school grads’ recovery, and why he shouldn’t be either
May 13, 2016
Trump’s official tax plan blatantly contradicts his populist rhetoric
May 17, 2016
What will an updated overtime rule mean for millions of workers?
May 19, 2016
ITC study shows minimal benefits and downplays potentially high costs of Trans-Pacific Partnership
May 20, 2016
As talk grows of a June interest rate increase, where’s the data to support it?
May 20, 2016
How one Missouri school district took on poverty (and a tornado)
May 20, 2016
Explaining the differences between EPI and DOL estimates of workers affected by the new overtime salary threshold
May 23, 2016
Arguments that better overtime pay protection means less flexibility are untrue
May 23, 2016
GAO report on segregation misses the bigger picture
May 24, 2016
Uber and arbitration: A lethal combination
May 25, 2016
Universities oppose paying their postdocs overtime, but will pay football coaches millions of dollars
May 26, 2016
Larry Summers, the Congressional Progressive Caucus Budget, and the abandonment of fiscal policy
May 26, 2016
Fixing overtime won’t increase underemployment
June 1, 2016
The overtime rule is the beginning of a much-needed cultural shift
June 1, 2016
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Is wage growth really strong enough for the Fed to raise rates?
June 3, 2016
Why interest rate increases aren’t the solution to slow housing growth
June 3, 2016
Jobs report suggests last month’s blip may be turning into an unfortunate trend
June 7, 2016
Washington Post accuses Obama and Democrats of pandering on Social Security
June 8, 2016
Streak of underwhelming economic news continues with JOLTS
June 10, 2016
Brexit would hit the UK economy much harder than its promoters expect
June 15, 2016
Math problems at the Education and Workforce Committee
June 16, 2016
American pay and productivity for typical workers: Still not growing together
June 17, 2016
Implications of globalization and secular stagnation for monetary policy
June 17, 2016
Connecting the dots on the divergence between pay and productivity
June 17, 2016
The substance and impact of the H-2B guestworker program appropriations riders some members of Congress are trying to renew
June 22, 2016
A deficit of trust
June 23, 2016
Supreme Court immigration decision means millions of workers will be deprived of crucial labor protections
June 28, 2016
Brexit: The end of globalization as we know it?
June 29, 2016
Paul Ryan’s tax reform taps noted fiscal policy experts Donald Trump and Sam Brownback
June 29, 2016
The Trump trade scam
July 1, 2016
Paul Ryan’s tax plan is just a shift toward less obvious tax breaks for the rich
July 6, 2016
Paul Ryan’s tax reform is an even worse giveaway on the corporate side
July 7, 2016
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Putting employment growth in perspective in advance of Friday’s Jobs Report
July 8, 2016
Strong job growth in June inspires optimism after recent weaker reports
July 11, 2016
What Gretchen Carlson and immigrant janitors have in common: forced arbitration
July 12, 2016
Jamie Dimon’s blinders
July 12, 2016
Did we just witness a shift on immigration policy from Hillary Clinton?
July 28, 2016
Raising the minimum wage could improve public health
August 2, 2016
Free trade in moral hypocrisy
August 2, 2016
Worst recovery in postwar era largely explained by cuts in government spending
August 4, 2016
What to Watch on Jobs Day: The road to full employment happens cumulatively over many months
August 9, 2016
Trump’s plan for the economy does little to help working people
August 9, 2016
Melania Trump visa issues highlight lack of regulation and enforcement in temporary visa programs
August 12, 2016
A tale of two speeches
August 18, 2016
Operation Smile’s misleading opposition to the new overtime rules
August 22, 2016
Top 10 H-1B employers are all IT offshore outsourcing firms, costing U.S. workers tens of thousands of jobs
August 23, 2016
Look to the 1990s, not the 1970s, for the right lessons to guide today’s monetary policy
August 23, 2016
Why is President Obama making one last push for the TPP?
August 24, 2016
Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order makes contracting system more accountable
August 30, 2016
Rising wage inequality continues to be a defining feature of the U.S. labor market
September 1, 2016
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Beyond the headline numbers
September 1, 2016
Looking at the latest wage data by education level
September 2, 2016
Looking under the hood of today’s jobs report
September 2, 2016
Manufacturing job loss: the consequences of malign neglect of the dollar and Chinese overcapacity
September 7, 2016
Top H-1B employers use visa program for temporary labor—not as bridge to permanent immigration
September 9, 2016
What to watch for in the Census income and poverty data
September 13, 2016
Superb income growth in 2015 nearly single-handedly restored incomes lost in the Great Recession
September 13, 2016
By the Numbers: Income and Poverty, 2015
September 13, 2016
Income gains in 2015 don’t reverse long-run trend toward greater inequality
September 13, 2016
Poverty declined in 2015 by all measures; government programs, once again, kept millions above the poverty line
September 13, 2016
New Census data show strong 2015 earnings growth across the board, with black and Hispanic workers seeing the fastest growth
September 15, 2016
Poverty rates decrease throughout the states in 2015
September 15, 2016
Nationwide increases in income are visible at the state level
September 20, 2016
Raising rates, even a little, will slow the economy and slow progress in reducing unemployment
September 22, 2016
September Fed decision was the right one for communities of color
September 27, 2016
Freeing corporate profits from their fair share of taxes is not the deal America needs
October 3, 2016
$916 million losses aside, there are many ways Trump could avoid paying taxes
October 4, 2016
Don’t Be Fooled: The TPP Is Not About National Security
October 6, 2016
What to Watch on Jobs Day: The teacher gap, and how today’s unemployment masks continued weakness in the economy
October 13, 2016
Race tax harms African Americans
October 14, 2016
Lawsuit filed to block Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order
October 20, 2016
Buried in the fine print: Forced arbitration
October 25, 2016
White House issues call to action on non-compete clauses
October 26, 2016
A women’s economic agenda for the 45th U.S. president: Investing in the infrastructure to support a 21st century economy
October 27, 2016
Oregon Measure 97 would provide short and long-run boost to Oregon economy
October 27, 2016
Strong across-the-board wage growth in 2015 for both bottom 90 percent and top 1.0 percent
October 31, 2016
Fed should hold steady—the economy had “room to run” over past year and may well have more in the next year
November 1, 2016
What the UK decision implies for Uber drivers in the U.S.
November 2, 2016
What to Watch on Jobs Day: A steadily improving, but still-weak labor market for the next president
November 4, 2016
Setting a higher bar for the economy—and policymakers
November 7, 2016
The TPP is a back door for dumped and subsidized imports from China; it would enhance, not limit, China’s influence in the region
November 9, 2016
How will a Trump administration lift wages for the vast majority of Americans?
November 15, 2016
CBO inflates its estimates of employer compliance costs
November 22, 2016
Trump’s infrastructure plan is not a simple public-private partnership plan, and won’t lead to much new investment
November 23, 2016
Already a big gap between Trump’s promises to the middle class and his policies
November 30, 2016
Ruling against overtime is wrong in so many ways
December 1, 2016
The moral of the Trump/Carrier deal is clear: if you’re useful to Trump, he might be willing to throw other workers overboard to help you
December 1, 2016
What to Watch on Jobs Day: The economy is still moving towards full employment. The Fed should keep their foot off the brake so it can get there.
December 1, 2016
The injunction against overtime has real consequences for people’s lives
December 2, 2016
Memo to inflation hawks: We are not at full employment
December 5, 2016
Overtime ruling is wrong on the precedent, as well as the facts
December 5, 2016
What Ben Carson should learn about housing segregation
December 6, 2016
Public-sector compensation should be a model for the private sector—instead, it’s under attack
December 7, 2016
North Carolina voters’ anger about privatized infrastructure projects should serve as a warning to policymakers
December 8, 2016
Heed union leader’s truth-telling on Trump/Carrier deal and judge on policy, not theatrics
December 9, 2016
Andrew Puzder fails every test for a Labor Secretary
December 12, 2016
How the Fed can fix one way the economy really is rigged: Restore the pursuit of full employment as their job number one
December 13, 2016
We can’t meaningfully integrate schools without desegregating neighborhoods
December 15, 2016
SoftBank: Great press, bad for manufacturing, services, and the economy
December 15, 2016
Criminal justice policy is education policy
December 20, 2016
In time for Christmas: a “progressive” Social Security plan Scrooge would love
December 23, 2016
UN Special Rapporteur offers sharp criticism of American temporary foreign worker programs
December 23, 2016
The Obama legacy: creating more, better jobs
January 3, 2017
The new year brings higher wages for 4.3 million workers across the country
January 4, 2017
Why unemployment will keep dropping in 2017
January 4, 2017
401(k)s are an accident of history
January 5, 2017
What to watch on Jobs Day: The year in review
January 6, 2017
The economy has made great strides since the recession began, but there is still work to be done
January 10, 2017
The Obama legacy on wages
January 12, 2017
A tale of two states (and what it tells us about so-called “right-to-work” laws)
January 13, 2017
Sen. Tom Cotton misses the mark on immigration and wages
January 13, 2017
Why taxpayers are getting a bargain from public-sector workers
January 17, 2017
Paid sick leave provides economic and health security to over a million federal contract workers
January 19, 2017
Another reason women will march on Saturday—for better wages and greater economic security
January 19, 2017
So-called “right-to-work” laws will lower wages for union and nonunion workers in Missouri
January 19, 2017
The increased diversity of New York City union construction employment
January 24, 2017
President Trump’s alternative facts have foreigners and bureaucrats, not the top 1 percent, reaping the gains from economic growth
January 26, 2017
Racial gaps in wages, wealth, and more: a quick recap
January 27, 2017
8 years of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act
January 30, 2017
Trump’s jobs goals would require massive immigration or forcing elderly Americans to work at unprecedented rates
January 31, 2017
Trump leaving LGBTQ nondiscrimination executive order in place signals approval of reasonable mandates for federal contractors
February 1, 2017
Fed likely to stand pat today on interest rates: Right call, but important to understand why
February 1, 2017
What to Watch on Jobs Day: President Trump inherits a slowly but steadily recovering economy
February 3, 2017
My alma mater has its priorities all wrong
February 6, 2017
Don’t fix what isn’t broken: Why Betsy DeVos’ radical agenda for U.S. public education makes no sense
February 7, 2017
No wage thief should be labor secretary
February 7, 2017
Increased U.S. trade deficit in 2016 illustrates dangers of malign neglect of the dollar
February 8, 2017
Puzder hearing scheduled—now senators have an opportunity to show where they stand
February 9, 2017
Valentine’s Day is better on the west coast (at least for restaurant servers)
February 10, 2017
If Trump follows Walker’s model, he will betray his base
February 13, 2017
The racial wealth gap: How African-Americans have been shortchanged out of the materials to build wealth
February 14, 2017
Brad DeLong is far too lenient on trade policy’s role in generating economic distress for American workers
February 15, 2017
Heads up—the GOP is helping Wall Street pick your pocket
February 22, 2017
Paul Booth: A tireless advocate for working people
February 22, 2017
Move over, Congress: Let states do the right thing to help working families save for retirement
February 24, 2017
Trump is right to criticize NAFTA—but he’s totally wrong about why it’s bad for America
February 24, 2017
Why records matter to worker safety
February 28, 2017
The Affordable and Safe Prescription Drug Importation Act is what real health reform looks like
February 28, 2017
Trump’s Plan for Trade: The last thing we need is more trade deals
February 28, 2017
Congress is laser-focused on rolling back protections for workers, consumers, and the environment
March 1, 2017
Chamber of Commerce’s recommendations to the NLRB would roll back workers’ rights to the Stone Age
March 1, 2017
Trump administration wants to delay rule protecting savers from conflicted investment advice
March 6, 2017
Federal contract workers need the protection of the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces rule
March 7, 2017
It’s time we acknowledge women’s contributions to the economy—and how much bigger a role they would play in a more inclusive economy
March 9, 2017
Janet Yellen, not Donald Trump, is far more likely to decide whether or not we reach genuine full employment in 2017
March 9, 2017
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Policymakers can’t claim credit for the continuation of a trend
March 10, 2017
The economy will continue to improve, as long as policymakers don’t thwart its progress
March 13, 2017
Everyone wins if the GOP health plan fails, even Republicans
March 14, 2017
Senator Baldwin is right: AHCA is particularly great for health insurance CEOs, bad for almost everybody else
March 14, 2017
Costs will rise and coverage will fall under the AHCA
March 15, 2017
The Fed’s rate hike is not surprising, but it is disappointing
March 15, 2017
Does Alexander Acosta still think undocumented workers deserve protection?
March 16, 2017
Trump’s budget proposal plans a disaster for public investment
March 17, 2017
Shortchanging education, training, and R&D is no way to make America great again
March 21, 2017
Farmworker wages in California: Large gap between full-time equivalent and actual earnings
March 22, 2017
Preventing workplace injuries depends on good record-keeping
March 24, 2017
Repealing prevailing wage laws hurts construction workers
March 27, 2017
Low-wage African American workers have increased annual work hours most since 1979
March 31, 2017
Modern-day Braceros: The United States has 450,000 guestworkers in low-wage jobs and doesn’t need more
March 31, 2017
Policy Watch: Tracking Congress and the administration’s rollback of workers’ rights
April 3, 2017
Unions help narrow the gender wage gap
April 4, 2017
Trump administration trade policy review misses the big picture
April 5, 2017
Workers are never better off under comp time than overtime—and they are typically worse off
April 5, 2017
Stop looking to the federal government on early childhood education
April 6, 2017
What to Watch on Jobs Day: The Fed should keep their foot off the brake and let the economy reach genuine full employment
April 7, 2017
Policy Watch: Amid a busy week, Congress and the president find time to roll back protections for working people
April 10, 2017
Expand Social Security, don’t revive 17th century tontines
April 11, 2017
A modest proposal for increasing workplace flexibility
April 12, 2017
Legal does not mean safe: The fate of chemical protections for workers in the Trump era
April 13, 2017
The H-2A farm guestworker program is expanding rapidly: Here are the numbers you need to know
April 14, 2017
Trump spurns working Americans by abandoning efforts to realign U.S.-China exchange rate
April 18, 2017
Likeliest outcome of tax reform is a deficit-financed tax cut for the rich that will expire in a decade
April 19, 2017
How President Trump and congressional Republicans are undercutting wages and protections for working people
April 26, 2017
Trump’s opening bid for tax reform is more tax cuts and loopholes for the rich
April 26, 2017
Congress should oppose Acosta’s confirmation and demand a pro-worker secretary of labor
April 27, 2017
Workers’ Memorial Day: If your loved one died at work, what would you want their legacy to be?
April 28, 2017
Policy Watch: President Trump has had help implementing his anti-worker agenda
May 1, 2017
Union busters are more prevalent than they seem, and may soon even be at the NLRB
May 1, 2017
Does Trump’s tax plan help families pay for child and dependent care expenses?
May 2, 2017
Does Trump really believe U.S. companies should “Hire American?” Not if he allows Congress to expand the H-2B guestworker program.
May 2, 2017
The People’s Budget, not Trump’s budget, will help working Americans
May 2, 2017
What’s your excuse for opposing state retirement initiatives, senator?
