D.C region
Affordability
Misclassification
College athletes
The Trump agenda has harmed the D.C. regional economy. Other regions should brace for impact.

After a year of Trump attacks on federal workers and agencies, the Washington D.C. region has experienced far greater employment losses compared with the rest of the country—and Black workers have borne the brunt of the downturn.

But other localities across the country—particularly those with large federal workforces, those that are heavily dependent on federal programs, and those with sizeable immigrant populations—are far from immune. Many could suffer as much, if not more, from the Trump administration’s actions over the past year.

Brace for economic impact →

Related

Rising inequality is the root of affordability problems

In recent decades, income inequality has skyrocketed because of intentional policy choices that suppressed wages for typical families to accelerate income growth at the top. Our new analysis finds that middle-class household incomes would be roughly $30,000 higher today if their incomes had simply kept pace with average income growth since 1979.

Recognizing that today’s affordability problems are overwhelmingly inequality problems is the key to constructing the right policy solutions.

It doesn’t have to be this way →

Related

Misclassifying workers as independent contractors is costly for workers and social insurance systems

Misclassification of employees as independent contractors deprives workers of their labor rights, slashes their pay, and undermines funding for crucial social safety net programs, according to our new analysis of 11 commonly misclassified jobs.

 A typical construction worker misclassified as an independent contractor would lose as much as $20,399 in annual income and job benefits compared with what they would have earned as an employee. A typical truck driver, if misclassified as an independent contractor, would lose as much as $23,266 annually.

Policymakers at the federal, state, and local levels should act to curb misclassification and enforce the rights to which all workers should be entitled.

Read more →

Related

A snapshot of college athletes

College sports, despite claims of amateurism, are a huge moneymaker, outpacing earnings for most major professional sports leagues.

But only recently have college athletes been given the right to be compensated for name, image, and likeness (NIL). And not all athletes have the right to be compensated.

The latest from Margaret Poydock and Joe Fast delves into who college athletes are, how much they earn, and how recent policy proposals could impact that. Read more

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