Iowa isn’t the only state that has rolled back child labor regulations, but it has made the most extreme changes, according to Jennifer Sherer at the Economic Policy Institute. Other states, meanwhile, are responding to the reports of children being exploited, killed, and injured working in dangerous jobs like meatpacking.
“We have states all over the country that are beginning to take action and respond to the child labor crisis that they’re seeing in their states and their industries,” she said. “States as diverse in geography and politics as Alabama, Colorado and Virginia all increased their penalty amounts for child labor violations just this past year in their legislatures.”
Iowa Starting Line
January 13, 2025
Between 1979 and 2024, productivity in the U.S. rose 80.9%, while hourly pay grew by only 29.4%, according to the Economic Policy Institute.
MoneyWise
January 13, 2025
But critics say it disadvantages Americans because firms are able to recruit workers from overseas – and pay them less. In a 2020 report, the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute (EPI) argued that the program enabled employers to undercut local wage levels.
Companies “have an incentive to use this program, because they can control the wages, and have a lot of control over the worker”, Daniel Costa, director of immigration law and policy research at the EPI, told the Guardian. The labor standards around H-1B were too “lax”, he argued, and the broader rules “inadequate”.
The Guardian
January 13, 2025
But Jennifer Sherer, director of the State Worker Power Initiative for the Washington, D.C.-based Economic Policy Institute, said time and hour standards are important guardrails for children entering the workforce who may not be aware their rights or in a position to speak up if the hours and times their manager sets are “out of bounds.”
“I guess the question is are we trying to decrease and deter additional violations or are we interested in sending a signal that we’re not actually concerned about people following the law?” Sherer said.
Des Moines Register
January 13, 2025
A total of 30 states and the District of Columbia have set their own minimum wage higher than the federal rate. And 67 localities — including Denver; Flagstaff, Arizona; and Los Angeles — have raised their minimum wage above the state minimum, according to the Economic Policy Institute, a left-leaning think tank.
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While a tight labor market forces many employers to pay above minimum wage to compete, von Glahn noted many workers still earn at or near the lowest legal rate. The Economic Policy Institute estimates that more than half a million Missouri workers will see raises as the state’s minimum wage increases.
States Newsroom
January 13, 2025
“Technically, the rule for H-1B is that the job requires the training that comes with at least a bachelor’s level education or its equivalent,” said Daniel Costa, director of immigration law and policy research at the Economic Policy Institute. “So if it is a specialized masseuse job that requires that level of education, theoretically it could qualify. The burden would be on the employer to make the case to USCIS.”
Politifact
January 13, 2025
According to research cited by the Washington, D.C.-based Economic Policy Institute, nearly 90% of all employers have used captive-audience meetings — often run by consulting groups — in response to unionization efforts.
“It’s highly typical — part of most any anti-union employer’s playbook,” said Jennifer Sherer, co-author of a detailed study on the practice for the institute. “In some cases, employers are engaging anti-union consultants and really heavily inflicting fear and intimidation, and sometimes crossing the line and illegally disciplining or firing people for union organizing activity.”
The policy center estimates that U.S. employers spend more than $430 million a year on “union avoidance” consultants for such purposes.
Capital & Main
January 13, 2025
However, employers who lean heavily on the program aren’t interested in enhancing their workforce but are exploiting it. The Economic Policy Institute reported that H-1B workers are paid lower than the median wage and are more likely to experience mistreatment.
Afrotech
January 13, 2025
“The labor market doesn’t happen in a vacuum,” said Elise Gould, senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute. “Right now, things are pretty strong (by measures such as wage growth, high employment-to-population ratio and low unemployment), but I see no reason why those would change unless there are huge policy changes.”
“And it looks like the incoming administration is going to make some changes to policy, which could cause some weakness in the economy,” she added.
CNN Business
January 13, 2025
Heidi Shierholz, president of the Economic Policy Institute, said Wednesday that “by standing together, SEIU and the AFL-CIO are sending a powerful message to President-elect Trump and his allies who are trying to pit working people against one another: The labor movement will not be fractured or silenced.”
“Unions are a crucial part of a robust and fair economy—and SEIU’s affiliation with the AFL-CIO strengthens the collective power of millions of workers, enabling them to fight more effectively for better wages, benefits, and working conditions,” said Shierholz. “It also amplifies labor’s voice in advocating for progressive economic reforms that benefit all working families.”
Common Dreams
January 13, 2025