May 4, 2017
The AHCA-but-worse plan should not be passed by the House today
May 4, 2017
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Signs of tightening across the economy
May 4, 2017
The hidden sides of NAEP: girls, art, and empowerment
May 5, 2017
Policy Watch: House Republicans vote to strip health care from millions
May 5, 2017
Policymakers shouldn’t assume slack is gone and should push for faster wage growth
May 11, 2017
African American women stand out as working moms play a larger economic role in families
May 12, 2017
Policy Watch: Congress blocks 14 Obama-era rules in an unprecedented blitz of CRA votes
May 16, 2017
Brown v. Board is 63 years old. Was the Supreme Court’s school desegregation ruling a failure?
May 18, 2017
Corporate power in state legislatures produces a gerrymandered Congress
May 19, 2017
Policy Watch: Republican antiregulatory agenda continues despite losing the CRA
May 23, 2017
American workers lose $1.2 billion in 2017 due to delay in update of overtime rules
May 23, 2017
Good news for retirement savers—the fiduciary rule will become applicable June 9th
May 23, 2017
President Trump’s budget kicks people when they’re down
May 23, 2017
Trump budget proposal is a potential jobs-killer, imposing a major fiscal drag that would radically slow job growth in coming years
May 24, 2017
Trump’s budget tried to side-step taxes. Today’s Ways and Means hearing with Treasury Secretary Mnuchin should not.
May 25, 2017
Trump’s budget will harm older workers by cutting Social Security disability payments
May 25, 2017
Costs will still rise significantly and coverage will still fall considerably under the new AHCA
May 26, 2017
Policy Watch: Trump budget weakens protections for working people
May 26, 2017
H-2B crabpickers are so important to the Maryland seafood industry that they get paid $3 less per hour than the state or local average wage
May 30, 2017
Under new bill’s election standard, unions would never win an election—and neither would the bill’s cosponsors
June 1, 2017
What to Watch on Jobs Day? Hopeful signs of stronger wage growth
June 2, 2017
Unemployment rate fell in May for the wrong reasons: Slack still remains
June 5, 2017
As the Trump administration kicks off “infrastructure week”, remember that its recent budget is an absolute disaster for public investment
June 5, 2017
Trump’s infrastructure plans are empty promises not backed by money
June 6, 2017
The data are in…and show that the fiduciary rule will help retirement savers
June 7, 2017
A couple lesser-known bits of mayhem in the Financial CHOICE Act
June 9, 2017
People in states represented by the cosponsors of the CHOICE Act lose $12.1 billion each year due to conflicted retirement advice
June 9, 2017
Policy Watch: Another week of weakening labor laws and making us more susceptible to a financial crisis
June 13, 2017
By rescinding the persuader rule, Trump is once again siding with corporate interests over working people
June 15, 2017
Investing in good construction jobs can build a better South
June 15, 2017
Does corporate America see a future in the United States?
June 16, 2017
Policy Watch: Trump and Congress diligently work to strip working people of hard-fought rights
June 16, 2017
In virtually unprecedented move, Trump Solicitor General switches sides in Murphy Oil case
June 19, 2017
Apprenticeship Weak: Trump proposal fails to tap into apprenticeship’s potential
June 20, 2017
Working people deserve schedules that work
June 20, 2017
Rescheduling—now is a good time for its reintroduction!
June 22, 2017
Unpaid congressional internships: bad for students, bad for policy
June 28, 2017
OSHA proposes to delay recordkeeping rule
June 30, 2017
With federal inaction, states continue to step up in providing paid sick days to their workers and families
July 3, 2017
DHS and DOL should focus on improving protections for H-2B and U.S. workers rather than expanding a flawed guestworker program
July 6, 2017
What to watch on jobs day? The kind of strength that will accelerate the pace of the recovery
July 7, 2017
The black unemployment rate returns to historic low, but not really
July 11, 2017
Class action waivers rob workers of the freedom to negotiate with their employer
July 11, 2017
Steel and aluminum trade restraints are good first steps, but not nearly enough to rebuild manufacturing
July 12, 2017
On labor nominations, what a difference a president makes
July 13, 2017
Why the UN Global Compact on Migration matters
July 13, 2017
Deregulation can kill you
July 13, 2017
Healthcare’s biggest losers, part two: How the Senate’s TrumpCare bill can increase your state taxes
July 14, 2017
State lawmakers in Missouri just undercut wages for 38,000 workers in St. Louis
July 14, 2017
Missouri’s new preemption law cheats 38,000 workers out of a raise
July 14, 2017
Policy Watch: Cuts to DOL budget, attacks on joint employer standard
July 18, 2017
The UN Global Compact and labor migration: What can we expect?
July 19, 2017
Young workers face a tougher labor market even as the economy inches towards full employment
July 21, 2017
Policy Watch: Spring Regulatory Agenda puts corporations first
July 28, 2017
Black women have to work 7 months into 2017 to be paid the same as white men in 2016
July 28, 2017
Trump admin works to roll back worker protections before the president leaves on vacation
August 1, 2017
First half 2017 data reveal broadly based wage growth, but inequality persists
August 1, 2017
What the Nissan union fight in Mississippi is really about
August 1, 2017
Agricultural guestworkers: The challenge of the expanding H-2A program
August 2, 2017
Wages for workers with a high school degree or less rose the fastest over the last year
August 3, 2017
The Montgomery County minimum wage impact study is absurd junk science
August 3, 2017
What to watch on jobs day: Hoping for stronger nominal wage growth as the economy continues to inch toward full employment
August 10, 2017
U.S. corporations pay a far lower effective tax rate than the statutory rate would indicate—and a recent CBO study doesn’t actually contradict this
August 10, 2017
Murphy Oil may be the last workers’ rights case the Supreme Court has the opportunity to consider
August 21, 2017
Renegotiating NAFTA is putting lipstick on a pig
August 24, 2017
House Speaker Paul Ryan gets innovative in spreading misleading international tax comparisons
August 25, 2017
Is poverty a mindset?
August 30, 2017
Repeal of pay transparency rule will make it easier to discriminate against women and people of color
August 31, 2017
What to Watch on Jobs Day: A stronger economy for American workers for Labor Day
September 1, 2017
Trump administration and congressional GOP will return to a packed schedule, but maintain attack on working people
September 5, 2017
Ending DACA lowers wages and tax revenue, and degrades labor standards
September 5, 2017
Withdrawing from KORUS: A good impulse, driven by bad reasons, whose potential will be squandered
September 6, 2017
Senate Banking Committee should vote no on Randal Quarles
September 7, 2017
A NAFTA renegotiation game-changer, until the Trump administration squanders it
September 8, 2017
What to watch for in the 2016 Census data on earnings, incomes, and poverty
September 8, 2017
Policy Watch: Two more foxes nominated to run hen houses in the Trump administration
September 12, 2017
By the Numbers: Income and Poverty, 2016
September 12, 2017
Income growth in 2016 is strong, but not as strong as 2015 and more uneven
September 12, 2017
New census data show strong 2016 earnings growth across-the-board, with black and Hispanic workers seeing the fastest growth for second consecutive year
September 12, 2017
Poverty declined modestly in 2016; government programs continued to keep tens of millions out of poverty
September 14, 2017
Incomes continued to rise in 2016 in four out of five states
September 14, 2017
Poverty declines in most states in 2016
September 15, 2017
Most families are nearly back to 2007 income levels, but inequality continues to grow in 2016
September 15, 2017
Little to no gain in median annual earnings in the 2000s, while significant wage gaps remain
September 15, 2017
2016 ACS shows stubbornly high Native American poverty and different degrees of economic well-being for Asian ethnic groups
September 19, 2017
An evidence-based Fed would hold rates steady in September
September 20, 2017
Graham-Cassidy: Maybe the worst Republican health proposal yet
September 27, 2017
Supreme Court should uphold working people’s fundamental rights in Murphy Oil
September 27, 2017
A leopard can’t change its spots: Newest Republican tax framework is what we knew it always would be—tax cuts for the rich.
September 27, 2017
Fixing education inequalities will require fixing broader societal inequities
September 28, 2017
Janus is the latest attack on workers’ rights to organize and bargain collectively
October 2, 2017
What to watch out for in Trump’s speech on regulation later this morning
October 5, 2017
What to Watch on Jobs Day: The teacher gap, the hurricanes, and how we know slack remains
October 10, 2017
Nominating Kevin Warsh as Fed Chair would be the latest way Trump reneged on promises to put workers’ interests over financial elites
October 19, 2017
The Supreme Court has a chance to restore a critical right to women at work
October 24, 2017
The Legal Workforce and Agricultural Guestworker Acts would push down wages and labor standards for Americans and immigrants alike
October 25, 2017
Proposal to change the H-2A program via appropriations would allow agribusiness to fill hundreds of thousands of permanent, year-round jobs with temporary guestworkers
October 25, 2017
Moving beyond ACA repeal to address real health reform: Negotiating for lower drug prices under the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Act
October 26, 2017
International evidence shows that low corporate tax rates are not strongly associated with stronger investment
October 30, 2017
Don’t believe the news of a new “top rate” in the forthcoming Republican tax plan: Their enormous “pass-through” loophole makes it largely irrelevant
October 31, 2017
Wages rose for the bottom 90 percent in 2016 as those for top 1 percent fell
October 31, 2017
Yellen can and should help rectify the big mistake Trump will make if he doesn’t reappoint her as chair of the Federal Reserve
November 1, 2017
Latina workers have to work 10 months into 2017 to be paid the same as white non-Hispanic men in 2016
November 2, 2017
NLRB’s $21 million settlement reminds us why working people need strong unions and robust labor law enforcement
November 2, 2017
Strengthening collective bargaining is essential to reforming the rigged economy
November 2, 2017
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Signs of tightening across the economy
November 3, 2017
Real world data continues to show no link between corporate cuts and wage increases
November 9, 2017
Veterans fought for the right to collectively bargain—Congress should defend it
November 9, 2017
New paper on pay-productivity link does not overturn EPI findings
November 15, 2017
Supreme Court will decide if women can join together to fight sexual harassment at work
November 15, 2017
Millions fewer would get overtime protections if the overtime threshold were only $31,000
November 21, 2017
The biggest turkey this Thanksgiving is the Republican Tax Plan
November 27, 2017
Teacher pensions—the most important tool for keeping and retaining good teachers
November 30, 2017
Republican tax plan will reduce American competitiveness
December 5, 2017
United States fails to participate in key global conversations on migration
December 5, 2017
The distribution of TCJA cuts, as well as the burden of financing them, by income group and race
December 7, 2017
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Labor market should continue to improve, with or without pending tax cuts
December 8, 2017
If corporate rate cuts don’t trickle down, the House tax plan will raise taxes on moderate-income households too
December 8, 2017
The economy is on the right track, but key indicators show we’re not at full employment yet
December 15, 2017
NLRB reverses Browning-Ferris, makes it harder for workers to bargain with their employers
December 15, 2017
The arguments supporting corporate tax cuts are wrong, and territorial taxation will make things worse
December 18, 2017
By overturning Specialty Healthcare, the NLRB has made it harder for workers to organize
December 20, 2017
The courts are getting it wrong when it comes to unpaid interns
January 4, 2018
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Taking stock of the labor market, 10 years since the start of the Great Recession
January 5, 2018
The economy has made great strides since the recession, but weakness remains
January 10, 2018
Renegotiating NAFTA is an opportunity to get trade policy right
January 11, 2018
The search for the next president of the New York Federal Reserve is a big deal
January 12, 2018
Our analysis of January 1 state minimum wage changes understated the total increase in wages for workers throughout the country
January 12, 2018
Fighting for public sector union rights 50 years after MLK’s assassination
January 12, 2018
Maryland grants access to paid sick days to 700,000 workers and their families
January 18, 2018
State and local policymakers should beware preemption clauses
January 18, 2018
Unrigging the economy to grow the middle class: Pennsylvania takes the lead on overtime
January 19, 2018
Overall union membership rises in 2017, union density holds steady
January 22, 2018
The TCJA, combined with a cynical PR campaign from the GOP and the corporate world, could hit American families hard in the 2019 tax season
January 23, 2018
Davos is Trump’s kind of town
January 26, 2018
Lessons from today’s GDP report: Long-expected rebound in productivity finally seems to be happening, and no reason for Fed to raise rates in their next meeting
January 26, 2018
White House framework calls for a vast increase in immigration enforcement on the backs of DREAMers, while only legalizing 16 percent of the undocumented population
January 29, 2018
Year one of the Trump administration: Normalizing itself by working for the top 1 percent
February 1, 2018
Providing unpaid leave was only the first step; 25 years after the Family and Medical Leave Act, more workers need paid leave
February 1, 2018
What to Watch on Jobs Day: How the Trump administration stacks up against an economy on autopilot
February 2, 2018
UN Secretary General’s report on migration highlights the need for government action and cooperation, but lacks key guidance on labor migration
February 2, 2018
The Trump administration’s attempt to dismantle the fiduciary rule: A year in review
February 5, 2018
Why economics tells us that crediting the TCJA for wage increases is just PR
February 5, 2018
The bottom line on Trump and the economy: We’re not in good hands
February 5, 2018
EPI responds to Amazon’s claims that their fulfillment centers raise local employment
February 6, 2018
Increased U.S. trade deficit in 2017 illustrates dangers of ignoring the overvalued dollar
February 9, 2018
No, the stock market isn’t throwing a tantrum because the economy is “overstimulated”
February 12, 2018
The Trump administration’s infrastructure plan remains empty talk and will be paid for by cuts to programs that help working people
February 14, 2018
Senate must pass legislation this week to legalize DREAMers but avoid unnecessary immigration enforcement measures and green card reductions
February 14, 2018
Sen. Hatch’s H-1B bill and other guestworker proposals should be kept out of Senate immigration debate
February 26, 2018
50 years after the riots: Continued economic inequality for African Americans
February 28, 2018
Ron Blackwell (1946–2018)
March 1, 2018
Growth (or not) in real wages
March 1, 2018
How new Fed Chair Jerome Powell should get ready for the next recession
March 1, 2018
Many of the policy recommendations from the Kerner Commission remain relevant 50 years later
March 5, 2018
Congress should set the standard in being a good employer
March 8, 2018
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Putting wage growth in perspective
March 13, 2018
Preemption laws prevent cities from acting on everything from labor and employment to gun safety
March 19, 2018
Using the H-2A guestworker program for year-round agricultural jobs would lower wages for farmworkers
March 19, 2018
Congress is trying to use appropriations expand the H-2B temporary worker program—where migrants are exploitable and have few rights—by 73 percent
March 26, 2018
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s search for a new president was a flawed process that should go back to the drawing board
March 27, 2018
A perfect pairing: New tip provisions and a strong minimum wage
March 30, 2018
Evidence shows collective bargaining—especially with the ability to strike—raises teacher pay
April 3, 2018
Does high CEO pay matter to shareholders?
April 4, 2018
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Multiple measures indicate the presence of labor market slack
April 6, 2018
New UN data on international migrants highlights special responsibility for destination countries in the Global Compact for Migration
April 10, 2018
A balanced budget amendment would be extraordinarily dangerous for the economy
April 12, 2018
How do our job creation recommendations stack up against a job guarantee?
