Opposing a permanent solution to these problems is fundamentally immoral. The absence of a federal paid-leave program that covers all private-sector workers also hurts our economy. It can devastate the well-being of millions of American families on tight budgets. Just “three days of unpaid sick time translate into a household’s monthly utilities budget, preventing the worker from paying for electricity and heat,” according to a report by the Economic Policy Institute.
The Hill
July 6, 2020
Since the 1970s, wages and benefits have stagnated, falling out of step with workers’ productivity. Source: Economic Policy Institute
Bloomberg BusinessWeek
July 6, 2020
Letting the $600 weekly boost expire would not only mean difficult economic times for thousands of Maine families but would shrink their spending power, constraining the economic recovery, according to a recent analysis by the progressive Economic Policy Institute. “In recent congressional testimony, economist Jason Furman projected how much continuation of these extra benefits would boost gross domestic product (GDP) and employment by 2022,” EPI research director Josh Bivens wrote in a June 26 post.
Maine Beacon
July 6, 2020
According to the Economic Policy Institute, the hourly wage of an Uber driver in 2018 was approximately $11.77 USD which works out to approximately $15 CAD — slightly above Ontario’s current minimum wage.
Toronto Sun
July 6, 2020
Black and Hispanic or Latino workers are less likely than white workers to have jobs that allow them to telework and limit exposure, according to the Economic Policy Institute. High-wage workers are six times more likely to work from home.
Palm Springs Desert Sun
July 6, 2020
Teresa Ghilarducci is the Schwartz Professor of Economics at the New School for Social Research. She’s the co-author of “Rescuing Retirement” and a member of the board of directors of the Economic Policy Institute.
Bloomberg
July 6, 2020
Over the past two decades, the U.S. has suffered from rising inequality partially due to uneven hourly wage growth. As the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) found, “since 2007, the labor market peak before the Great Recession, the strongest wage growth has continued to be within the top 10% of the wage distribution.” According to the EPI, the median hourly wage in 2019 was $19.33, which only translates to about $40,000 per year for a full-time, full-year worker.
Forbes
July 6, 2020
“In June, there were 17.8 million workers who were officially unemployed, but there were an additional 2.0 million workers who were temporarily unemployed but who were being misclassified as ’employed not at work,’” Economic Policy Institute economists Heidi Shierholz and Elise Gould write.
Axios
July 6, 2020
But the Brookings Institution and other groups dispute that, pointing out that workers are not eligible for benefits if they just quit their jobs, except in rare cases. “The extra $600 has been by far the most effective part” of COVID-19 relief efforts and should be extended, says the Economic Policy Institute.
Sacramento News & Review
July 6, 2020
Speaking to The Hill, Elise Gould, senior economist at the progressive Economic Policy Institute, stated, “Given the likelihood that states may have to re-shutter parts of their economies with the rise in cases, the job gains we saw last month may not last…”
heavy.com
July 6, 2020