Of the workers who will benefit from a $15 federal minimum wage hike, 59% are women, with nearly one in four of these women being Black or Latina, reports the Economic Policy Institute.
CNBC
February 22, 2021
“Because a higher minimum wage lifts up lower-income households — although some middle-income households benefit, too — it is likely to have a stronger effect than many — possibly even most — other recession response measures state and local policymakers might consider,” Dave Cooper, senior economic analyst at the Economic Policy Institute, said in One Fair Wage’s report.
Restaurant Dive
February 22, 2021
But without hundreds of billions in new federal aid, state and local governments won’t have the money to do that, said Julia Wolfe at the Economic Policy Institute.
“Many of them will be tempted to pursue austerity — the same mistake that they made last time around, in the Great Recession,” Wolfe said, after which it took years to restore public sector employment.
Marketplace
February 22, 2021
A widespread and significant pay gap remains the norm. Since 2015, the pay gap has only decreased by $0.07; in 2020, women earned $0.81 for every dollar a man makes. A brutal example of the wage disparity was reported by the Economic Policy Institute: In 2016, Latina women had to work all of 2016 and 10 months into 2017 (November) to earn the equivalent that their white, male counterparts earned in 2016 alone.
Portland Press Herald
February 22, 2021
Heidi Shierholz, director of policy at the Economic Policy Institute, pointed to a Goldman Sachs output gap calculation which was twice the government’s.
Forbes
February 22, 2021
A key way to support these lives is advancing equitable opportunities. History shows that longstanding systemic inequities have had a compounding negative effect on generations of Black families. A report from the Economic Policy Institute highlights that in 2016, the median household wealth of white households was 10 times that of Black households ($171,000 compared to $17,409). The report notes: “One of the most important forms of wealth for working and middle-class families is home equity. Yet, the share of Black households that owned their own home remained virtually unchanged between 1968 (41.1 %) and today (41.2%).”
Deseret News
February 22, 2021
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., told reporters on a break from the trial that, while he favors raising the minimum wage, he thinks $15 an hour for a state like his is too high. But low-wage workers in West Virginia insist Senator Manchin is out of touch with the 62 million poor and low income Americans across the nation who would benefit from a $15 minimum wage, according to an analysis from the Economic Policy Institute.
Charleston Gazette-Mail
February 22, 2021
The unemployment rate seems an obvious starting point for such a policy discussion.
“That’s where the rubber meets the road for workers,” said Heidi Shierholz, director of policy at the Economic Policy Institute, a left-leaning think tank, and a former chief economist at the U.S. Labor Department.
The concept is straightforward: Enhanced unemployment benefits fall in tandem with the unemployment rate, which signals an improved job market.
CNBC
February 22, 2021
It is no secret, Black and brown people with criminal records are stigmatized in a way that prevents them from enjoying the basic rights and privileges we often take for granted. Among them are job opportunities and long-term employment. In mid-2020, the Economic Policy Institute reported that the Black unemployment rate was nearly twice that of the overall unemployment rate in Maryland. The disparity in these figures has remained consistent throughout the pandemic, which shows no sign of slowing down.
Baltimore Sun
February 22, 2021
Before the crisis, families paid two out of three dollars spent for early care and education — the Economic Policy Institute calculated that $42 billion was spent by families out of the total $64 billion spent privately and publicly for this essential service. This crisis showed how unstable that financing system made child care programs on which working families rely.
EdNC
February 22, 2021