April 16, 2018
For Tax Day, a reminder that economic arguments for the GOP tax plan have no theoretical basis
April 18, 2018
The Trump administration doubles down in the Wall Street Journal on why trickle-down really does work
April 19, 2018
Teacher unions and students’ long-term economic prospects
April 20, 2018
The SEC’s “Regulation Best Interest” is in the best interest of Wall Street, not retirement savers and other investors
April 23, 2018
Social Security is looking like a pretty good investment these days
April 24, 2018
Eliminating the forced transfer of technology and production to China is critical
April 27, 2018
Let’s fight for working people on Workers’ Memorial Day
May 3, 2018
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Stronger wage growth as labor market slack continues to decline
May 7, 2018
The Supreme Court is poised to make forced arbitration nearly inescapable
May 9, 2018
The Workplace Democracy Act restores workers’ bargaining power
May 9, 2018
Minnesota and Wisconsin had similar job growth trajectories leading up to the Great Recession, but not after it
May 14, 2018
As cities and states pass bold increases in the minimum wage, we need to update our thinking about its costs
May 16, 2018
Ending individual mandatory arbitration alone fails most workers: For real worker power, end the ban on class and collective action lawsuits
May 30, 2018
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Signs of stronger wage growth that will eventually improve Americans’ livings standards
May 31, 2018
Seven facts about tipped workers and the tipped minimum wage
June 5, 2018
Social Security trustees report shows why we should expand the program—not look for excuses to cut it
June 11, 2018
Why is wealthy Westport trying to gut police pensions?
June 13, 2018
CEO pay: Still not related to performance
June 14, 2018
How big is AI-related employment? Not that big at all—despite what Stanford’s AI Index Annual Report tries to claim
June 20, 2018
Has self-employment surged? Data on nonemployer establishments confirm other data showing more activity, but not much economic impact
June 21, 2018
Nonemployer establishments grew in 2016 but their real revenues were stable: This confirms other data on self-employment showing more activity, but little economic impact
June 21, 2018
Workers of color are far more likely to be paid poverty-level wages than white workers
June 27, 2018
Janus decision is not about union finances—it’s about working people’s finances
June 28, 2018
Social Security data confirm same old pattern: Self-employment headcount has risen but economic impact remains small
July 5, 2018
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Public sector jobs are threatened by austerity and attacks on collective bargaining
July 18, 2018
Average wage growth continues to flatline in 2018, while low-wage workers and those with relatively lower levels of educational attainment see stronger gains
July 19, 2018
Why is real wage growth anemic? It’s not because of a skills shortage
July 20, 2018
Why is wage growth so slow? It’s not because low-wage jobs are being added disproportionately
July 20, 2018
A long spell of very low unemployment would raise wages—even in the face of employers’ monopsony power
July 22, 2018
Does America’s monopoly problem mean that high-pressure labor markets can’t boost wages?
July 31, 2018
Nothing misleading about this: Typical workers’ pay and productivity have diverged
August 1, 2018
Last week’s GDP data shows there’s still no reason to think the TCJA’s corporate rate cuts are trickling down to workers
August 1, 2018
The “wage puzzle” is real—but low inflation and low productivity are also puzzles that need to be solved
August 2, 2018
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Wringing out every last bit of slack in the labor market
August 3, 2018
How do we know the tax cut isn’t working to boost wages? Investment, investment, investment
August 6, 2018
Separate is still unequal: How patterns of occupational segregation impact pay for black women
September 6, 2018
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Keeping a cautiously optimistic eye on wages
September 7, 2018
What to watch for in the 2017 Census data on earnings, incomes, and poverty
September 12, 2018
By the Numbers: Income and Poverty, 2017
September 12, 2018
Household income growth slowed markedly in 2017 and was stronger for those at the top, while earnings declined slightly
September 12, 2018
Black workers have made no progress in closing earnings gaps with white men since 2000
September 12, 2018
10 years after the start of the Great Recession, black and Asian households have yet to recover lost income
September 12, 2018
Government programs kept tens of millions out of poverty in 2017
September 13, 2018
Household incomes in 2017 stayed on existing trends in most states; incomes in 21 states are still below their pre-recession levels
September 13, 2018
Poverty declined in most states in 2017
September 14, 2018
Digging into the 2017 ACS: Improved income growth for Native Americans, but lots of variation in the pace of recovery for different Asian ethnic groups
September 18, 2018
Further evidence that the tax cuts have not led to widespread bonuses, wage or compensation growth
September 19, 2018
Data continues to show little evidence that tax cuts are trickling down to typical workers, and now House Republicans want a do-over
September 25, 2018
Exploring the effects of student absenteeism
September 26, 2018
The Fed’s current path might be leaving lots of money on the table unnecessarily
October 3, 2018
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Keeping an eye on the teacher jobs gap
October 18, 2018
Top 1.0 percent reaches highest wages ever—up 157 percent since 1979
October 22, 2018
Six reasons not to put too much weight on the new study of Seattle’s minimum wage
October 26, 2018
The “boom” of 2018 tells us that fiscal stimulus works, but that the GOP has only used it when it helps their reelection, not when it helps typical families
October 30, 2018
Yet another reason why Megyn Kelly does not need your sympathy
October 31, 2018
Latina workers have to work 10 months into 2018 to be paid the same as white non-Hispanic men in 2017
November 5, 2018
Heading into the midterms, there’s still no evidence that the TCJA is working as promised
November 7, 2018
Voters in Missouri and Arkansas just lifted pay for 1 million workers
November 7, 2018
The new Democratic House should make worker empowerment a priority
November 14, 2018
By banning mandatory arbitration clauses and class and collective action waivers, Congress could restore a fundamental workers right
December 6, 2018
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Will we see signs of stronger wage growth?
December 10, 2018
Millions of working women of childbearing age are not included in protections for nursing mothers
December 14, 2018
Bonuses are up $0.02 since the GOP tax cuts passed
December 18, 2018
The bad economics of PAYGO swamp any strategic gain from adopting it
December 21, 2018
The failure of Trump’s trade and manufacturing policy
December 26, 2018
Over 5 million workers will have higher pay on January 1 thanks to state minimum wage increases
January 3, 2019
What to Watch on Jobs Day: An assessment of the 2018 labor market, 11 years since the start of the Great Recession
January 4, 2019
The economy has made great strides since the recession, but some weakness lingers
January 15, 2019
Au pair lawsuit reveals collusion and large-scale wage theft from migrant women through State Department’s J-1 visa program
January 17, 2019
Reliable data is one of the many victims of the government shutdown
January 18, 2019
The number of unionized U.S. workers edged lower to 16.4 million in 2018
January 30, 2019
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Furloughs and month-to-month volatility
January 30, 2019
The Fed shouldn’t give up on restoring labor’s share of income—and measure it correctly
February 1, 2019
Before the State of the Union, a fact check on black unemployment
February 5, 2019
Trump’s hateful border wall fantasy would do nothing to address the real immigration crisis
February 5, 2019
The state of American manufacturing: The failure of Trump’s trade and economic policies
February 11, 2019
Let’s not forget unions and collective action when discussing victories on workers’ rights
February 15, 2019
Trump’s national emergency declaration over the border wall is dangerous and not justified by the facts
February 19, 2019
Black women’s labor market history reveals deep-seated race and gender discrimination
February 27, 2019
Stark black–white divide in wages is widening further
March 4, 2019
There’s nothing radical about Elizabeth Warren’s proposal for universal childcare
March 4, 2019
When will ‘Buy American’ really mean buy American?
March 7, 2019
Record U.S. trade deficit in 2018 reflects failure of Trump’s trade policies
March 7, 2019
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Stronger wage growth as prime-age labor force participation continues to climb
March 8, 2019
A close look at recent increases in the black unemployment rate
March 15, 2019
Higher returns on education can’t explain growing wage inequality
March 19, 2019
Predicting wage growth with measures of labor market slack: It’s complicated
March 26, 2019
Teacher strikes blanket the nation as a labor of love meets economic hardships
March 26, 2019
The search for America’s missing teachers
March 28, 2019
Why NAFTA’s 2.0 current labor provisions fall short
March 28, 2019
The House makes way for equal pay with the passage of Paycheck Fairness Act
April 1, 2019
Equal Pay Day is a reminder that you can’t mansplain away the gender pay gap
April 2, 2019
Congress and Trump discover bipartisanship on immigration—but only to increase H-2B visas for captive and underpaid migrant workers
April 4, 2019
Progressive tax reform requires a healthy IRS
April 4, 2019
Research is vital to the moral integrity of social movements
April 8, 2019
Housing discrimination underpins the staggering wealth gap between blacks and whites
April 12, 2019
Cleaning up administrative records or targeting immigrants?
April 12, 2019
Restraining the power of the rich with a 10 percent surtax on incomes over $2 million*
April 15, 2019
Bonuses are up one cent in 2018 since the GOP tax cuts passed
April 19, 2019
Ex-Obama economic adviser Romer says fiscal stimulus is central to combatting recessions
April 23, 2019
And if you believe this, I’ve got a great deal to sell you: The economic impacts of the revised NAFTA (USMCA) Agreement
April 23, 2019
Social Security trustees report shows modest improvement in financial outlook
April 30, 2019
Evidence that tight labor markets really will increase labor’s share of income: Economic Policy Institute Macroeconomics Newsletter
April 30, 2019
Nevada state government has fiscal challenges–but granting state employees the right to bargain collectively does not add to them
April 30, 2019
Millions of workers are paid less than the ‘average’ minimum wage
May 1, 2019
Toxic stress and children’s outcomes
May 1, 2019
Now you see them, now you don’t: Vanishing benefits for U.S. workers in NAFTA-2 (USMCA) deal
May 2, 2019
What to Watch on Jobs Day: An expected and continued return of workers into the labor force
May 2, 2019
The PRO Act: Giving workers more bargaining power on the job
May 9, 2019
Don’t be fooled by calls for a ‘regional’ minimum wage
May 9, 2019
Why is teaching becoming a less appealing occupation? One answer is right in front of us
May 15, 2019
How to think about the job-creation potential of green investments: A boost to labor demand that will create some jobs, shift some others—and increase job-quality overall
May 15, 2019
Trump’s China tariff confusion: It won’t solve chronic trade deficits
May 15, 2019
The Great Recession, education, race, and homeownership
May 15, 2019
Fighting inequality is key to preparing for the next recession
May 17, 2019
Zero Weeks plus Ellen Bravo on the importance of paid family and medical leave
May 17, 2019
Trump and Kushner’s ‘merit-based’ immigration plan fails to propose the smart reforms needed to modernize and improve U.S. labor migration
May 20, 2019
There’s no economic constraint on the fiscal space available to fight the next recession
May 23, 2019
Broader, Bolder, Better: We’ve come a long way
May 23, 2019
Ohio’s economy no longer fully recovers after recessions
May 23, 2019
A progressive strategy for addressing the next recession must include a deliberate, strategic focus on states and localities
May 24, 2019
‘Schools are no longer just institutions of learning—we are the primary hub of care outside the family’
May 30, 2019
‘Forced’ is never fair: What labor arbitration teaches us about arbitration done right—and wrong
May 30, 2019
Recession or not, there will be pain: Coping with corporate bonds
May 30, 2019
The time to prepare for the next recession is now
May 31, 2019
Teaching—an important job, but a challenging work environment
June 5, 2019
MIT economist Simon Johnson wants to ramp up federal investment on science and technology—and make sure taxpayers get a cash dividend in return
June 5, 2019
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Continued strength or more labor market hiccups?
June 7, 2019
Farmworkers in New York deserve overtime pay
June 10, 2019
Misleading and biased research: Why a report on arbitration by a Chamber of Commerce affiliate is just plain wrong
June 11, 2019
Presenting EPI’s ‘Budget for Shared Prosperity’
June 11, 2019
From the margins to the mainstream: A review of Broader, Bolder, Better
June 12, 2019
The next recession will create an opportunity to redefine the government’s role in the economy: Lessons from healthcare organizing
June 12, 2019
A strong worker-centered climate agenda must be central to addressing the next recession
June 14, 2019
Teachers are always there to help, but now we’re the ones who need a boost
June 18, 2019
Focus on the boom, not the slump—The Fed’s new policy framework needs to stop cutting recoveries short: EPI Macroeconomics Newsletter
June 19, 2019
Worker bonuses slump 22 percent after GOP tax cuts
June 20, 2019
Immigration enforcement is funded at a much higher rate than labor standards enforcement—and the gap is widening
June 26, 2019
The federal government’s housing policies deepened segregation: A response to a critique of The Color of Law
June 26, 2019
The Public Service Freedom to Negotiate Act provides public-sector workers the right to join in union and collectively bargain
June 27, 2019
What’s good for Wall Street is often bad for American workers and manufacturing: The overvalued dollar
July 3, 2019
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Data volatility or signs of an economic slowdown?
July 8, 2019
Revived debate over school busing highlights deepening racial segregation
July 9, 2019
Low-wage workers will see huge gains from minimum wage hike, CBO finds
July 25, 2019
Social Security expansion would likely bolster, not hurt, economic growth
July 26, 2019
Teachers need better professional development opportunities, more support
July 26, 2019
Affordability and quality—attainable goals for an effective early care and education system
July 26, 2019
August Recess 2019: A look back at the House’s legislative victories that benefit working people
July 29, 2019
Detailed estimates for policies in EPI’s ‘Budget for Shared Prosperity’
July 29, 2019
It’s not trickling down: New data provides no evidence that the TCJA is working as its proponents claimed it would
July 30, 2019
Not just ‘no heat’ but signs of cooling: The case for FOMC rate cuts has real merit
August 1, 2019
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Are there signs of wage acceleration?
August 1, 2019
Why Eugene Scalia is the wrong person for the job
August 7, 2019
The road not taken: Housing and criminal justice 50 years after the Kerner Commission report
August 22, 2019
It’s the beginning of the school year and teachers are once again opening up their wallets to buy school supplies
August 22, 2019
Don’t be fooled by the Trump administration’s Labor Day pitch on overtime policy—it’s going to cost workers billions
August 28, 2019
It’s not just noncompetes—increased use of anti-competitive contracts has limited workers’ bargaining power and employers’ hiring power
August 29, 2019
Raising the federal minimum wage isn’t just the right thing to do for workers—it’s also good for the economy
September 5, 2019
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Wage growth is key to a sustainable recovery
September 6, 2019
What to watch for in the 2018 Census data on earnings, incomes, and poverty
September 10, 2019
By the Numbers: Income and Poverty, 2018
September 10, 2019
Slowdown in household income growth continues in 2018
September 11, 2019
Government programs kept tens of millions out of poverty in 2018
September 11, 2019
Racial and ethnic income gaps persist amid uneven growth in household incomes
September 17, 2019
Why is the economy so weak? Trade gets headlines, but it’s more about past Fed rate hikes and the TCJA’s waste
September 17, 2019
What’s luck got to do with it? When it comes to money, quite a bit
September 23, 2019
Trump’s labor board wants to deprive graduate student workers of their basic right to form unions
September 25, 2019
More than eight million workers will be left behind by the Trump overtime rule: Workers would receive $1.4 billion less than under the 2016 rule
September 26, 2019
Poverty continues to fall in most states, though progress appears to be slowing
September 26, 2019
Household income growth was slower and less widespread in 2018 than in 2017
October 2, 2019
What to Watch on Jobs Day: How big is the teacher shortfall?
