Between 2016 and 2018, the most recent year for which data is available, the U.S. lost 1,800 factories to offshoring and outsourcing, according to the progressive Economic Policy Institute
Bloomberg
September 9, 2020
The racial wealth gap is an issue that has persisted from generation to generation in the U.S. The Economic Policy Institute stated in 2017 that average wealth for white families was seven times higher than average wealth for Black families. The median wealth, or wealth in the family in the exact middle of the overall distribution, of white families was 12 times higher than that of Black families.
Forbes
September 9, 2020
Less government spending in turn feeds a negative economic spiral, driven by lost government worker incomes and reduced purchases of private goods and services. So lower government spending adds up to large direct and indirect job losses. In June, the Economic Policy Institute estimated that “without aid to state and local governments, 5.3 million workers will likely lose their jobs by the end of 2021.”
Forbes
September 9, 2020
Let’s see … we’re almost entering month seven of the pandemic. So it makes sense that many furloughs are now becoming layoffs. But Heidi Shierholz, senior economist and director of policy at the Economic Policy Institute, said we’re at a new turning point. Job losses are spreading from industries decimated by lockdowns — like hospitality and tourism — and into others that weren’t initially as sensitive.
“Businesses that maybe thought they were going to be fine, unaffected by any social distancing measures are looking up and saying ‘Yeah, we didn’t have a problem then, but now we’re just seeing demand for goods and services has just been depressed,’” Shierholz said.
She said at this point in the pandemic, minimizing job loss is about boosting spending — something that became more difficult for families once that extra $600-a-week in unemployment benefits went away.
Marketplace
September 9, 2020
But childcare providers perform this crucial service for pennies on the dollar. The average daycare operator grosses just $48,000 a year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, whereas the standard daycare worker makes just $24,000. Usually these jobs come with little or no paid time off, and no employee-sponsored healthcare. Only 15% of childcare workers receive health insurance sponsored by their employer versus 50% of workers from other occupations, according to a 2015 Economic Policy Institute report. The lack of healthcare benefits is problematic in normal times, as children unwittingly bring their stomach bug or pink eye to their daycares. But during a pandemic, it’s potentially lethal. Daycare providers who make an average of just $11.65 an hour may be unable to risk seeking treatment for any disease, much less COVID-19.
Time
September 9, 2020
The slower flow of exploitable migrant labor explains why farm employers are lobbying for an expansion and deregulation of the H-2A program. “When comprehensive immigration reform has been on the table that has included a possible path to citizenship for unauthorized immigrants, the one demand from the business community has been for bigger guest worker programs with fewer rules,” says Daniel Costa, Director of Immigration Law and Policy Research at the Economic Policy Institute.
As of late June, the Trump administration virtually shut down the immigration system apart from agriculture guest worker visas and a few other exceptions, citing the familiar excuse of protecting American jobs during economic crisis. But it’s U.S. employers—not immigrants—that limit lifting the floors for all workers.
“If you raise standards in guest worker programs and legalize the undocumented population, then you reduce that ability of employers to push down wages and standards for everybody,” says Costa. “It should really be a common cause of solidarity; immigrant workers and U.S.-born workers, especially in the low-wage sector, have a lot more in common than not.”
September 9, 2020
In “50 years after the Kerner Commission,” a 2018 Economic Policy Institute report, Janelle Jones, John Schmitt and Valerie Wilson found that “African Americans today are much better educated than they were in 1968” and that this development “has been accompanied by significant absolute improvements in wages, incomes, wealth, and health.”
New York Times
September 9, 2020
The ruling came in the case of New York et al v Scalia et al., brought in February by New York Attorney General Letitia James, Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro and 16 other attorneys general. In challenging the rule, they argued that it would impose significant regulatory burdens on states and would harm states’ economies and residents. The Economic Policy Institute estimated that the rule would cost workers more than $1 billion annually, Woods noted.
McKnight’s Senior Living
September 9, 2020
Despite its unique history, Boston Public Schools isn’t alone in trying to diversify its workforce. Eleven states have pledged to increase their numbers of teachers of color to match student populations by 2040, but a recent report predicted that these gaps will persist or grow through 2060.
Boston’s push is occurring against the backdrop of a nationwide shortage of teaching candidates. From 2008 to 2015, there was a 15 percent drop in the number of students who earned an education degree, according to a 2019 study from the Economic Policy Institute.
The 74
September 9, 2020
Between 2016 and 2018, the most recent year for which data is available, the U.S. lost 1,800 factories to offshoring and outsourcing, according to the progressive Economic Policy Institute
Bloomberg
September 9, 2020