EPI in the news

• The Congressional Black Caucus Issues a Call for Economic Justice

  Even in times of expansion, there has been little change in the fundamentals of an enormous wealth gap, persistent wage gap, disproportionate levels of unemployment, low workforce participation, limited fields of occupation, and a half-century of stunted growth of the middle class, according to The Unfinished March, a 2013 symposium by the Economic Policy Institute.

  The Messenger | September 28, 2023
• They lost the most jobs in the pandemic. Now Latinas are back at work in historic numbers.

  Many of those jobs have returned with higher wages. Between 2019 and 2022, wages have increased at the fastest rate for workers in the bottom 10 percent of jobs in terms of pay — including many of those hospitality jobs like cooks, servers and housekeepers — according to a study by the Economic Policy Institute.

  19th News | September 28, 2023
• JESSE JACKSON: UAW Auto Workers Will Get a Fair Deal Only If They Fight for It

  This astounding inequity has spread across the economy. The Economic Policy Institute reports that over the last 45 years, adjusting for inflation, CEO compensation in America’s 300 largest companies has risen 1,460% while a typical worker’s pay grew by just 18%.

  The Washington Informer | September 28, 2023
• Food company violations of child labor laws appear to keep on coming

  The Economic Policy Institute recently reported that child labor violations have increased by nearly 300 percent since 2015, and the Labor Department found more than 800 violators during the past fiscal year. 

  Food Safety News | September 28, 2023
• US economy facing headwinds from possible government shutdown, White House says

  The U.S. economy is facing headwinds from a possible government shutdown, student debt payments restarting, higher interest rates and an autoworkers’ strike, White House economic adviser Jared Bernstein said on Wednesday.

  The economy will keep going in a “pretty good way” unless there is a policy mistake or exogenous shock, he added, speaking at an event at the Economic Policy Institute, a progressive think tank.

  Reuters | September 28, 2023
• Why the US needs the CROWN Act

  The movement to sign the CROWN Act into law at the state level has gained momentum. As of 2023, 24 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands have enacted a related law, according to the Economic Policy Institute, including Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, and most recently Michigan and Texas. The latter was the 24th state to implement the law, which officially went into effect on Sept. 1. 

  The Week | September 28, 2023
• UAW auto strike: Why US Automotive CEOs make more than global competition

  CEO pay in the US has grown 1,322% since 1978, according to the Economic Policy Institute. Such astronomical CEO pay is a very American problem. Not only do American CEOs far out-earn their workforces, they also out-earn their peers in other countries.

  BBC | September 28, 2023

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