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Minimum Wage

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$10 per hour is nowhere near enough

Those who had high hopes for a serious minimum wage proposal from the Republican Party will be disappointed: The Romney–Cotton proposal would not even increase the minimum wage to 1960s levels, after adjusting for inflation. Read more

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The PRO Act restores workers’ freedom to form a union

Nearly half of all nonunion workers say they want a union in their workplace. But current law places too many obstacles in the way of workers trying to organize and gives employers too much power to interfere with workers’ free choice. The PRO Act aims to fix this.
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The war on the Postal Service

The Postal Service connects family and friends, fosters democracy, and is a key part of our emergency and national security infrastructure. It must not be allowed to fail. Read the report

Learning during the pandemic

What are the long-term consequences of the pandemic for children’s learning? How can we mitigate the effects? Existing research on education during emergencies offers four lessons that can help frame the current crisis and plan for rebuilding our education system post-pandemic. Read more

Latest Research

So-called right-to-work is wrong for Montana: Research shows RTW law would not boost jobs and could lower wages for both union and nonunion workers

February 25, 2021 By David Cooper and Julia Wolfe Report
Our deeply broken labor market needs a higher minimum wage: EPI testimony for the Senate Budget Committee

February 25, 2021 By Thea M. Lee Testimony
Wages grew in 2020 because the bottom fell out of the low-wage labor market: The State of Working America 2020 wages report

February 24, 2021 By Elise Gould and Jori Kandra Report
Downturn in strike activity reflects COVID-19 recession but fails to capture many walkouts for worker safety

February 19, 2021 By Margaret Poydock, Celine McNicholas, and Heidi Shierholz Report
EPI applauds the reintroduction of the FAIR Act

February 11, 2021 By Heidi Shierholz and Margaret Poydock Statement
Why workers need the Protecting the Right to Organize Act: How the PRO Act solves the problems in current law that thwart workers seeking union representation

February 9, 2021 By Celine McNicholas, Margaret Poydock, and Lynn Rhinehart Fact Sheet
The U.S. labor market remains 9.9 million jobs below pre-pandemic levels

February 5, 2021 By Elise Gould Economic Indicators

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Blog

Six ways the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act restores workers’ bargaining power

February 26, 2021 By Lynn Rhinehart Blog
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 25, 2021 By Heidi Shierholz Blog
Projected state and local revenue shortfalls are shrinking, but the value of substantial federal aid to state and local governments is not

February 24, 2021 By Josh Bivens Blog
Chump change: The Romney–Cotton minimum wage proposal leaves 27 million workers without a pay increase

February 24, 2021 By Ben Zipperer and Daniel Costa Blog
Congress should think big about the Postal Service’s future: Policymakers should focus on rebuilding the Postal Service after the Trump years

February 23, 2021 By Monique Morrissey Blog
Learning during the pandemic: Lessons from the research on education in emergencies for COVID-19 and afterwards

February 18, 2021 By Emma García and Elaine Weiss Blog
Unemployment insurance claims rose last week: Congress must act before mid-March, or millions will lose benefits

February 18, 2021 By Heidi Shierholz Blog

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EPI in the news

Washington’s Most Influential People

Heidi Shierholz
Economic Policy Institute
Senior Economist and Director of Policy

Washingtonian Magazine | February 26, 2021
$66K recovered for 12 New Jersey landscape workers

Wage theft isn’t one of the crimes most prosecutors and politicians refer to when they talk about getting ‘tough on crime,’ but it represents a massive portion of all theft committed in the country, according to a 2017 study by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI).

NJ Today | February 26, 2021
Adams Pushes For Minimum Wage Increase on the House Floor

The Economic Policy Institute reports that an estimated 146,000 workers would receive wage increases if a $15 per hour minimum wage is passed by Congress and signed into law. Of those 146,000 workers, 80,000 are women and 66,000 are Black. 12th District workers benefiting from the legislation would see an average annual wage increase of 18% or approximately $4,200 in 2020 dollars.

Rep. Alma Adams | February 26, 2021
Black Families Have a Major Stake in the Future of the Postal Service

The Center for Economic and Policy Research notes that the wage gap between white and Black workers is narrower among postal workers than among private sector employees. The Economic Policy Institute has found that Black workers’ share of USPS jobs is significantly higher than their share of all public sector jobs.

Inequality.org | February 26, 2021
Building an Economy That Supports All Children Requires Raising the Minimum Wage

The findings in this column are based on CAP’s analysis of 2020 Current Population Survey Outgoing Rotational Groups (CPS-ORG) data extracts made publicly available by the Economic Policy Institute. The analysis includes workers ages 16 and older who were in the labor force and employed and were not self-employed.

Center for American Progress | February 26, 2021
Costco raising starting wages to $16 amid calls for federal $15 minimum – will competitors follow?

An analysis from the Economic Policy Institute called the report’s predicted impacts to job losses “just wrong and inappropriately inflated relative to what cutting-edge economics literature would indicate”.

The Independent | February 26, 2021
Democrats Can’t Afford to Dilute Their $15 Minimum Wage Proposal

More than 1.3 million workers are subject to the tipped minimum wage, which allows employers to pay below minimum wage under the assumption that tips will bring up the total hourly pay, and make up the difference with a “tip credit.” The proposal attracted considerable attention in 2018 during a vicious battle in Washington, D.C., over Initiative 77, a ballot measure that repealed the tip credit only to later be reversed by the D.C. Council. Organizations such as the National Restaurant Association and Restaurant Workers of America, which launched an impressive astroturf campaign in the Initiative 77 fight, have been vocal opponents of a tipped wage repeal. Proponents of the tipped minimum wage argue that a repeal would be damaging to the restaurant industry, resulting in job losses, increased prices, or even closures. But analysis by the Economic Policy Institute does not support these claims and One Fair Wage notes that in states lacking a tipped minimum wage, the restaurant industry is actually experiencing growth.

In These Times | February 26, 2021

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Latest Research

So-called right-to-work is wrong for Montana: Research shows RTW law would not boost jobs and could lower wages for both union and nonunion workers

Our deeply broken labor market needs a higher minimum wage: EPI testimony for the Senate Budget Committee

Wages grew in 2020 because the bottom fell out of the low-wage labor market: The State of Working America 2020 wages report

Downturn in strike activity reflects COVID-19 recession but fails to capture many walkouts for worker safety

EPI applauds the reintroduction of the FAIR Act

Why workers need the Protecting the Right to Organize Act: How the PRO Act solves the problems in current law that thwart workers seeking union representation

The U.S. labor market remains 9.9 million jobs below pre-pandemic levels

Blog

Six ways the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act restores workers’ bargaining power

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

Projected state and local revenue shortfalls are shrinking, but the value of substantial federal aid to state and local governments is not

Chump change: The Romney–Cotton minimum wage proposal leaves 27 million workers without a pay increase

Congress should think big about the Postal Service’s future: Policymakers should focus on rebuilding the Postal Service after the Trump years

Learning during the pandemic: Lessons from the research on education in emergencies for COVID-19 and afterwards

Unemployment insurance claims rose last week: Congress must act before mid-March, or millions will lose benefits

EPI in the news

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