EPI in the news

• Why Ford Can’t Fill This Six-Figure Job

  The Big Number

  19

  The number of states that increased their minimum wages starting this month, providing a pay bump to an estimated 8.3 million U.S. workers. For the first time, more workers now live in states that pay $15 or higher per hour than those that have kept the $7.25 minimum, according to an analysis by the Economic Policy Institute.

  WSJ Careers & Leadership newsletter | January 8, 2026
• Legislative lowdown: The minimum wage went up in 19 states on Jan. 1

  As of Jan. 1, 2026, the minimum wage rate increased in 19 states, as well as 47 different cities and counties. The state-level minimum wage increases are expected to affect earnings for more than 8.3 million workers, according to an estimate from the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute.

  HR Brew | January 8, 2026
• Worker confidence is sliding, despite added jobs

  Among demographic groups, the worst deterioration in the job market has been for Black workers, said Valerie Wilson, director of the Economic Policy Institute’s Program on Race, Ethnicity, and the Economy.

  “[In November] the Black unemployment rate rose to 8.3%, up from 7.5% in September,” she said.

  Marketplace | January 8, 2026
• Minimum Wage Rises in Some States as Workers Struggle With Basic Costs

  For the first time, more Americans will earn a minimum wage of $15 or more than will earn the federal minimum of $7.25, according to the Economic Policy Institute. The federal rate has remained unchanged since 2009, despite broad public support for an increase.

  …

  The increases, a majority of which took effect Jan. 1, will boost the earnings of about 8.3 million workers by a total of $5 billion, according to the Economic Policy Institute.

  New York Times | January 8, 2026
• The Highest Paid CEOs

  According to a September 2025 report from the Economic Policy Institute, “This CEO-to-top-0.1% pay ratio has risen enormously in the past five decades. In 2023 (the last year available for the top 0.1% data series), this ratio was 7.5, meaning that CEOs were paid 7.5 times as much as even the most privileged 0.1% of workers in the economy. This is an extremely large change: It essentially means that the relative pay of CEOs increased by an amount equal to the total annual wages of nearly five of these very-high-wage earners.”

  Investopedia | January 8, 2026
• If Georgia wants to address affordability, lawmakers must raise minimum wage

  “Most of the rise in inequality over the last four decades has redistributed wages away from most workers.”- Economic Policy Institute (EPI).

  Atlanta Journal Constitution | January 8, 2026
• More than 8 million workers are getting a pay raise in 2026—here are the 19 states where wages are rising

  Of the more than 8.3 million workers set to benefit from these states’ minimum wage hikes, several demographics will be most affected, per the Economic Policy Institute. Women, who make up nearly 60% of the minimum wage workforce of the affected states, will see the biggest change. Then, Black and Latino workers will be affected most, as they disproportionately comprise the workforce. 10.7% of affected workers are Black, compared to being 8.7% of these states’ workforce. 38.3% affected workers are Latino, despite being 19.8% of these states’ workforce.

  These hikes come at a pivotal time. The economy is buckling under a handful of pressures, and employment is suffering as a result. 2026 is preceded by a year with the most layoffs since the pandemic, rising unemployment, inflation, and business’ existential AI crisis. “Minimum wage increases are an essential tool for putting money in workers’ pockets,” especially right now, according to the EPI.

  Essence | January 8, 2026

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