October 3, 2019
Black and Hispanic men could face disproportionate job loss due to transportation automation
October 15, 2019
Seven questions EPI’s experts would ask at tonight’s debate
October 24, 2019
A little-known agency that is supposed to protect workers is instead eroding workers’ basic labor rights
October 29, 2019
Wage growth targets are good economics—if you get the details right: EPI Macroeconomics Newsletter
October 30, 2019
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Anticipated distortions to payroll employment and wage growth
October 31, 2019
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act isn’t working and there’s no reason to think that will change
November 7, 2019
Welcome developments on limiting noncompete agreements: A growing consensus leads to new state laws, a possible FTC rule making, and a strong bipartisan Senate bill
November 19, 2019
Latina workers have to work nearly 11 months into 2019 to be paid the same as white non-Hispanic men in 2018
November 20, 2019
Where do the Democratic presidential candidates stand on migrant workers and labor migration?
November 20, 2019
Bipartisan Senate budget bill could damage the economy during recessions
November 21, 2019
Analyses claiming that taxes on millionaires and billionaires will slow economic growth are fundamentally flawed
November 30, 2019
Workers will lose more than $700 million annually under proposed DOL rule
December 4, 2019
OECD highlights temporary labor migration: Almost as many guestworkers as permanent immigrants
December 5, 2019
What to watch on jobs day: Concerning slowdown in job growth and weakening wage growth
December 10, 2019
House vote imminent on the bipartisan Farm Workforce Modernization Act—which would lower wages for migrant farmworkers: Hearings and assessments of impacts still needed
December 10, 2019
Looking for evidence of wage-led productivity growth: EPI Macroeconomics Newsletter
December 11, 2019
The Farm Workforce Modernization Act allows employers to hire migrant farmworkers with H-2A temporary visas for year-round jobs: Impacts are unknown and other wage-setting formulas should be considered
December 17, 2019
On its second anniversary, the TCJA has cut taxes for corporations, but nothing has trickled down
December 17, 2019
Three Republican-appointed white men are now deciding whether you have rights on the job
December 18, 2019
Top 1.0% of earners see wages up 157.8% since 1979
December 18, 2019
Nearly 7 million workers will start the new year with higher wages
January 8, 2020
College athletes and Ph.D. students both work for the university, but only one earns a salary
January 9, 2020
What to watch on jobs day: An assessment of the 2019 labor market
January 10, 2020
The labor market continues to improve in 2019 as women surpass men in payroll employment, but wage growth slows
January 13, 2020
China trade deal will not restore 3.7 million U.S. jobs lost since China entered the WTO in 2001
January 16, 2020
This MLK Day, remember Emmett Till and voter suppression
January 17, 2020
Yes, David Brooks, there really is a class war
January 24, 2020
The Trump administration’s new housing rules will worsen segregation
January 27, 2020
Weakened labor movement leads to rising economic inequality
January 30, 2020
Wilbur Ross’s comments and Trump administration trade policies offer few answers for growing, job-destroying China trade deficit
January 31, 2020
On EITC Awareness Day, remember that the EITC and minimum wage work together to raise incomes
January 31, 2020
The signal the unemployment rate provides can change a lot over time: EPI Macroeconomics Newsletter
February 3, 2020
Primer—The state of the union for working people
February 4, 2020
The state of the union for black workers: Myths and facts
February 4, 2020
As investment continues to decline, the Trump tax cuts remain nothing but a handout to the rich
February 4, 2020
Trump’s ‘blue-collar boom’ is likely a dud
February 6, 2020
What to watch on jobs day: Large downward revisions in employment expected
February 6, 2020
Declining trade balances disguise continued growth in the non-oil trade deficit
February 10, 2020
AAPI women face a double pay penalty for race and gender
February 14, 2020
Top five Valentine’s Day gifts ideas for U.S. workers: Nothing spells ‘romance’ like a fair wage and quality jobs
February 24, 2020
The Trump budget doesn’t spare seniors
February 24, 2020
Medicare4All C-Span discussion sheds light on its impact
February 24, 2020
The U.S. federal tax and spending system is the biggest tool to combat inequality, but it could do much more
February 27, 2020
Black-white wage gaps are worse today than in 2000
February 28, 2020
Lack of paid sick days and large numbers of uninsured increase risks of spreading the coronavirus
March 2, 2020
EPI President Thea Lee testifies before the House Committee on Ways and Means on U.S.–China Trade and Competition (Video)
March 3, 2020
Economic policy and COVID-19—Mitigate harm and plan for the future: A list of considerations for policymakers
March 4, 2020
Low-wage workers saw the biggest wage growth in states that increased their minimum wage between 2018 and 2019
March 5, 2020
What to watch on jobs day: Expected future impact of COVID-19
March 9, 2020
Even HBO’s John Oliver didn’t provide the full context on ‘Medicare for All’ and jobs
March 9, 2020
Getting serious about the economic response to COVID-19
March 9, 2020
Amid COVID-19 outbreak, the workers who need paid sick days the most have the least
March 9, 2020
A Trump attack on government, flying largely under the radar: Trump wants to help corporations suspected of violating the law
March 11, 2020
Trump’s payroll tax cuts are a terrible opening bid to address the economic fallout of COVID-19: But employer tax credits can be part of the economic response if they finance direct benefits for workers
March 12, 2020
Teachers pay out-of-pocket to keep their classrooms clean of COVID-19: Teachers already spend on average $450 a year on school supplies
March 12, 2020
Union workers are more likely to have paid sick days and health insurance: COVID-19 sheds light on least-empowered workers
March 13, 2020
Why a fiscal stimulus that is big and fast is so necessary—and why it should continue so long as the economy is weak
March 13, 2020
COVID-19 pandemic makes clear that we need national paid sick leave legislation
March 17, 2020
Coronavirus shock will likely claim 3 million jobs by summer: Policy is needed now to curb further losses
March 17, 2020
The coronavirus pandemic requires state and local policymakers to act, in addition to demanding a strong federal response
March 18, 2020
Senate coronavirus bill is crucial—but it’s a fraction of what’s needed
March 18, 2020
What to expect in tomorrow’s unemployment insurance numbers: The leading edge of the coronavirus’s shock to the labor market, not the full picture
March 19, 2020
Not everybody can work from home: Black and Hispanic workers are much less likely to be able to telework
March 19, 2020
Every state will lose jobs as a result of the coronavirus: Policymakers must take action
March 20, 2020
The coronavirus fiscal response should be as big as needed—but current forecasts indicate at least $2.1 trillion is needed through 2020: The expected hit to the economy would mean almost 14 million job losses by summer
March 20, 2020
The unemployment rate is not the right measure to make economic policy decisions around the coronavirus-driven recession: Policymakers should use the employment rate to continue or stop economic assistance
March 23, 2020
Here are safeguards needed in bailout packages to protect working people and fight corporate greed
March 23, 2020
Fixing unemployment insurance and the coronavirus response
March 23, 2020
The coronavirus economic policy response must include relief and redistribution now and major demand stimulus once the crisis passes
March 24, 2020
The coronavirus crisis led to a record-breaking spike in weekly unemployment insurance claims: An estimated 3.4 million workers filed for unemployment last week
March 24, 2020
Nurses in garbage bags?: Why the Trump administration must use the Defense Production Act to mobilize production of critically needed hospital protective equipment immediately
March 25, 2020
Southern state policymakers must do more to respond to the coronavirus pandemic: Medicaid expansion, emergency paid sick leave, and dedicated public health resources are especially needed
March 25, 2020
States are projected to lose more jobs due to the coronavirus: 14 million jobs could be lost by summer
March 25, 2020
Despite some good provisions, the CARES Act has glaring flaws and falls short of fully protecting workers during the coronavirus crisis
March 25, 2020
The coronavirus pandemic highlights that Americans need more options to vote
March 26, 2020
Without fast action from Congress, low-wage workers will be ineligible for unemployment benefits during the coronavirus crisis
March 27, 2020
Early state unemployment insurance data foreshadow the massive shock the coronavirus is having on state labor markets: The real surge will be seen in next week’s data
March 27, 2020
The CARES Act’s aid to state and local governments isn’t enough to shield vital public services from the coronavirus shock: Lessons from the Great Recession tell us why
March 27, 2020
With smart policy, a temporary collapse in GDP doesn’t have to cause great human suffering
March 29, 2020
EPI President Thea Lee tells MSNBC’s Velshi the coronavirus shines a light on economic inequality in the United States
March 30, 2020
Exposed and underpaid: Women still make less than men, including in sectors especially affected by the coronavirus
March 31, 2020
Older workers can’t work from home and are at a higher risk for COVID-19
March 31, 2020
In midst of a pandemic, Trump’s NLRB makes it nearly impossible for workers to organize a union
March 31, 2020
Nine in 10 farmworkers could be covered by the paid leave provisions of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act—but not if smaller employers are exempted
March 31, 2020
Unions are giving workers a seat at the table when it comes to the coronavirus response
April 1, 2020
Which data to watch and not watch this week: Watch Thursday’s unemployment insurance claims, not Friday’s jobs day numbers
April 1, 2020
Nearly 20 million workers will likely be laid off or furloughed by July: Updated state numbers project further job losses due to the coronavirus
April 1, 2020
Policymakers twice missed the chance to avert widespread job loss, now they should act to avoid more layoffs
April 2, 2020
Workers exposed to the coronavirus need to be able to protect themselves from illness or death without risking their employment
April 2, 2020
3.5 million workers likely lost their employer-provided health insurance in the past two weeks
April 2, 2020
The Trump NLRB needs to be removed
April 2, 2020
Every state in the country reported its highest initial unemployment claims ever either last week or the week before
April 3, 2020
Higher rates of poverty and incarceration put front-line workers and communities in Southern states at greater risk from the coronavirus
April 3, 2020
How state attorneys general are protecting workers during the coronavirus pandemic
April 3, 2020
The South’s worst unemployment numbers may be yet to come given social distancing delays in the region
April 3, 2020
Why is Trump putting critical protective equipment on layaway at Walmart?
April 3, 2020
Coronavirus job losses for the past two weeks could match two years of the Great Recession’s job losses: Estimates of new claims filed are 10 million
April 6, 2020
Even with already-passed relief and recovery measures, job losses from the coronavirus shock could easily exceed 20 million
April 7, 2020
A ‘phase four’ relief and recovery package should provide economic assistance to state and local governments, extended unemployment benefits, and better protections for workers and jobs
April 7, 2020
Wisconsin’s election during this pandemic shows that limiting voting options is the new form of voter suppression
April 8, 2020
Domestic workers are at risk during the coronavirus crisis: Data show most domestic workers are black, Hispanic, or Asian women
April 8, 2020
How can the U.S. get more transformative with its coronavirus-shock response? With payroll guarantees and an economic ‘deep freeze’ plan.
April 8, 2020
The Wild West: Gig workers on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic lack basic worker protections
April 9, 2020
At least $500 billion more in coronavirus aid is needed for state and local governments by the end of 2021
April 9, 2020
States continue to see record-high levels of initial unemployment insurance claims, including in the South
April 10, 2020
The next coronavirus relief package must include funding to safeguard our democracy: Voting by mail and online voting must be considered
April 10, 2020
Relief efforts need to do more to protect older workers in a coronavirus economic shutdown
April 13, 2020
Do Black economists matter?: The media erasure of Black economic voices hurts the communities hardest hit by the pandemic and society at large
April 13, 2020
A comprehensive U.S. manufacturing policy is needed now more than ever
April 13, 2020
Congress should immediately pass legislation protecting workers’ safety during the coronavirus pandemic
April 14, 2020
The coronavirus will explode achievement gaps in education
April 14, 2020
Trump administration looking to cut the already low wages of H-2A migrant farmworkers while giving their bosses a multibillion-dollar bailout
April 14, 2020
The Trump administration has weakened crucial worker protections needed to combat the coronavirus: Agencies tasked with protecting workers have put them in danger
April 15, 2020
New survey and report reveals mistreatment of H-2A farmworkers is common: The coronavirus puts them further at risk
April 15, 2020
Women have been hit hard by the coronavirus labor market: Their story is worse than industry-based data suggest
April 16, 2020
9.2 million workers likely lost their employer-provided health insurance in the past four weeks
April 16, 2020
Updated state unemployment numbers remain astonishingly high: Six states saw record-high levels of initial unemployment claims last week
April 16, 2020
A coronavirus recovery: How to ensure older workers fully participate
April 17, 2020
Access to online learning amid coronavirus is far from universal, and children who are poor suffer from a digital divide
April 17, 2020
How Southern state policymakers can strengthen democracy and protect voter health during the coronavirus pandemic
April 20, 2020
Weak labor protections have put Midwestern food processing workers at risk for coronavirus
April 20, 2020
Workers Memorial Day highlights Secretary of Labor Scalia’s failure to protect workers during the coronavirus crisis
April 21, 2020
The extreme jobless numbers will lead to a jump in the unemployment rate, but that won’t tell the whole story
April 22, 2020
Trump’s corporate-first agenda has weakened worker protections needed to combat the coronavirus
April 23, 2020
In the last five weeks, more than 24 million workers applied for unemployment insurance benefits
April 23, 2020
New state unemployment numbers show workers continue to file unemployment claims in daunting numbers
April 23, 2020
Trump executive order to suspend immigration would reduce green cards by nearly one-third if extended for a full year
April 27, 2020
The next coronavirus relief package should provide aid to state and local governments, protect employed and unemployed workers, and invest in our democracy
April 28, 2020
Unemployment filing failures: New survey confirms that millions of jobless were unable to file an unemployment insurance claim
April 30, 2020
Nearly 28 million workers applied for unemployment insurance benefits in the last six weeks: Congress must act to mitigate harm from unprecedented joblessness
April 30, 2020
12.7 million workers have likely lost employer-provided health insurance since the coronavirus shock began
April 30, 2020
Updated state unemployment numbers: More than a quarter of the workforce has filed for unemployment in six states
May 1, 2020
Thank you, D.C. Board of Elections, for making voting easier: I dedicate my favorite rap song to you
May 4, 2020
The extra $600 in unemployment insurance has been the best response yet to the economic shock of the coronavirus and should be extended
May 5, 2020
Congress must include worker protections in the next coronavirus relief bill: We need an Essential Workers Bill of Rights
May 7, 2020
Nearly one in five workers applied for state unemployment insurance benefits in the last seven weeks: Congress must act to mitigate harm from unprecedented joblessness
May 7, 2020
What to watch on jobs day: Job losses in April may set U.S. employment levels back 20 years
May 7, 2020
The pandemic sparked more appreciation for teachers, but will it give them a voice in education and their working conditions?
