Black workers are facing greater health and economic difficulties due to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new study done by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI). Elise Gould, senior economist at EPI, joined Yahoo Finance to discuss how the coronavirus has disproportionately affected black communities and people of color.
Yahoo Finance
June 3, 2020
They argue the pandemic inordinately affects both the health and paychecks of African Americans, who have suffered record job losses in recent months, according to new analysis from the Economic Policy Institute think tank.
Reuters
June 3, 2020
“The case for much, much more generous unemployment insurance at a time when jobs are going to be super-scarce is really strong,” said Josh Bivens, director of research at the Economic Policy Institute. “It’s just incredibly well targeted.”
CNBC
June 3, 2020
The Economic Policy Institute (EPI) reported that African-American workers and their families have been particularly hit hard by the pandemic.
“Black workers and their families were economically insecure before the pandemic tore through the United States,” a report from EPI on Monday said. “The pandemic and related job losses have been especially devastating for black households because they have historically suffered from higher unemployment rates, lower wages, lower incomes, and much less savings to fall back on, as well as significantly higher poverty rates than their white counterparts.”
International Business Times
June 3, 2020
“State and local governments desperately need financial support,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, as part of a bipartisan conference call sponsored by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) on the topic.
Think Advisor
June 3, 2020
Josh Bivens is author of a report by the Economic Policy Institute, which explores the upward pressure on local rental costs a surge in Airbnb properties can cause.
BBC News
June 3, 2020
A new report from the Economic Policy Institute delves into the myriad ways racial and economic inequality have exacerbated the impact of the coronavirus crisis on black communities.
Daily Kos
June 3, 2020
In 2018, the average income for a white household in the US was $70,642, compared with $41,692 for African American families, according to data from the Economic Policy Institute, a progressive think tank.
Agence France Press (AFP)
June 3, 2020
In 2018, the budget for labor standards enforcement was only $2 billion, according to an analysis by Daniel Costa with the Economic Policy Institute.
In the report, Costa concludes: “A comparative analysis of 2018 federal budget data reveals that detaining, deporting and prosecuting migrants, and keeping them from entering the country, is the top law enforcement priority of the United States – but protecting workers in the U.S. labor market and ensuring that their workplaces are safe and that they get paid for every cent they earn is barely an afterthought.”
SF Gate
June 3, 2020
Elise Gould, senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute, said she can “think of only one word” to describe the current economy: “devastation.”
“I try to come up with another word, but ‘devastation’ — the loss to the economy and jobs and the loss to the people,” Gould said, “and the amount of pain that is causing to people.”
Catholic News Service
June 3, 2020