The two parties differ on extending the government’s enhanced unemployment insurance benefits, which expired in August.
“There seems to be some agreement that some enhanced benefit should be put back into place, but how much, I think, could be a point of disagreement,” said Josh Bivens, research director with the Economic Policy Institute.
Also contentious is whether the government should provide more aid to state and local governments.
Bivens said that’s where the stakes are high. “If state and local governments really do start cutting in serious earnest, that’s going to be a really big drag on recovery,” he said.
Bivens said the two candidates are actually likely to spar most on the pre-COVID economy, tax reform, Social Security and protections for people with preexisting conditions.
Marketplace
September 28, 2020
Heidi Shierholz, chief economist at the Economic Policy Institute in Washington, said Mr. Biden still faced an uphill battle to pass progressive legislation.
Financial Times
September 28, 2020
Heidi Shierholz, economista de Economic Policy Institute, recordaba que cuando estaba vigente este extra por desempleo, entre mayo y junio, 9.2 millones de personas volvieron al trabajo y una proporción muy elevada de estos, trabajadores de servicios, ganaban menos en el empleo que con este extra. Es decir, que ese dinero no les hizo dudar de volver al trabajo.
Muchas personas no vuelven a trabajar porque hay más millones de desempleados que ofertas de empleo, recuerda Shierholz.
El Diario
September 28, 2020
The layoffs keep on coming. Last week, another 870,000 of us filed standard unemployment claims. Despite some optimism in Washington, the weekly state claims, excluding those who applied for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, “are still greater than the 3rd-worst week of the Great Recession,” points out Heidi Shierholz of the Economic Policy Institute. Read her full report right here.
Newsweek
September 28, 2020
Residents of Coconino County need to make $3,611 every month to maintain a modest standard of living, making it the most expensive place in Arizona to live, according to an analysis from 24/7 Wall St.
The Economic Policy Institute’s Family Budget Calculator was used to determine the local cost of living, which includes housing, food, health care, transportation and other necessities. In many of the locations identified, housing costs can account for more than 30 percent of these expenses.
The Center Square
September 28, 2020
A blog on the Economic Policy Institute’s website says, “State and local governments still desperately need federal fiscal aid to prevent harmful austerity measures.”
It says that the nation lost 22.1 million jobs in March and April — and 11.5 million of them still haven’t returned after six months.
The authors say, “Without federal aid now, more jobs — in both the public and private sectors — will be lost down the line.”
They add, “Between the pulling back of enhanced unemployment insurance benefits and the near-total inaction on aiding state and local governments’ fiscal situation, the next few months will see the economy suffer the effects of having sailed over a pronounced fiscal cliff.”
Messenger Inquirer
September 28, 2020
Overall, those who appeal have a 50% chance of receiving benefits. As Monique Morrissey, Economic Policy Institute economist, says, “claimants receiving benefits after appeal isn’t necessarily a good thing because it highlights that most people should have received their benefits from the start.”
Buffalo News
September 28, 2020
For months, experts have warned that the pandemic and the remote learning it has forced upon students will only exacerbate the technology gap, partially because of a lack of remote learning supplies, per the Economic Policy Institute.
Axios
September 28, 2020
The industry is also notorious for depending on its low-wage workforce. One in six restaurant workers live below the official poverty line, according to the Economic Policy Institute. Poverty rates in the industry are highest for women, Black people and Hispanics.
The Guardian
September 28, 2020
The two parties differ on extending the government’s enhanced unemployment insurance benefits, which expired in August.
“There seems to be some agreement that some enhanced benefit should be put back into place, but how much, I think, could be a point of disagreement,” said Josh Bivens, research director with the Economic Policy Institute.
Also contentious is whether the government should provide more aid to state and local governments.
Bivens said that’s where the stakes are high. “If state and local governments really do start cutting in serious earnest, that’s going to be a really big drag on recovery,” he said.
Bivens said the two candidates are actually likely to spar most on the pre-COVID economy, tax reform, Social Security and protections for people with preexisting conditions.
Marketplace
September 28, 2020