Education and economic development
Strong economies compete on the basis of high value, not solely low cost. So when considering ways to increase U.S. competitiveness in an increasingly knowledge-based economy, the most forward-thinking approach is to equip citizens with the skills and attitudes needed for economic and civic success. Existing research shows that a nation that invests in education generates real, quantifiable results. For a better understanding of why money spent wisely on education pays off not only for workers, but also for communities and businesses, read EPI's new book, Smart Money—Education and Economic Development, by EPI research associate William Schweke.

Final overtime rules strip protection from millions of workers
On April 23, 2004 the Department of Labor published regulatory changes that, if they are allowed to take effect, could strip away the right to overtime pay for over six million workers. The original version of these rules, proposed by the Bush Administration over a year ago, would have stripped overtime protection from eight million workers. The result was widespread public opposition, and the administration promised that its final version of the rules would correct this problem—a promise it has failed to keep. For EPI Vice President Ross Eisenbrey's analysis of the final overtime rule changes, read the Briefing Paper, Longer Hours, Less Pay.

Assessing job quality
Using jobs data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the voter-advocacy group Factcheck.org recently weighed in on the debate over the quality of the jobs being added to the U.S. workforce.  Factcheck.org purported to find "good evidence that job quality has increased over the past year or more."  EPI's new Issue Brief, Assessing Job Quality, shows that Factcheck.org's analysis is flawed, and the BLS data do not support the conclusion that the U.S. labor market is seeing an improvement in job quality. Authors Elise Gould, Lawrence Mishel, Jared Bernstein, and Lee Price examine the data behind the Factcheck.org claims and find that, in fact, the evidence shows that the industry and occupation categories growing most quickly over the past year pay less than those growing at a slower pace.

JobWatch.org analyzes disappointing employment growth in June
Payrolls grew by 112,000 in June, well below the pace of growth in recent months, while unemployment remained at 5.6%. EPI's analysis of the June unemployment numbers, as well as trends in employment and job creation since the Bush Administration's "Jobs and Growth" tax cuts took effect, appear on www.JobWatch.org.

State of Working America findings released in special “preview” Snapshots
Throughout the summer, EPI is releasing a series of sneak previews from the forthcoming book State of Working America 2004-2005 to illustrate the range and depth of subjects covered in this seminal publication.  In one such sneak peek, the July 7 Snapshot by EPI senior economist Jared Bernstein finds that families' work hours have increased substantially, a trend that can erode the quality of family life even as incomes rise. 

Watch the EPI Web site for more State of Working America preview Snapshots throughout the summer.

• EPI President Lawrence Mishel and former EPI Research Director Eileen Appelbaum have both been invited to join the editorial advisory board of Challenge—The Magazine of Economic Affairs.
  
  
• An opinion piece by EPI Deputy Director of Policy Amy Chasanov about the need for a minimum wage increase appeared in The Hill magazine on July 14.
  
  
• EPI Vice President Ross Eisenbrey participated in a July 14 press briefing about the Department of Labor's revisions to the overtime regulations, which will cause more than six million workers to lose their rights to overtime pay.
  
  
• On July 8, William Schweke—research director for the Corporation for Enterprise Development, EPI research associate, and author of the recently published EPI education book Smart Money—was joined by a panel of experts in a media conference call on how investment in education is essential in advancing economic equality and keeping the U.S. competitive in today's economy. The panel was moderated by EPI President Lawrence Mishel, and included EPI research associate Robert Lynch as well as a number of journalists.

The mission of the Economic Policy Institute is to provide high-quality research and education in order to promote a prosperous, fair, and sustainable economy. The Institute stresses real world analysis and a concern for the living standards of working people, and it makes its findings accessible to the general public, the media, and policy makers.