May 8, 2020
Updated state unemployment numbers: Large shares of the labor force have filed for unemployment in every state
May 11, 2020
As economic forecasts worsen, up to $1 trillion in federal aid to state and local governments could be needed by the end of 2021
May 14, 2020
In the last eight weeks, more than one in five workers applied for state unemployment insurance benefits: Congress must act
May 14, 2020
16.2 million workers have likely lost employer-provided health insurance since the coronavirus shock began
May 14, 2020
What to watch for in tomorrow’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey data release: A sharp fall in job openings and hires
May 14, 2020
Six states saw increases in unemployment claims last week: Many workers who are not usually eligible have filed for unemployment
May 15, 2020
Latest Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey data further illustrate the catastrophic COVID-19 labor market
May 18, 2020
Radical far-right CFPB task force threatens consumer protection
May 19, 2020
A prolonged depression is guaranteed without significant federal aid to state and local governments
May 19, 2020
Who are essential workers?: A comprehensive look at their wages, demographics, and unionization rates
May 20, 2020
Ending offshoring and bringing jobs back home will take more than tweets, press releases, and op-eds
May 20, 2020
The coronavirus recession will become a long depression unless federal policymakers act now
May 21, 2020
Nearly one in four workers has applied for unemployment benefits: Congress must do much, much more
May 21, 2020
More than a quarter of the workforce in 10 states has filed for unemployment
May 26, 2020
Republicans and corporate interests exploit coronavirus crisis to erase companies’ liability
May 27, 2020
Without federal aid, many state and local governments could make the same budget cuts that hampered the last economic recovery
May 27, 2020
Criminalization of black and brown communities in the Midwest adds to public health crisis during COVID-19 pandemic
May 28, 2020
More than one in five workers are either receiving unemployment benefits or waiting for approval: Congress must do much, much more
May 29, 2020
Six states have at least one million workers either receiving regular unemployment benefits or waiting for their claim to be approved
June 3, 2020
Public education job losses in April are already greater than in all of the Great Recession
June 4, 2020
Close to one in four workers are either on unemployment benefits or are waiting to receive them: Congress must take action
June 4, 2020
Release incarcerated Ohioans to flatten the coronavirus curve
June 4, 2020
What to watch on jobs day: The unemployment rate continues to climb but not equally for all demographic groups
June 5, 2020
Black deaths at the hands of law enforcement are linked to historical lynchings: U.S. counties where lynchings were more prevalent from 1877 to 1950 have more officer-involved killings
June 5, 2020
The Fed’s crisis response: Helping corporations, yes, but mostly at the expense of financial predators
June 9, 2020
The U.S. economy remains in an enormous jobs deficit: The labor market was down 15.9 million jobs at the end of April (JOLTS data), and down 19.6 million at the middle of May (jobs data)
June 10, 2020
Without federal aid to state and local governments, 5.3 million workers will likely lose their jobs by the end of 2021: See estimated job losses by state
June 11, 2020
Three months in, the economic pain of the coronavirus pandemic continues: More than one in five workers are either on unemployment benefits or are waiting to get on
June 12, 2020
Updated state unemployment numbers: In 10 states, more than one in six workers are receiving or have filed for regular unemployment
June 15, 2020
An open letter to economic institutions in the face of #BlackLivesMatter: Addressed to our allies in the economics community
June 18, 2020
A quarter of a year in, job losses remain at historic levels: More than one in five workers are either on unemployment benefits or are waiting to get on
June 18, 2020
DACA survives at SCOTUS: For now, ‘Dreamers’ will continue to be protected from deportation, but a permanent solution is urgently needed
June 22, 2020
Workers are striking during the coronavirus: Labor law must be reformed to strengthen this fundamental right
June 23, 2020
Trump’s ban on temporary work visas is an attempt to scapegoat immigrants during an economic collapse: Real reform would improve wages and working conditions
June 24, 2020
Now is still a good time to raise the minimum wage
June 25, 2020
‘Black women best’: Why putting Black women first may save us from economic disaster
June 25, 2020
More than three months in, job losses remain at historic levels: Over one in five workers are either on unemployment benefits or are waiting to get on
June 26, 2020
Cutting off the $600 boost to unemployment benefits would be both cruel and bad economics: New personal income data show just how steep the coming fiscal cliff will be
June 26, 2020
Expanded unemployment insurance continues to be a crucial lifeline for millions of workers: See updated state unemployment data
June 29, 2020
Nearly 11% of the workforce is out of work with no reasonable chance of getting called back to a prior job
June 30, 2020
What to watch on jobs day: A false start to the recovery
July 7, 2020
Hires up, layoffs down but more economic pain is on the horizon: Policymakers must act in order to protect workers’ health and economic well-being
July 9, 2020
Almost four months in, joblessness remains at historic levels: Congress must extend the extra $600 in UI benefits, which expires in a little more than two weeks
July 9, 2020
Cuts to the state and local public sector will disproportionately harm women and Black workers
July 10, 2020
Extending the $600 weekly unemployment boost would support millions of workers: See updated state unemployment data
July 16, 2020
Joblessness remains at historic levels: The extra $600 in UI benefits expires next week—Congress must extend it
July 16, 2020
Recovering fully from the coronavirus shock will require large increases in federal debt—and there’s nothing wrong with that
July 21, 2020
Ambitious investments in child and elder care could boost labor supply enough to support 3 million new jobs
July 23, 2020
Joblessness remains at historic levels and there is no evidence UI is disincentivizing work: Congress must extend the extra $600 in UI benefits
July 24, 2020
Cutting UI benefits by $400 per week will significantly harm U.S. families, jobs, and growth: 3.4 million fewer jobs will be created over the next year as a result
July 24, 2020
Why we still need the $600 unemployment benefit
July 28, 2020
What can we learn from the CFPB’s Spring 2020 Unified Agenda entries?
July 28, 2020
Congress has failed to extend additional unemployment benefits as millions of workers across the country file new UI claims
July 28, 2020
The Senate’s failure to act on federal aid to state and local governments jeopardizes veterans’ jobs
July 29, 2020
Protecting workers through publicity during the pandemic
July 29, 2020
State and local governments have lost 1.5 million jobs since February: Federal aid to states and localities is necessary for a strong economic recovery
July 30, 2020
UI claims and GDP growth are historically bad: Now is not the time to cut benefits that are supporting jobs
August 6, 2020
Unemployment insurance claims remain historically high: Congress must reinstate the extra $600 immediately
August 6, 2020
What to watch on jobs day: A stalled recovery
August 11, 2020
Trump’s war on the Postal Service helps corporate rivals at the expense of working families
August 12, 2020
Black women workers are essential during the crisis and for the recovery but still are greatly underpaid
August 13, 2020
Millions of workers are relying on unemployment insurance benefits that are being stalled and slashed
August 14, 2020
Cuts to unemployment benefits harm millions of workers across the country: See updated state unemployment data
August 20, 2020
UI claims remain historically high and the president’s sham executive memorandum is doing next to nothing: Congress must reinstate the $600
August 25, 2020
The Way Out Through State and Local Aid: Bipartisan group of economists breaks down why local governments need aid now
August 27, 2020
UI claims remain historically high and the president’s executive memorandum is doing more harm than good: Congress must reinstate the extra $600
August 28, 2020
Updated state unemployment data: Congress has failed to act as jobless claims remain high and workers scrape by on inadequate unemployment benefits
August 31, 2020
The Milwaukee Bucks’ strike shows what’s possible when workers band together
September 2, 2020
Calling out anti-Blackness in our response to police violence and economic inequality
September 2, 2020
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Widespread economic pain continues in August
September 3, 2020
Total initial UI claims have risen in each of the last four weeks: Congress must act
September 9, 2020
Different economic crisis, same mistake: The Fed cannot make up for the Republican Senate’s inaction
September 10, 2020
UI claims rising as jobs remain scarce: Senate Republicans must stop blocking the restoration of UI benefits
September 10, 2020
What to watch for in the 2019 Census data on earnings, incomes, and poverty
September 14, 2020
Raising the minimum wage to $15 by 2025 will restore bargaining power to workers during the recovery from the pandemic
September 14, 2020
More FAQS on deficits and debt: Where is the money coming from?
September 15, 2020
By the Numbers: Income and Poverty, 2019
September 15, 2020
State and local governments still desperately need federal fiscal aid to prevent harmful austerity measures
September 16, 2020
Racial disparities in income and poverty remain largely unchanged amid strong income growth in 2019
September 16, 2020
Household income gains welcome in 2019 Census data, but may not be as strong as they first appear
September 17, 2020
Half a year into the pandemic and millions of people are unemployed: Congress must provide relief
September 17, 2020
Over 13 million more people would be in poverty without unemployment insurance and stimulus payments: Senate Republicans are blocking legislation proven to reduce poverty
September 17, 2020
President Trump has attacked workers’ safety, wages, and rights since Day One
September 24, 2020
Who are America’s meat and poultry workers?
September 24, 2020
Many workers have exhausted their state’s regular unemployment benefits: The CARES Act provided important UI benefits and Congress must act to extend them
September 25, 2020
At least 33 million workers are being hurt by the coronavirus recession
September 25, 2020
‘We prioritized open bars before giving resources to schools’: How the U.S. coronavirus response has failed students and teachers
September 28, 2020
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg understood that unequal power is a workplace reality
September 29, 2020
What to watch on jobs day: Slow closing of the massive jobs deficit
October 1, 2020
With millions of workers receiving unemployment benefits and no end in sight for the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress must act
October 1, 2020
The first big gash of austerity: The cutback to the $600 boost to unemployment benefits reduced personal income by $667 billion (annualized) in August
October 6, 2020
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey shows hiring failed to improve: Congress must act to fix massive jobs shortfall
October 7, 2020
What teaching is like during the pandemic—and a reminder that listening to teachers is critical to solving the challenges the coronavirus has brought to public education
October 8, 2020
1.3 million people filed initial unemployment insurance claims last week: It is terrible economics to pause stimulus talks
October 13, 2020
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau leaders should focus on racial and economic inequality
October 15, 2020
30 weeks into the COVID-19 pandemic and workers desperately need stimulus
October 15, 2020
Updated state-level unemployment claims data: Workers across the country need Congress to increase unemployment benefits
October 15, 2020
How much would it cost consumers to give farmworkers a significant raise?: A 40% increase in pay would cost just $25 per household
October 16, 2020
Policy solutions to deal with the nation’s teacher shortage—a crisis made worse by COVID-19
October 21, 2020
The Trump administration was ruining the pre-COVID-19 economy too, just more slowly
October 22, 2020
With millions of people out of work, the Senate’s inaction is not only cruel, it’s bad economics
October 22, 2020
The passage of California’s Proposition 22 would give digital platform companies a free pass to misclassify their workers
October 22, 2020
Fact-checking resources for the 2020 presidential debates
October 26, 2020
Curb your enthusiasm: Rapid third-quarter GDP growth won’t mean the economy has healed
October 26, 2020
Black, Hispanic, and young workers have been left behind by policymakers, but will they vote?
