According to an analysis conducted by the Economic Policy Institute, 10.7 percent of the U.S. workforce has been permanently laid off from their jobs prior to the coronavirus pandemic. Millions of other workers may still return to their jobs but remain furloughed, as several industries still continue to be shut down or are operating at reduced capacity. Depending on the state workers live in, those still relying on unemployment will experience a cut in benefits ranging from 50 to 85 percent.
Failure to extend the CARES Act unemployment benefits could cost 5.1 million jobs in the U.S., according to EPI. Around 24.5 million Americans still remain officially unemployed or out of work due to the coronavirus and rely on those benefits for income. If they have less to spend, that could roll back purchases throughout the country and further depress an already reeling economy.
The American Prospect
July 13, 2020
About 30% of Unfair Labor Practice (ULP) charges analyzed by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) were about employer improper surveillance, harassment or threats against workers. Some 30% involved allegations of illegal discipline, with one in five elections affected by charges of illegally firing workers for supporting unionization.
The Register-Mail
July 13, 2020
The economists pushed for a number of other measures, including extended unemployment benefits, enhanced SNAP benefits, additional child care funding and more. According to the Economic Policy Institute, approximately 11% of the workforce in America is unemployed and unlikely to get back their previous job in the near future.
heavy.com
July 13, 2020
In framing a recent webinar on the topic, the Economic Policy Institute said the “police murders of Black people, and the demonstrations against systemic racism that followed, placed a spotlight on the nation’s long history of anti-Blackness.”
Women's Wear Daily
July 13, 2020
As the virus has raged longer than first expected, some companies are concluding that they just don’t need as many workers as they did in February, said Heidi Shierholz, former chief economist at the Labor Department. “These are more of a normal recession layoff. It definitely has a more permanent feel to it,” said Shierholz, now with the Economic Policy Institute.
The Washington Post
July 13, 2020
That’s according to the Economic Policy Institute, an independent, nonprofit think tank that researches the impact of economic trends and policies on working people. The actual rate of May’s unemployment was a staggering 19.7%. What the official 21 million worker employment rate fails to include are the 4.9 million furloughed workers (misclassified as “employed, not at work”) and the 6.6 million who have dropped out of the labor force as a result of the virus. Add it all up and it means 32.5 million people are jobless—nearly one in five workers.
Globe St.
July 10, 2020
Meanwhile, research from the Economic Policy Institute suggests that 17.6 million jobs will be lost to the pandemic permanently.
CNBC
July 10, 2020
Last week the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that as of mid-June, the U.S. the economy had 14.7 million fewer jobs than it did in February of this year, according to a blog post from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI). And for the 16th week in a row, unemployment claims are still more than two times higher than they were for the worst week of the Great Recession.
Next City
July 10, 2020
Many workers going on strike are essential, meaning they have risked contracting the novel coronavirus by continuing to physically go to work. Essential workers are disproportionately Black and Latino, per the Economic Policy Institute — the two communities that have seen the highest rate of COVID-19 cases.
Business Insider
July 10, 2020
It’s more likely that recent layoffs won’t be temporary, like many of those in the early weeks had been, as businesses that had stayed open and kept their workforce intact are struggling with a drop in demand for their goods and services, Shierholz said.
“We’re still seeing an enormous amount of job losses,” said Shierholz, director of policy at the Economic Policy Institute, a left-leaning think tank. “And they’re of particular concern because they’re more likely to be permanent.
“Getting laid off in the middle of a very deep recession spells a high likelihood of seeing a big drop in your living standards that is lasting,” she added.
CNBC
July 10, 2020