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Here’s what you need to know about the disappointing development, including which governors are cutting off unemployed workers in their states from these benefits, what programs are affected, and why, according to a new analysis from the Economic Policy Institute, cutting unemployment benefits is more about cruelty than problem-solving.
Fatherly May 28, 2021 -
CEO pay grew at what might have been the fastest pace in history last year during the pandemic, widening the pay gap even more between top executives and their workers.
Compensation for chief executive officers increased by 15.9% in 2020, while workers’ wages rose by just 1.8% for the same period, according to an Economic Policy Institute analysis of early filings from 281 large firms.
The average realized compensation for chief execs — which includes salary, bonus, long-term incentive payouts, exercised stock options, and vested stock awards — increased by $2.9 million, reaching $21.4 million last year.
“It was spectacular growth, fueled by the rise of the stock market and cashing in stock options,” Lawrence Mishel, EPI distinguished fellow and co-author of the report, told Yahoo Money. “We may be hitting historic highs in 2020.”
Yahoo Finance May 28, 2021 -
While CEOs have always made more than rank-and-file workers, the ratio has ballooned in recent decades — and wages for top executives have increased dramatically faster than average workers’ pay. The Economic Policy Institute found CEO compensation had surged 940% from 1978 to 2018 while the typical worker pay had risen only 12% over the same timeframe.
CBS News May 28, 2021 -
In 2018, former President Donald Trump used Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum of 25% and 10%, respectively, citing national security concerns. The administration sought to boost domestic industry and bring capacity utilization rates up to around 80% (considered a barometer of industry health).
With respect to aluminum, the Economic Policy Institute (EPI), in a white paper released this week, argues for the success of the Section 232 aluminum duty.
Metal Miner May 28, 2021 -
The US’ 10% tariff on aluminum imports from most countries accomplished its stated purpose of protecting the at-risk domestic aluminum industry in the interest of national security, market analysts and participants said May 26 after the release of a report from the Economic Policy Institute.
EPI Senior Economist Robert Scott said the tariff, imposed by former President Donald Trump under Section 232 in 2018, came at a time when the US primary aluminum industry was “hanging on by a thread.”
“The industry was threatened with collapse, and the US had the only existing high-quality, high-purity aluminum smelter that was running in the NATO countries,” Scott said in a virtual panel discussing the EPI’s May 25 report on the tariff’s impact.
“This was critical for national defense that we not lose this capacity as well as maintain the capacity to produce our own aluminum for the supply chains, and I think the COVID-19 crisis has shown just how important it is to be self-sufficient in these primary commodities.”
The EPI report concluded that the aluminum tariffs succeeded in fulfilling their intended effect and have allowed aluminum manufacturers throughout the supply chain to thrive.
S&P Global May 28, 2021 -
“Absolutely, we’re still in a crisis,” Elise Gould said.
Elise Gould is a senior economist with the Economic Policy Institute, a non-partisan Think Tank in DC.
“9 to 11 million more people don’t have a job that would’ve had a job. We’re on a very different trajectory,” Gould said. “That means, they do not have wages to be paying their bill. They do not have income. Many people are struggling –it’s very difficult for many people out there today.”
WSMV News 4 May 28, 2021 -
HEIDI SHIERHOLZ
Senior economist and director of policy, Economic Policy Institute; former chief economist, U.S. Department of LaborFifteen dollars an hour is an appropriate level for the minimum wage right now. We’re not going to suddenly go to $15 during the pandemic. The increase will gradually be phased in. Given inflation expectations over the next four years, $15 in 2025 would be about $13.79 in today’s dollars.
When people picture paying a higher minimum wage, they see it as if they were the only business raising wages. That is the beauty of an across-the-board labor standard. Everyone will need to raise wages, so no business will be at a competitive disadvantage.
After adjusting for inflation, the minimum wage is 31.5 percent less than it was in 1968. During that time, productivity growth has more than doubled. So, as an economy, we can afford this.
Inc. May 28, 2021 -
Although the tariffs were a hallmark of Trump’s trade policy, Biden would have some political cover if he decides to leave them in place.
“Four years ago, the U.S. primary aluminum industry was hanging on by a thread,” a report Wednesday by the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute said, noting that aluminum production increased 37.6 percent after Trump’s tariffs went into effect.
The report argues that higher prices have had no meaningful effect on consumer prices or other industries.
The Hill May 28, 2021 -
You have no doubt seen the scary headlines warning of a “labor shortage” caused by the additional pandemic unemployment insurance payments. The coverage of this story is widespread, even though most economics reporters can find no credible evidence linking unemployment checks to a labor shortage. EPI economist Heidi Shierholz joins us to explain why UI and stimulus payments aren’t causing a “labor shortage”, and why the answer to this made-up problem is so clear: it’s the low wages, stupid.
Heidi Shierholz is the Senior Economist and Director of Policy at the Economic Policy Institute.
Pitchfork Economics May 28, 2021 -
Heidi Shierholz, senior economist and director of policy at the Economic Policy Institute, noted that, typically, labor shortages translate into higher wages. The hospitality and leisure industry saw some of the most precipitous declines in wages during the pandemic; wages are only now approaching where they would have been if the pandemic hadn’t happened. “Many of these jobs in restaurants and hospitality are unambiguously worse than they used to be,” Shierholz said. “You have to deal with anti-maskers and there are health risks. If the market is functioning well, and a job gets harder and riskier, wages should go up.” According to Shierholz, supplemental unemployment insurance was “not driving things,” but had probably contributed to some of the wage growth that we’ve seen in the past few months. She believes this is a good thing. “They are helping the labor market to run better by making it possible for workers to not have to take a really shitty job at suppressed wages because they have no other option.”
The New Yorker May 28, 2021