October 27, 2020
Debunking the specious claims underlying Missouri’s anti–collective bargaining law
October 28, 2020
Latina Equal Pay Day: Essential Latina workers face substantial pay gap during COVID-19 pandemic
October 28, 2020
Counties that pivoted to Trump had lower wage growth than other counties
October 29, 2020
Senate Republicans have failed struggling families: It is cruel, and bad economics, to withhold stimulus aid
October 30, 2020
Moral policy = good economics: What’s needed to lift up 140 million poor and low-income people further devastated by the pandemic
November 2, 2020
Heading into election day, at least 30 million workers are being hurt by the coronavirus recession
November 3, 2020
Older workers are voting with an eye on the economy
November 5, 2020
Over a million people still filed initial unemployment claims last week with no COVID-19 relief in sight
November 6, 2020
What the next president inherits: More than 25 million workers are being hurt by the coronavirus downturn
November 10, 2020
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey shows declines in hires: As winter hits, the Biden administration will be facing a mounting, not waning, crisis
November 10, 2020
Voters chose more than just the president: A review of important state ballot initiative outcomes
November 12, 2020
With unemployment benefits for millions of workers set to expire in December, Senate Republicans must stop blocking aid
November 18, 2020
Learning during the pandemic: What decreased learning time in school means for student learning
November 19, 2020
No improvement in initial unemployment claims as labor market gains falter
November 21, 2020
Racism and the Economy: Focus on Employment
November 25, 2020
Unemployment claims rise for second week in a row: Millions will lose federal unemployment benefits in December unless Senate Republicans act
December 1, 2020
Wages for the top 1% skyrocketed 160% since 1979 while the share of wages for the bottom 90% shrunk: Time to remake wage pattern with economic policies that generate robust wage-growth for vast majority
December 2, 2020
Reinstating and extending the pandemic unemployment insurance programs through 2021 could create or save 5.1 million jobs
December 3, 2020
One million people applied for unemployment insurance last week: Unless Congress acts, millions of people will soon be left without a safety net
December 3, 2020
What to watch on jobs day: An unfortunate continued slowing recovery due to the Senate’s inaction
December 4, 2020
The economy President-elect Biden is inheriting: More than 26 million workers—15.5% of the workforce—are being directly hurt by the coronavirus downturn
December 7, 2020
COVID-19 relief should extend CARES Act work-sharing provisions
December 9, 2020
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey continues to show weaker levels of hires than before the recession hit: Any hope for a quick recovery is off the table unless Congress acts now
December 10, 2020
Unemployment claims hit highest level in months: Millions more jobs will be lost if Congress doesn’t act
December 14, 2020
Top 10 EPI reports of 2020
December 14, 2020
The Biden administration can reverse much of Trump’s bad labor policy without Congress
December 15, 2020
Top five EPI blog posts of 2020
December 16, 2020
State attorneys general taking on protection of workers’ rights
December 17, 2020
Unemployment insurance claims continue to climb: Congress must pass a stimulus package to prevent millions of people from being left with nothing
January 7, 2021
First UI claims of 2021 are still higher than the worst of the Great Recession
January 7, 2021
What to watch on jobs day: Little to no improvement in December and huge losses over 2020
January 7, 2021
Teaching at the intersection of social-justice activism and education
January 7, 2021
How to organize in the anti-union South
January 8, 2021
The economy President-elect Biden is inheriting: 26.8 million workers—15.8% of the workforce—are being directly hurt by the coronavirus crisis
January 13, 2021
The Trump administration finalizes rule attacking federal workers’ right to union representation in workplace discrimination cases
January 13, 2021
Twenty states raised their minimum wages on New Year’s Day: Federal action is still needed
January 14, 2021
Unemployment claims increase as COVID-19 surges
January 14, 2021
The U.S. economy could use some ‘overheating’: Biden’s relief and recovery plan meets the scale of the economic crisis
January 18, 2021
Martin Luther King called for leaders with ‘sound integrity’
January 21, 2021
President Biden inherits a weak labor market due to inadequate COVID-19 response: Biden and Congress must make stimulus its first priority
January 28, 2021
1.3 million people applied for unemployment insurance last week: Policymakers must pass crucial relief and recovery measures
February 3, 2021
Learning during the pandemic: Making social and emotional learning front and center
February 4, 2021
Unemployment claims topped 1.1 million last week: Congress must pass bold relief measures to keep crucial programs from expiring
February 4, 2021
What to watch on jobs day: The giant job deficit left by the pandemic
February 4, 2021
The PRO Act is pro-worker: How the act would restore workers’ freedom to form a union
February 5, 2021
The economy Trump handed off to President Biden: 25.5 million workers—15.0% of the workforce—hit by the coronavirus crisis in January
February 5, 2021
The Biden rescue plan is neither risky nor a distraction from structural issues
February 8, 2021
CBO analysis confirms that a $15 minimum wage raises earnings of low-wage workers, reduces inequality, and has significant and direct fiscal effects: Large progressive redistribution of income caused by higher minimum wage leads to significant and cross-cutting fiscal effects
February 9, 2021
A stalled recovery: Hires fall in the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey
February 10, 2021
U.S. trade deficit hits record high in 2020: The Biden administration must prioritize rebuilding domestic manufacturing
February 11, 2021
There are 18 million more continuing UI claims than one year ago: Congress must pass relief package
February 18, 2021
Unemployment insurance claims rose last week: Congress must act before mid-March, or millions will lose benefits
February 18, 2021
Learning during the pandemic: Lessons from the research on education in emergencies for COVID-19 and afterwards
February 23, 2021
Congress should think big about the Postal Service’s future: Policymakers should focus on rebuilding the Postal Service after the Trump years
February 24, 2021
Chump change: The Romney–Cotton minimum wage proposal leaves 27 million workers without a pay increase
February 24, 2021
Projected state and local revenue shortfalls are shrinking, but the value of substantial federal aid to state and local governments is not
February 25, 2021
Nearly a year into the pandemic and unemployment claims remain 17 million above their pre-pandemic levels: Congress must pass $1.9 trillion relief bill
February 26, 2021
Six ways the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act restores workers’ bargaining power
March 2, 2021
What we learned from the UK case rendering Uber drivers employees
March 3, 2021
What to watch on jobs day: Who has been hurt by the pandemic recession—and why we should ignore wage growth for now
March 4, 2021
The Senate must pass the $1.9 trillion relief and recovery plan with the UI provisions extended to October 3
March 8, 2021
AAPI Equal Pay Day: Essential AAPI women workers continue to be underpaid during the COVID-19 pandemic
March 8, 2021
The ‘$15 minimum wage is too expensive for Peoria’ argument doesn’t hold water: Five reasons why
March 8, 2021
Strengthening workers’ right to organize is 50 years overdue
March 9, 2021
Claims of labor shortages in H-2B industries don’t hold up to scrutiny: President Biden should not expand a flawed temporary work visa program
March 11, 2021
Unemployment insurance claims are still about 18 million more than they were a year ago: The new relief and recovery bill will help millions of families
March 11, 2021
Hires continue to slow in the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey for January
March 15, 2021
The American Rescue Plan clears a path to recovery for state and local governments and the communities they serve
March 18, 2021
Wages are still too low in H-2B occupations: Updated wage rules could ensure labor standards are protected and migrants are paid fairly
March 18, 2021
Three reasons why the PRO Act won’t destroy freelancing or the gig economy
March 23, 2021
Agricultural employers are asking the Supreme Court to make it harder for farmworkers suffering from poor pay and working conditions to unionize
March 25, 2021
One year later, unemployment insurance claims remain sky-high
March 29, 2021
Amazon’s anti-union campaign is part of a long history of employer opposition to organizing: Passing the PRO Act would be a critical first step
March 30, 2021
Justice for Asian Americans requires greater understanding and addressing economic realities beyond stereotypes
March 31, 2021
Next round of recovery spending is about meeting social needs, not filling macroeconomic gaps
March 31, 2021
The H-1B visa program remains the “outsourcing visa”: More than half of the top 30 H-1B employers were outsourcing firms
April 1, 2021
Businesses can thrive with a higher minimum wage, and government can help
April 1, 2021
What to watch on jobs day: Signs of an improving labor market
April 2, 2021
Strong job growth in March as vaccine distribution expands and the American Rescue Plan ramps up
April 5, 2021
Calls to establish a regionally adjusted federal minimum wage are dangerously misguided
April 6, 2021
Job openings and hires ticked up in February
April 12, 2021
Lower unionization over the last 40 years decreased wages by 7.9%
April 12, 2021
The American Jobs Plan’s tax provisions are valuable but not the limit on possible spending
April 13, 2021
Today’s inflation data show zero sign of sustained economic overheating
April 13, 2021
We need a vaccine for false narratives about racial disparities: Taking statistics with a dose of history and context will bolster economic and racial justice for Black workers
April 14, 2021
Powerful government policy segregated us; the same can desegregate us, says Color of Law author Richard Rothstein
April 15, 2021
How Amazon gerrymandered the union vote—and won
April 22, 2021
A farewell from EPI’s President
April 23, 2021
New personal income data show the need for broad and permanent unemployment insurance reform
April 27, 2021
Up to 390,000 federal contractors will see a raise under the Biden-Harris executive order
April 28, 2021
The Biden-Harris administration’s first 100 days: How to assess progress for workers
April 29, 2021
The carceral state and the labor market
May 4, 2021
U.S. labor shortage? Unlikely. Here’s why
May 5, 2021
When corporations deceive and cheat workers, consumer laws should be used to protect workers
May 6, 2021
What to watch on jobs day: An improving labor market, but rising long-term unemployment and a significant jobs shortfall are still causes for concern
May 7, 2021
While a disappointing jobs report, job gains in leisure and hospitality respond to increased demand in April
May 7, 2021
This Mother’s Day, recognize care work as the work that powers our economy
May 11, 2021
Job openings surged in March as the economy continues to recover from the pandemic
May 11, 2021
Restaurant labor shortages show little sign of going economywide: Policymakers must not rein in stimulus or unemployment benefits
May 12, 2021
Illinois extended unemployment benefits to school workers in the summer, and Minnesota should follow suit
May 19, 2021
New York included undocumented immigrants in pandemic aid, and 290,000 workers will benefit: Other states should replicate the program
May 26, 2021
There is no justification for cutting federal unemployment benefits: The latest state jobs data show the economy has not fully recovered
May 27, 2021
Preliminary data show CEO pay jumped nearly 16% in 2020, while average worker compensation rose 1.8%
May 28, 2021
President Biden’s budget shows what true ‘fiscal responsibility’ means: Pushing the economy closer to full employment, reducing inequality, and measuring the debt burden more accurately
June 1, 2021
Labor rights and civil rights: One intertwined struggle for all workers
June 2, 2021
Only one in five workers are working from home due to COVID: Black and Hispanic workers are less likely to be able to telework
June 2, 2021
What if it’s not a labor shortage, but just the return of tipping customers driving wage growth in restaurants?
June 3, 2021
What to watch on jobs day: Missing expectations for job growth isn’t worrisome—yet
June 4, 2021
May jobs report is a promising sign that the recovery is on track: Initial comments from EPI economists
June 8, 2021
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey for April shows an economic recovery gaining steam
June 9, 2021
A real ‘party of the working class’ wouldn’t attack the Affordable Care Act
June 11, 2021
Inflation—sources, consequences, and appropriate policy remedies
June 23, 2021
Disappointing Supreme Court decision makes it harder for farmworkers to unionize
June 25, 2021
Job and wage growth do not point to an economywide labor shortage
July 2, 2021
June jobs report shows strong growth and the promise of recovery: Initial comments from EPI economists
July 7, 2021
May Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey shows job openings held steady and quits dropped
July 14, 2021
Policymakers cannot relegate another generation to underresourced K–12 education because of an economic recession
July 15, 2021
Civil monetary penalties for labor violations are woefully insufficient to protect workers
July 16, 2021
Care workers are deeply undervalued and underpaid: Estimating fair and equitable wages in the care sectors
July 20, 2021
Worker-led state and local policy victories in 2021 showcase potential for an equitable recovery
July 20, 2021
The farmworker wage gap continued in 2020: Farmworkers and H-2A workers earned very low wages during the pandemic, even compared with other low-wage workers
July 22, 2021
The minimum wage has lost 21% of its value since Congress last raised the wage
July 28, 2021
As Arkansas and Missouri see a rise in COVID-19 cases, more economic protections are needed
July 29, 2021
Worker protection agencies need more funding to enforce labor laws and protect workers
August 2, 2021
Black women face a persistent pay gap, including in essential occupations during the pandemic
August 4, 2021
State and local American Rescue Plan funds should be used to support an equitable recovery for workers
August 6, 2021
July jobs report shows an economy on track to recover five times as fast as the Great Recession recovery
August 9, 2021
The racist campaign against ‘critical race theory’ threatens democracy and economic transformation
August 9, 2021
June Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey shows an uptick in hires and quits, while layoffs dropped
August 11, 2021
July inflation data show the lowest monthly gain in consumer prices since February
August 11, 2021
Richard Trumka was a champion for workers’ rights: Passing the PRO Act was one of his top priorities
August 24, 2021
Cutting unemployment insurance benefits did not boost job growth: July state jobs data show a widespread recovery
August 25, 2021
A century after the Battle of Blair Mountain, protecting workers’ right to organize has never been more important
September 1, 2021
Bargaining over COVID-19 vaccine requirements doesn’t mean unions oppose mandates: EPI’s Dave Kamper provides a Twitter reality check
September 2, 2021
What to watch on jobs day: Labor market growth may slow as the Delta variant surged in August
September 2, 2021
Growing inequalities, reflecting growing employer power, have generated a productivity–pay gap since 1979: Productivity has grown 3.5 times as much as pay for the typical worker
September 3, 2021
Disappointing job growth in August as the Delta variant surged
September 8, 2021
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey reflects labor market before August’s Delta variant surge
September 14, 2021
The 2020 Census report highlights the costs of the pandemic and benefits of early policy safety net measures
September 14, 2021
By the Numbers: Income and Poverty, 2020
September 14, 2021
Social insurance programs cushioned the blow of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020
September 15, 2021
Immigration reform would be a boon to U.S. economy and must be part of the $3.5 trillion budget resolution: Senate parliamentarian would be wrong to rule otherwise
September 16, 2021
Black and brown workers saw the weakest wage gains over a 40-year period in which employers failed to increase wages with productivity
September 16, 2021
Pandemic-related economic insecurity among Black and Hispanic households would have been worse without a swift policy response
September 17, 2021
All pain and no gain: Unemployment benefit cuts will lower annual incomes by $144.3 billion and consumer spending by $79.2 billion
September 24, 2021
Two-thirds of low-wage workers still lack access to paid sick days during an ongoing pandemic
September 27, 2021
Abolish the debt ceiling before it commits austerity again: The GOP used the debt ceiling to force spending cuts in 2011. It can’t be allowed again.
October 6, 2021
What to watch on jobs day: A seasonal swing in public-sector education employment
October 7, 2021
Cutting the reconciliation bill to $1.5 trillion would support nearly 2 million fewer jobs per year
October 8, 2021
Weak job growth in September as Delta variant leaves its mark
October 12, 2021
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey reflects a decline in both job openings and hires after Delta variant surge
October 13, 2021
Few Midwestern states are providing premium pay to essential workers, despite American Rescue Plan funding
October 20, 2021
Latina Equal Pay Day: Latina workers remain greatly underpaid, including in front-line occupations
November 2, 2021
Yes, the Build Back Better Act is fully paid for
November 3, 2021
New analyses of minimum wage increases in Minneapolis and Saint Paul are misleading, flawed, and should be ignored
November 3, 2021
The Build Back Better Act’s macroeconomic boost looks more valuable by the day
November 4, 2021
What to watch on jobs day: October job growth expected to mildly improve as COVID-19 caseloads recede
November 5, 2021
Solid job growth in October as the recent surge in the pandemic recedes
November 8, 2021
Alabama is making a costly mistake on COVID-19 recovery funds. Here’s a better path forward.
November 10, 2021
October inflation spike is not driven by economic overheating
November 10, 2021
The Build Back Better Act will support 2.3 million jobs per year in its first five years
November 12, 2021
Quits hit record high in Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey with little change in job openings and hires
November 12, 2021
Fiscal policy and inflation: A look at the American Rescue Plan’s impact and what it means for the Build Back Better Act
November 16, 2021
The Post Office at a crossroads
November 19, 2021
States are choosing employers over workers by using COVID relief funds to pay off unemployment insurance debt: Policymakers shouldn’t be afraid to increase taxes on employers to improve unemployment insurance
November 22, 2021
Up to 390,000 federal contractors will benefit from a $15 minimum wage starting in January
November 29, 2021
State and local enforcers standing up to protect workers: Misclassifying workers ‘a pattern of deceit’
December 2, 2021
What to watch on jobs day: 2021 job growth on pace to exceed 6 million jobs by November
December 3, 2021
Jobs report tells two different stories of the November labor market
December 7, 2021
State attorney general addresses extreme underpayment of immigrant detainees: A snapshot of state and local enforcement actions to protect workers
December 8, 2021
Job openings rose and quits fell in Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey for October
December 13, 2021
Wage inequality continued to increase in 2020: Top 1.0% of earners see wages up 179% since 1979 while share of wages for bottom 90% hits new low
December 16, 2021
Top EPI reports of 2021 focused on economic injustice and its remedies
December 17, 2021
Top five EPI blog posts of 2021
December 20, 2021
OSHA vaccine-or-test mandate is smart public policy
December 21, 2021
EPI’s top charts of 2021
December 21, 2021
An economic recovery for whom?: Black women’s employment gaps show important differences in recovery rates
December 23, 2021
States are sitting on American Rescue Plan funds that could help against the Omicron variant
January 4, 2022
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey: Quits hit new high, but hiring was even higher in November
January 4, 2022
More worker power is the only sure path to safe work and pandemic recovery
January 6, 2022
What to watch on jobs day: A strong finish to 2021, but Omicron’s impact looms
January 6, 2022
State attorney general takes action to protect workers against COVID-19: A snapshot of state and local enforcement actions across the country
January 6, 2022
Twenty-one states raised their minimum wages on New Year’s Day: Federal action is still needed
January 7, 2022
December jobs report a tale of two surveys: Payroll survey falls below expectations, but household survey shows strong growth
January 13, 2022
The Freedom to Vote Act would boost voter participation and fulfill the goals of the March on Selma
January 14, 2022
New U.S. Treasury final rule supports state and local spending for an equitable economic recovery
January 19, 2022
Tariff increases did not cause inflation, and their removal would undermine domestic supply chains
January 21, 2022
U.S. workers have already been disempowered in the name of fighting inflation: Policymakers should not make it even worse by raising interest rates too aggressively
January 27, 2022
Chicago and New York take action to protect domestic workers: A snapshot of state and local enforcement actions across the country
January 28, 2022
Up to 390,000 federal contractors will get a raise starting next week
January 31, 2022
The Biden administration’s Federal Reserve nominees are highly qualified and deserve a fair hearing
February 1, 2022
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey: Layoffs rate hits historic low while hires and quits declined
February 3, 2022
What to watch on jobs day: Omicron will weigh heavily on the labor market
February 4, 2022
Strong job growth despite Omicron shows the strength of this recovery
February 7, 2022
The unequal toll of COVID-19 on workers
February 7, 2022
Inflation and the policy response in 2022
February 9, 2022
Project labor agreements on federal construction projects will benefit nearly 200,000 workers
February 11, 2022
Profits, wages, and inflation: What’s really going on
February 15, 2022
U.S. trade deficits hit record highs in 2021: More effective trade, industrial, and currency policies are needed to create more domestic manufacturing jobs
February 18, 2022
How public-sector workers are building power in Virginia
February 22, 2022
Enforcers take action to protect workers from workplace violations at Domino’s and Family Dollar stores: A snapshot of state and local enforcement actions across the country
February 28, 2022
Congress should boost NLRB funding to protect workers’ well-being
March 3, 2022
What to watch on jobs day: The economy is recovering fast because federal relief matched the scale of the crisis
March 4, 2022
Jobs report: The labor market continues its strong and speedy recovery because federal relief matched the scale of the crisis
March 9, 2022
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey: Hires and separations were little changed as quits declined
March 10, 2022
Equal Pay Day: There has been little progress in closing the gender wage gap
March 11, 2022
One year in, the American Rescue Plan has fueled a fast recovery: Policymakers should use remaining ARPA funds in 2022 to make transformative investments that will build a more equitable economy
March 16, 2022
Building back better means raising wages for public-sector workers
March 21, 2022
The Biden administration can stop H-1B visas from fueling outsourcing: Half of the top 30 H-1B employers were outsourcing firms in 2021
March 23, 2022
Enforcers take action to protect building superintendents and grocery and construction workers: A snapshot of state and local enforcement actions across the country
March 29, 2022
Biden can fix the anti-worker H-1B immigration visa scam
March 29, 2022
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey: Job openings were little changed while hires edged up
April 1, 2022
March jobs report shows strong growth as the labor market continues to recover at a rapid pace
April 8, 2022
Child care and elder care investments are a tool for reducing inflationary expectations without pain
April 21, 2022
Corporate profits have contributed disproportionately to inflation. How should policymakers respond?
