Media clips

• Opinion

  According to the Economic Policy Institute, just 67% of nonunion private-sector workers had access to health care benefits in 2019, compared to 94% of union members.

  Tennessean September 2, 2020
• Poor housing, disruptive working hours chip away at children’s ability to achieve

  Since George Floyd’s death, renewed and vigorous attention has been placed on police violence and discrimination against African Americans. These depredations are often referred to as “structural racism.” But structural racism is not restricted to criminal justice, and not restricted to adults.

  Farmers Advance September 2, 2020
• Sedgefield Elementary Receives $10,000 Donation for School Supplies

  A 2019 analysis by the Economic Policy Institute showed that across the country, educators spend an average of $459 of their own money buying supplies.

  Yes Weekly September 2, 2020
• Small businesswomen trying to recover find ‘ghost town’ where crowds used to be
  Congress is deadlocked on a new stimulus bill that would bring relief to millions of Americans and help stimulate the economy. The Economic Policy Institute estimates the spending generated by $600 in extra unemployment each week supports over 5 million jobs. And without it, those jobs go away.

  Forty-one percent of Black business owners closed up shop during the pandemic compared to 17% of White business owners, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research. And the highest rate of unemployment is among Latina workers, according to a report by the Economic Policy Institute.
  CNN September 2, 2020
• THE LONG SHADOW OF RACISM—AND PROTEST—IN THE MIDWEST

  Numerous studies have shown that the Midwest has some of the most egregious disparities between Black and white people. A 2019 report from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) noted that “racial disparities in economic opportunity and economic outcomes are wider [in the Midwest] than they are in other regions, and policy interventions designed to close those gaps are meager.” Indeed, when 24/7 Wall St. identified the ten worst cities for Black Americans, all ten were in the Midwest.

  Sojourners September 2, 2020
• The Pandemic Is the Perfect Time for a Parents Revolution

  Some—but far from all—parents benefited directly from the CARES Act set-aside of $3.5 billion, says child care expert Elliot Haspel, because many states temporarily waived copays for lower-income families already receiving child care subsidies. (By contrast, Delta Airlines alone received more from CARES than the entire child care industry.) But the Center for Law and Social Policy and the National Women’s Law Center estimate that a true stabilization package for the duration of the pandemic would cost $9.6 billion a month. Even that is a pittance compared with what is needed longer-term. A genuine universal child care system with high-quality care and solid salaries across the board would be more like a $70 billion annual proposition, according to Sen. Elizabeth Warren and others (Haspel and his ilk estimate it will cost much more: One Economic Policy Institute paper puts the cost between $337 billion and $495 billion).

  Slate September 2, 2020
• New Poll: Half in US Fear Bankruptcy From Major Health Event

  The findings come as the coronavirus crisis continues to spotlight the inequities of the U.S. healthcare system. A national analysis out last month from the Economic Policy Institute, for example, estimated that roughly 12 million people have lost access to employer-sponsored healthcare coverage since February.

  Common Dreams September 2, 2020
• Trump says jobs are “flowing.” Big employers just cut 50,000 jobs.

  Weekly unemployment claims remain above 1 million, a “historically high” level, according to labor economist Heidi Shierholz of the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute. And some industries, including travel and entertainment, continue to shed workers as consumers remain wary of traveling as the coronavirus continues to spread in regions of the U.S.

  CBS News September 2, 2020
• What It’s Like To Lose $600: Real Stories From People Surviving On Unemployment
  According to the Economic Policy Institute, almost 12 million people may have lost their employer-sponsored health insurance due to COVID-19. For Corritta, 31, losing health insurance led her to leave the country altogether. She lost her job as an HRIS analyst at the end of July, right after the $600 boost expired. She and her wife had started a family travel site that they had eventually intended to take full-time, until the pandemic hit. Without the extra $600, she now has to cover her family’s expenses with just a third of the income she used to have.
  Refinery29 September 2, 2020
• What the doctor ordered: For pandemic relief, one dose of collective bargaining for every worker

  Those are among the findings of a new report by the Economic Policy Institute. EPI is a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank that conducts economic research and analysis to highlight the needs of low- and middle-income workers in public policy discussions.

  AFSCME Now September 2, 2020