EPI in the news

• On Equal Pay Day, Here’s What 3 Black Women Want You To Remember

  And it’s not just wage disparities that Black women have to face at work. They are less likely than white workers to have access to paid leave and according to data from the Economic Policy Institute, the average cost of childcare for two children can be upwards of $20,000 a year, which puts many Black and Latina mothers in an impossible position.

  Essence | March 26, 2025
• Florida’s Idea to Replace Migrant Labor: Child Labor

  Some are already warning how this could adversely affect young employees. “The teens who will be most harmed by this bill are low-income young people or those without documented status who are compelled by their situation to work,” Economic Policy Institute analyst Nina Mast tells the Miami Herald. 

  Newser | March 26, 2025
• Gender pay gap shrinks to lowest level: 5 notes

  Women were paid 18% less than men on average in 2024 on an hourly basis — the smallest gender wage gap on record — according to data from the Economic Policy Institute.

  Five notes:

  1. The gender pay gap narrowed between 1979 and 1994, then remained flat until 2022, according to the EPI’s “State of Working America Wages 2024” report.

  Becker’s Hospital Review | March 26, 2025
• Women already earn less. Trump’s labor cuts could make the pay gap easier to hide.

  “If you don’t have the ability to track or try to prove or enforce non-discrimination laws, that’s going to be worse,” said Elise Gould, a senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute (EPI), a left-leaning think tank. “Those [cuts] are hugely detrimental. They’re going in the wrong direction.”

  …

  Wage gaps across the country have decreased between men and women of all races, according to data from the Economic Policy Institute. In 2024, women were paid 18 percent less on average than men, controlling for all factors.

  19th News | March 26, 2025
• Don’t believe them: House Republicans attack on Medicaid will harm NC, the U.S.

  Research from the Economic Policy Institute shows that cutting Medicaid to fund tax breaks would have a disproportionately negative impact on low- and middle-income individuals. Unlike the wealthy, who tend to save tax windfalls, Medicaid recipients immediately spend money on necessary goods and services, stimulating local economies. 

  The Fayetteville Observer | March 26, 2025
• Florida may loosen child-labor laws as state cracks down on illegal immigration

  If the state’s child labor laws are changed, the risk is that young workers will have fewer protections and will have a harder time saying no to employers, said Nina Mast, an analyst with the Economic Policy Institute. “The teens who will be most harmed by this bill are low-income young people or those without documented status who are compelled by their situation to work,” Mast said.

  Miami Herald | March 26, 2025
• Judge allows discovery to proceed in lawsuit challenging DOGE access of DOL data

  Proceedings in the lawsuit, brought by plaintiffs including the AFL-CIO and member unions as well as the Economic Policy Institute, a progressive think tank, will play out over the coming weeks in one of many challenges to DOGE’s access to federal government databases.

  HR Dive | March 26, 2025

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