April 26, 2022
Stagnant top-code thresholds threaten data reliability for the highest earners and make inequality difficult to accurately measure
April 28, 2022
This Workers Memorial Day, honor lives lost by joining workers’ fight for a future that includes safe work
April 29, 2022
Much has changed since the first May Day, but building worker power and combating racism and xenophobia remain just as important
May 3, 2022
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey: Job openings and quits edged up to series highs for March
May 5, 2022
What to watch on jobs day: Wage growth continues to lag inflation
May 6, 2022
Job growth remains strong in April as wage growth cools
May 6, 2022
Strong and equitable unemployment insurance systems require broadening the UI tax base
May 12, 2022
Wage growth has been dampening inflation all along—and has slowed even more recently
May 12, 2022
The U.S. tax code functionally rewards corporations who use anti-union consultants: Congress must take action
May 13, 2022
No more union-busting. It’s time for companies to give their workers what they deserve
May 16, 2022
Ignoring the role of profits makes inflation analyses a lot weaker
May 18, 2022
Abortion rights are economic rights: Overturning Roe v. Wade would be an economic catastrophe for millions of women
May 20, 2022
Following Dr. Lisa Cook’s historic confirmation to the Federal Reserve Board, we must acknowledge the importance of Black economists for public policy and the economy
May 20, 2022
Guest post: Food insufficiency in families with children increased after expiration of Child Tax Credit monthly payments
May 23, 2022
The future of work depends on stopping Amazon’s union busting: Shareholders and policymakers must all play a role in protecting Amazon workers’ rights
June 1, 2022
Job openings declined in April while layoffs hit a series low
June 1, 2022
What to watch on jobs day: The labor market is strong, not overheating
June 3, 2022
Job and wage growth moderate in May: The labor market is not overheating
June 6, 2022
Debunking 5 top inflation myths
June 7, 2022
Understanding economic disparities within the AAPI community
June 8, 2022
Proposed New York state minimum wage increases would lift wages for more than 2 million workers through 2026: Minimum wages would range by region from $16.35 to $21.25 per hour by 2026
June 10, 2022
Young adults are graduating into a more promising labor market
June 13, 2022
Local governments stepping in to bolster workers’ rights
June 21, 2022
Revoking tariffs would not tame inflation: But it would leave our supply chains even more vulnerable to disruption
June 28, 2022
Against panic: The Fed should not be given permission to cause a recession in the name of inflation control
July 6, 2022
Job openings still near historic high in May while hires and separations were little changed
July 6, 2022
State and local governments have made transformative investments with American Rescue Plan recovery funds in 2022: A tighter focus on working families and children will have the greatest impact going forward
July 7, 2022
Will Friday’s wage growth numbers stop the Fed from snatching defeat out of the jaws of victory?
July 8, 2022
Jobs report: Moderating wage growth means the Fed doesn’t need to raise interest rates further to contain inflation
July 11, 2022
Rising minimum wages in 20 states and localities help protect workers and families against higher prices
July 13, 2022
June inflation data show continued growth in overall CPI, but don’t capture recent price declines in food and energy
July 13, 2022
A recession would be worse than today’s inflation
July 14, 2022
The growing housing supply shortage has created a housing affordability crisis
July 14, 2022
The value of the federal minimum wage is at its lowest point in 66 years
July 26, 2022
Inflation is no excuse for inaction on needed tax reforms and investments
July 27, 2022
Putting Minnesota’s record-low unemployment numbers in context
July 28, 2022
Unions helped keep workers in jobs and paid during the pandemic
July 29, 2022
Not a recession—yet: The Fed’s overly aggressive interest rate hikes increase risk of recession
August 2, 2022
Job openings declined in June but remain much higher than pre-pandemic
August 3, 2022
What to watch on jobs day: Can wage growth normalize without substantially higher unemployment?
August 4, 2022
Rising inflation is a global problem: U.S. policy choices are not to blame
August 5, 2022
Jobs report doesn’t show signs of recession—yet—as labor market remains strong: The Fed should still be wary of raising interest rates much further
August 15, 2022
State policy solutions for good home health care jobs—nearly half held by Black women in the South—should address the legacy of racism, sexism, and xenophobia in the workforce
August 19, 2022
Abortion bans prove yet again there is no race-neutral policy
August 29, 2022
Teachers’ unions reduce teacher stress. Anti-union laws significantly increase it.
August 30, 2022
California’s FAST Recovery Act is a victory for fast food workers and a model for state labor policy
August 30, 2022
Jobs openings ticked up in July while hires remained above pre-pandemic levels
August 30, 2022
Union approval hits highest point since 1965: Here’s why this isn’t surprising
September 2, 2022
Jobs report doesn’t show signs of recession as labor market remains strong in August
September 6, 2022
Tying minimum-wage increases to inflation, as 13 states do, will lift up low-wage workers and their families across the country
September 8, 2022
California is on the brink of enacting the first significant law to combat international labor recruitment abuses and protect 300,000 temporary migrant workers. Will Governor Newsom sign the bill?
September 9, 2022
2021 Census Data Preview: A growing economy and government relief measures matter for earnings, incomes, and poverty
September 12, 2022
August CPI data will likely show a second straight month of overall price declines: New interest rate hikes may be harmful
September 13, 2022
The 2021 Census report highlights how government relief measures played a vital role in reducing poverty
September 13, 2022
Pandemic safety net programs kept millions out of poverty in 2021, new Census data show
September 14, 2022
Census data show health insurance coverage gains for Black workers and children in 2021, but we can go further with better policy
September 15, 2022
The labor market recovery and pandemic relief measures lifted Black and Brown workers and families in 2021
September 16, 2022
Household incomes have fallen since 2019 despite growth in workers’ earnings
September 16, 2022
Poverty is a policy choice: State-level data show pandemic safety net programs prevented a rise in poverty in every state
September 22, 2022
Inflation, minimum wages, and profits: Protecting low-wage workers from inflation means raising the minimum wage
September 22, 2022
Child Tax Credit expansions were instrumental in reducing poverty rates to historic lows in 2021
September 23, 2022
Over 60% of low-wage workers still don’t have access to paid sick days on the job
September 26, 2022
Overtime pay will help, not hurt, New York’s farms
October 4, 2022
Job openings fell while net job growth remained strong in August
October 6, 2022
In a year of tremendous legislative gains for California workers, Governor Newsom was wrong to veto a bill to protect 300,000 migrant workers
October 6, 2022
What to Watch on Jobs Day: Signs of life in stalled public-sector employment?
October 7, 2022
Labor market strong, but cooling in September: Public-sector employment continues to falter
October 13, 2022
Not So Free to Contract: The Law, Philosophy, and Economics of Unequal Workplace Power
October 28, 2022
Victory on overtime for New York farmworkers
October 31, 2022
Recent data indicate that a “soft landing” is still in reach—the Fed should try to secure it: Ignoring disinflation signs heightens risk of recession
November 1, 2022
Job openings increased in September, partially offsetting the sharp drop in August
November 1, 2022
Moving beyond fake education debates to focus on student success: Time to deal with lagging teacher pay, shortages, and rising stress among students and teachers
November 4, 2022
Labor market showed more signs of cooling in October: Wage growth continues to decelerate
November 17, 2022
Voters turned out for economic justice: A review of key ballot measures from the 2022 midterm elections
November 30, 2022
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey: Job openings declined in October
December 2, 2022
November jobs report a tale of two conflicting surveys: Payroll survey shows steady job growth, but household survey shows a continued decline in employment
December 7, 2022
Illinois Workers’ Rights Amendment sets new bar for state worker power policy: Other state legislatures should seize the moment to advance worker, racial, and gender justice in 2023
December 8, 2022
Top five EPI blog posts of 2022: Inflation and minimum wage increases among the most-read posts
December 12, 2022
What’s at stake for state and local governments in the year-end government funding negotiations
December 13, 2022
Inflation is easing: Fed should slow rate hikes
December 13, 2022
EPI’s top charts of 2022: EPI’s most popular charts tell the story of how pandemic setbacks in income inequality were mitigated by pandemic relief
December 14, 2022
Beyond the numbers: What teaching shortages look like in practice
December 14, 2022
Proposed New York state minimum wage legislation would boost wages for nearly 2.9 million workers: Minimum wages would range by region from $20 to $21.25 per hour by 2026
December 22, 2022
More than 8 million workers will get a raise on New Year’s Day: 23 states and D.C. will see minimum wage hikes ranging from $0.23 to $1.50 an hour
January 4, 2023
Job openings remain significantly lower than 2022 peak
January 5, 2023
Proposed FTC rule would ban noncompete agreements and empower workers
January 6, 2023
Job growth strong in December as wage growth slows
January 11, 2023
State and local governments should use ARPA pandemic funds in 2023 to rebuild the public sector and support working families and children
January 13, 2023
Workers are 46% more likely to make below $15 an hour in states paying only the federal minimum wage
January 13, 2023
The Department of Homeland Security took a positive step by clarifying and streamlining the process to protect migrant workers in labor disputes
January 17, 2023
A record share of earnings was not subject to Social Security taxes in 2021: Inequality’s undermining of Social Security has accelerated
January 23, 2023
The debt limit is the world’s highest-stakes horoscope: Not raising the debt limit would guarantee a recession
January 25, 2023
Historic job growth in 2022 reflects strong but uneven economic recovery: State and local lawmakers should prioritize rebuilding the public sector in 2023
January 30, 2023
The Fed should stand pat on further interest rate hikes at this week’s meeting: Inflation is easing even as the labor market remains strong
February 1, 2023
Job openings increased in December, but remain significantly lower than March 2022 peak
February 1, 2023
What to watch on jobs day: Upward revisions in employment expected after record two-year job growth
February 3, 2023
Labor market off to a strong start in 2023: 517,000 jobs added in January as unemployment rate hits historic low
February 3, 2023
EPI retracts fact sheet on employer violations in union elections
February 7, 2023
U.S. trade deficit hits another record high in 2022
February 8, 2023
The Supreme Court is poised to strike down affirmative action and student loan forgiveness: These decisions would threaten college enrollment and completion for students of color
February 15, 2023
Five principles for making state and local reparations plans reparative
March 8, 2023
Job openings fell in January, while layoffs increased
March 10, 2023
February jobs report shows a resilient but sustainable labor market: The Fed should not put the economic recovery at risk
March 10, 2023
High and rising teacher vacancies coincide with a steep decline in the overall well-being of the teaching profession
March 13, 2023
Two years later, American Rescue Plan funds are still a transformative resource: State and local governments—particularly in the South—should invest unspent funds in workers, families, and communities
March 13, 2023
Why ‘right-to-work’ was always wrong for Michigan: Restoring workers’ rights is key to reversing growing income inequality in Michigan
March 20, 2023
Recent banking failures add another reason to halt interest rate hikes
March 21, 2023
State and local governments have spent less than half of their American Rescue Plan fiscal recovery funds: Recovery funds should be used to rebuild the public sector
March 28, 2023
Employers regularly engage in tactics to suppress unions: Examples at Starbucks, Amazon, and Google illustrate employers’ anti-union playbook
March 29, 2023
Gender wage gap widens even as low-wage workers see strong gains: Women are paid roughly 22% less than men on average
March 30, 2023
An average of 27 workers a day suffer amputation or hospitalization, according to new OSHA data from 29 states: Meat and poultry companies remain among the most dangerous
March 30, 2023
Even with today’s slowdown, profit growth remains a big driver of inflation in recent years: Corporate profits have contributed to more than a third of price growth
April 7, 2023
Jobs report shows 236,000 jobs added in March and wage growth slowing to disinflationary rates
April 10, 2023
The end of the pandemic public health emergency largely doesn’t change how state and local governments can use ARPA fiscal relief funds
April 11, 2023
Tech and outsourcing companies continue to exploit the H-1B visa program at a time of mass layoffs: The top 30 H-1B employers hired 34,000 new H-1B workers in 2022 and laid off at least 85,000 workers in 2022 and early 2023
April 20, 2023
State and local experience proves school vouchers are a failed policy that must be opposed: As voucher expansion bills gain momentum, look to public school advocates for guidance
April 26, 2023
Speaker McCarthy’s debt limit proposal = enormous human toll: Proposal would impose burdensome work reporting requirements to restrict access to Medicaid and food stamps
April 28, 2023
No way out: Older workers are increasingly trapped in crummy jobs and unable to retire: Growing disparities in work and retirement in 30 charts
May 1, 2023
Don’t let businesses off the hook: The government’s role in creating segregation does not exonerate the private sector
May 2, 2023
Job openings continued to fall in March while layoffs increased
May 3, 2023
Class of 2023: Young adults are graduating into a strong labor market
May 5, 2023
April jobs report: The labor market is strong, but it’s not ‘too hot’
May 9, 2023
Weaponizing the debt limit should not be normalized: President Biden should do “whatever it takes” to avoid an economic catastrophe
May 10, 2023
Lessons from a successful fight for affordable housing in the heart of Silicon Valley: Menlo Park’s “No on V” victory is a model for the nation
May 12, 2023
Class of 2023: Young people see better job opportunities
May 23, 2023
Debt ceiling deal ‘work requirements’ would hurt low-wage workers, fuel corporate greed
May 24, 2023
Class of 2023: Young workers have experienced strong wage growth since 2020
May 26, 2023
Broad child poverty data for the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander population don’t tell the whole economic story
May 31, 2023
Job openings ticked up slightly in April as layoffs fell: Labor market remains steady and does not show signs of rapid cooling
May 31, 2023
Iowa governor signs one of the most dangerous rollbacks of child labor laws in the country: 14 states have now introduced bills putting children at risk
June 2, 2023
U.S. economy added 339,000 jobs in May: Labor market remains strong despite volatile household survey
June 2, 2023
Troubling provisions to watch in the new debt limit deal
June 9, 2023
The Supreme Court sided with corporations over workers—again
June 12, 2023
Counties have far more unspent ARPA fiscal relief funds than cities and states: Funds should be used to make equity-enhancing investments
June 20, 2023
Supreme Court justices’ close ties with business interests threaten workers’ rights
June 28, 2023
How state policies that censor race and gender discussions in classrooms maintain economic inequality: Florida has adopted particularly dangerous laws to limit academic freedom
June 29, 2023
The Supreme Court’s ban on affirmative action means colleges will struggle to meet goals of diversity and equal opportunity
June 30, 2023
Nineteen states and localities will increase their minimum wages this summer
July 6, 2023
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey points to a strong—not cooling—labor market
July 6, 2023
Keeping wealth in the family: The role of ‘heirs property’ in eroding Black families’ wealth
July 7, 2023
June jobs numbers signal a growing economy: Gains for women and strong public sector growth, but losses for Black workers
July 10, 2023
Guest post: New York City’s app-based delivery workers will receive a long overdue pay raise to nearly $18 an hour: Pay ordinance creates important policy model for states and cities across the country
July 17, 2023
The equalizing effect of strong labor markets: Explaining the disproportionate rise in the Black employment-to-population ratio
July 18, 2023
It’s not just the actors—workers across the economy are demanding better pay and safer jobs
July 19, 2023
Supreme Court decision affirms President Biden’s power to set immigration enforcement priorities and protect labor standards through deferred action
July 20, 2023
States across the country are quietly lowering the alcohol service age: An industry already rife with abuse—including child labor law violations—would like your server to be an underage teenager
July 26, 2023
New data show that state and local governments still have not spent a majority of American Rescue Plan funds: Important opportunities remain to invest in public services
August 4, 2023
Today’s jobs report shows a soft landing is within reach—if the Fed doesn’t stand in the way
August 10, 2023
The single thing Larry Summers gets right about ‘Bidenomics’—it’s different than what came before
August 14, 2023
The Inflation Reduction Act finally gave the U.S. a real climate change policy
August 21, 2023
A retrospective look at inflation: Which predictions were wrong or right, and what remains unclear?
August 29, 2023
Job openings fall to lowest point since 2021, but remain higher than pre-pandemic
August 31, 2023
A history of the federal minimum wage: 85 years later, the minimum wage is far from equitable
September 1, 2023
August jobs report shows a steady labor market: 187,000 jobs added as labor force participation rate climbs
September 5, 2023
Could tax increases alone close the long-run fiscal gap?
September 8, 2023
2022 Census data preview: Poverty rates expected to increase as high inflation and the loss of safety net programs overshadow labor market improvements
September 12, 2023
The end of key U.S. public assistance measures pushed millions of people into poverty in 2022
September 12, 2023
UAW-automakers negotiations pit falling wages against skyrocketing CEO pay: U.S. auto companies have the means to invest in EVs, pay workers a fair share, and still earn healthy profits
September 13, 2023
How an Activision Blizzard and Microsoft merger helps consumers and workers
September 18, 2023
Despite a strong labor market, the choice to allow pandemic-era public assistance programs to expire increased poverty across all racial groups in 2022
September 21, 2023
New data show that access to paid sick days remains vastly unequal: Amid federal inaction, 61% of low-wage workers are without paid sick days
September 28, 2023
The expiration of pandemic-era public assistance measures fueled poverty increases in the majority of states (Corrected)
September 29, 2023
Florida legislature proposes dangerous rollback of child labor protections: At least 16 states have introduced bills putting children at risk
October 3, 2023
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey: Hiring, quits, and layoffs remain at or below pre-pandemic rates
October 3, 2023
How many farmworkers are employed in the United States?
October 4, 2023
The impact of the wave of strike activity goes far beyond the 2024 election: A revitalized labor movement could lead to a fairer economy for decades to come
October 5, 2023
The farmworker wage gap: Farmworkers earned 40% less than comparable nonagricultural workers in 2022
October 6, 2023
Job growth is strong, wage growth continues to normalize
October 19, 2023
The strong labor market recovery has helped Hispanic workers, but the end of economic relief measures has worsened income and poverty disparities
October 24, 2023
Tackling the problem of ‘captive audience’ meetings: How states are stepping up to protect workers’ rights and freedoms
November 3, 2023
The economy added 150,000 jobs in October as labor market remains resilient
November 3, 2023
Personal reflections on the life and legacy of Bill Spriggs
November 7, 2023
As some states attack child labor protections, other states are strengthening standards
November 14, 2023
The school bus driver shortage remains severe: Without job quality improvements, workers, children, and parents will suffer
November 21, 2023
If you must argue about the economy over Thanksgiving dinner, at least get the facts right
November 30, 2023
Native American child poverty more than doubled in 2022 after safety net cutbacks: Child poverty rate is higher than before the pandemic
December 5, 2023
Job openings continue to head toward pre-pandemic levels
December 6, 2023
Top EPI reports and blogs in 2023: Child labor, economics of abortion bans, and teacher pay among the most read EPI research
December 7, 2023
New York’s minimum wage law has a loophole that could freeze increases starting in 2027: This “off-ramp” provision must be repealed
December 8, 2023
Jobs report shows a sustainably strong labor market—not a coming recession
December 11, 2023
Wage inequality fell in 2022 because stock market declines brought down pay of the highest earners: But top 1% wages have skyrocketed 171.7% since 1979 while bottom 90% wages have seen just 32.9% growth
December 15, 2023
Congress and President Biden should not trade away human rights and asylum protections for temporary defense funding
December 19, 2023
The teacher shortage shows small signs of improvement, but it remains widespread
December 20, 2023
Biden administration moves to protect vulnerable nursing home residents and workers
December 21, 2023
Twenty-two states will increase their minimum wages on January 1, raising pay for nearly 10 million workers
January 3, 2024
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey: Quits, layoffs, and hires all continued to trend down in November
January 5, 2024
December jobs report caps another year of strong job growth
January 8, 2024
Youth subminimum wages and why they should be eliminated: Young workers face pay discrimination in 34 states and DC
January 9, 2024
State and local governments have only spent about half of American Rescue Plan funds as critical deadline nears
January 18, 2024
There’s no debate: Measurable income inequality has skyrocketed in recent decades
January 23, 2024
Decline of labor unions weakens American democracy
January 29, 2024
Extending unemployment insurance to striking workers would cost little and encourage fair negotiations
January 29, 2024
Don’t wait on wage growth—the Fed should cut rates at this week’s meeting
January 30, 2024
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey shows a strong—but not overheating—labor market
January 30, 2024
The economy isn’t sick right now—but it has chronic conditions that demand attention
January 30, 2024
The soft bigotry of high expectations: To combat the Black-white school achievement gap, remedy persistent segregation, don’t hope for miracle teachers
February 2, 2024
A strong labor market continues into 2024 with 353,000 jobs added in January
February 7, 2024
Child labor remains a key state legislative issue in 2024: State lawmakers must seize opportunities to strengthen standards, resist ongoing attacks on child labor laws
February 13, 2024
Data show anti-union ‘right-to-work’ laws damage state economies: As Michigan’s repeal takes effect, New Hampshire should continue to reject ‘right-to-work’ legislation
February 20, 2024
Immigrants are not hurting U.S.-born workers: Six facts to set the record straight
March 6, 2024
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey: Labor market remains strong—but not hot
March 7, 2024
What’s behind the corporate effort to kneecap the National Labor Relations Board?: SpaceX, Amazon, Trader Joe’s, and Starbucks are trying to have the NLRB declared unconstitutional—after collectively being charged with hundreds of violations of workers’ organizing rights
March 8, 2024
February jobs report: The labor market is strong—but decidedly not overheating as wage growth continues to moderate
March 8, 2024
Gender wage gap persists in 2023: Women are paid roughly 22% less than men on average
March 15, 2024
The estate tax should help to level the playing field. Instead it’s letting the rich get richer.
March 19, 2024
Middle-out economics is good for workers, their families, and the broader economy
March 28, 2024
Loc-ing students out: Darryl George, the CROWN Act, and the need to combat racial discrimination in the classroom
April 2, 2024
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey shows an uptick in hiring
April 4, 2024
A record-breaking recovery for Black and Hispanic workers: Prime-age employment rates have hit an all-time high alongside tremendous wage growth
April 5, 2024
Another strong jobs report: Unemployment has remained at or below 4% for 28 months running
April 18, 2024
Will Illinois be next to tackle the problem of ‘captive audience’ meetings?: Rights and freedoms of 22.7 million workers now protected in seven states
April 19, 2024
A tight labor market and state minimum wage increases boosted low-end wage growth between 2019 and 2023
April 23, 2024
Explaining the Department of Labor’s new overtime rule that will benefit 4.3 million workers
April 26, 2024
Recapping a great week for workers
May 1, 2024
Job openings continue to normalize to pre-pandemic levels
May 1, 2024
The inspiring wave of student worker organizing that the Trump administration tried to stop
May 3, 2024
Jobs report shows the labor market is strong but decidedly not hot: 175,000 jobs added in April while wage growth continues to decelerate
May 7, 2024
The free market won’t solve our nationwide housing affordability problem: Equity-focused policy is the solution
May 7, 2024
Waffle House strike highlights the harms of the Southern economic development model
May 8, 2024
Cities and counties might be at risk of losing billions if they don’t obligate American Rescue Plan funds correctly: Advocates should pay close attention to the 2024 obligation deadline
May 9, 2024
Class of 2024: Young college graduates have experienced a rapid economic recovery
May 13, 2024
Tight labor markets are essential to reducing racial disparities and within the purview of the Fed’s dual mandate
May 14, 2024
Operation Dixie failed 78 years ago. Are today’s Southern workers about to change all that?
May 15, 2024
Average wages have surpassed inflation for 12 straight months
May 15, 2024
Vouchers undermine efforts to provide an excellent public education for all
May 22, 2024
Just by having a union vote, Mercedes workers in Alabama won major concessions and proved the importance of worker power
May 22, 2024
How much do companies spend on union-busters? The Department of Labor has improved reporting requirements and enforcement—but more is needed
May 22, 2024
Class of 2024: Young high school graduates have seen strong wage growth over the pandemic recovery
May 23, 2024
Alabama’s and Maryland’s similar Black unemployment rates mask major differences in labor market conditions
June 4, 2024
Job openings continue to trend toward pre-pandemic levels
June 4, 2024
Nursing home owners are pushing Congress to block a new minimum staffing rule
June 6, 2024
What to watch on jobs day—revenge of the managers: Evidence of manager wage growth rising while typical workers’ wage growth slows
June 7, 2024
Jobs report indicates a strong labor market: Unemployment has been at or below 4% for 30 months running
June 12, 2024
More states have strengthened child labor laws than weakened them in 2024: This year, state advocates were better equipped to organize in opposition to harmful bills
June 18, 2024
Examining the economic impact of language proficiency on AAPI populations
July 1, 2024
Half of U.S. states have passed the CROWN Act to ban hair discrimination
July 2, 2024
Hiring and job openings grew slightly in May: Analysis of JOLTS data
July 2, 2024
What to watch on jobs day: The labor market is better by some measures than before the pandemic
July 5, 2024
U.S. economy shows steady job growth in June
July 19, 2024
Chicago Public Schools should try to maintain spending levels even as federal pandemic relief funds come to an end
July 25, 2024
Prices have fallen in key sectors since inflation peaked in 2022
July 25, 2024
Proposed federal rule would protect workers from extreme heat
July 30, 2024
Reduced hires rate adds more reasons for Fed to cut interest rates
August 2, 2024
Slowing job growth makes clear that the Fed has waited too long to cut interest rates
August 20, 2024
Improving teacher diversity is key to reducing racial disparities in academic outcomes and addressing the teacher shortage
September 4, 2024
Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey shows that the Fed still needs to cut interest rates
September 5, 2024
Profits and price inflation are indeed linked
September 6, 2024
The labor market remains strong with 142,000 jobs added in August
September 6, 2024
A 2023 Census data preview: Household incomes likely rose because of a strong labor market and falling inflation
September 9, 2024
Most minimum wage studies have found little or no job loss
September 9, 2024
The labor market remains strong yet the Fed should cut rates in September
September 10, 2024
Real median household income rose sharply in 2023—a testament to the strength of the economic recovery
September 16, 2024
Latest data show that recent immigrant population growth is not unprecedented and below historical peaks: New immigrants help grow the economy
September 17, 2024
Why the Fed should cut interest rates this week
September 18, 2024
A misleading economic study undersells the benefits from increasing the minimum wage in five cities in Boulder County
September 19, 2024
Access to paid sick leave continues to grow but remains highly unequal
October 1, 2024
Today’s JOLTS report shows that the Fed did the right thing by lowering rates
October 1, 2024
The post-pandemic recovery is an economic policy success story: Policymakers took the best way through a rocky path
October 3, 2024
Actually, the U.S. labor market remains very strong
October 3, 2024
Immigrant workers help grow the U.S. economy: New state fact sheets illustrate the economic benefits of immigration
October 4, 2024
Blockbuster jobs report shows strong growth: The Fed should still continue to lower rates
October 8, 2024
Policy choices did not cause recent years’ inflation—but did deliver strong wage growth
October 9, 2024
Today’s teacher shortage is just the tip of the iceberg: Part I
October 16, 2024
Today’s teacher shortage is just the tip of the iceberg: Part II
October 17, 2024
Time is running out for state and local governments to obligate American Rescue Plan funds
October 21, 2024
Seven reasons why today’s economy is historically strong
October 25, 2024
Behind the numbers of Hispanic employment: A strong labor market has delivered historic gains, but differences remain among demographic groups
Glossary of terms
Presidential memorandum: Directive by the president used to govern the actions of government officials and agencies; does not need to be published unless the president determines that the memo has “general applicability and legal effect.”
Executive order: Directive by the president used to govern or direct actions of government officials or agencies; must be published in the Federal Register.
Statement of administration policy: Formal means through which the president comments on legislation pending before Congress; indicates intent to support or veto a measure.
Congressional Review Act (CRA): Oversight tool which provides for a special set of procedures for considering a joint resolution disapproving an agency final rule. It requires only a majority vote in the Senate. Enactment of a CRA joint resolution of disapproval blocks the rule from taking effect and, when a rule has already taken effect, it prohibits the rule from continuing to be in effect.
Joint resolution: Legislative measure which, with one exception (constitutional amendment), requires approval of both chambers of Congress and is submitted to the president for signature into law.