Heidi Shierholz, a senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute, said the speed of the US recovery depended on how much stimulus was put into the economy by the government.
“That is a choice,” Shierholz said. “One of the things that made the recovery from the Great Recession so bad, so weak, is that we state and local governments didn’t get the aid that they needed to not have to make substantial cuts that hamstrung the economy.”
Shierholz said the federal government could keep the same thing from happening this time by making sure unemployed people would have benefits and businesses would have help to stay afloat even if they aren’t fully open.
If the government does those things, “when the economy does reopen, there’ll be demand and confidence in the economy to get a quick bounce back,” Shierholz said.
Business Insider
May 27, 2020
We know that unemployment is sky-high, but that’s not the end of the story. The Economic Policy Institute’s Heidi Shierholz sounds a warning that, if lawmakers don’t act, we’re looking at a depression.
“If the federal government provides sufficient aid during this crisis so that people’s income doesn’t drop dramatically (even if they have been unable to work), so that businesses stay afloat (even if they have been totally or significantly shuttered), and so that state and local governments whose tax revenues are plummeting are not forced to make drastic cuts that will hamstring the economy, then those furloughed workers could get back to their prior jobs and the recovery could be rapid because confidence and demand would be relatively high,” she writes. “But if the federal government doesn’t act, then those furloughs will turn into permanent layoffs and the country will face an extended period of high unemployment that will do sweeping and unrelenting damage to the economy—and the people and businesses in it.”
Daily Kos
May 27, 2020
Though some states have laws making employers provide paid sick and family leave, FFCRA is the first-ever federal mandate. However, it leaves out a large portion of the workforce — the law doesn’t cover about 6.8 million workers at large firms who don’t get paid leave, according to an Economic Policy Institute analysis of DOL data.
Law 360
May 27, 2020
The Trump administration has rhetorically followed this perspective (see U.S. trade rep Robert Lighthizer declaring that the era of offshoring is over), and in some cases acting, signing a four-year agreement to source a generic pharmaceutical producer stateside. But more can be done, as the Economic Policy Institute outlines: ending the gaming of Buy America, for example, or leveraging federal contracts, or addressing currency manipulation, or reversing tax incentives for offshoring.
The American Prospect
May 27, 2020
Groups supporting the Paycheck Recovery Act include Americans for Financial Reform; the American Federation of Teachers; AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka; Asian Counseling and Referral Service; Asian Pacific Islander Coalition of Washington; Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, AFL-CIO; CAIR Washington; Center for American Progress; Center for Economic Policy Research; Center for Popular Democracy/CDP Action; Climate Justice Alliance; Color of Change; Communications Workers of America; Community Change Action; the Congressional Hispanic Caucus; Duwamish River Cleanup Coalition; Economic Policy Institute; GSBA: Washington’s LGBTQ Chamber; Indivisible; International Association of Machinists; International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers; International Community Health Services; Main Street Alliance; MoveOn; National Domestic Workers Alliance; National Education Association; Pacific Northwest Ballet; People’s Action; Seattle Aquarium; Seattle Children’s Theatre; SEIU; Sierra Club; UAW Western States; UNITE HERE; Woodland Park Zoo; 350 Seattle; and other organizations.
Rep. Pramila Jayapal
May 27, 2020
“I feel pretty confident this will be as deep as the Great Depression,” said Heidi Shierholz, a senior economist with the nonprofit Economic Policy Institute, of the damage to the U.S. economy.
“The real question is how long will this last,” added Shierholz, who was previously the Department of Labor’s chief economist under the Obama administration.
Governing
May 27, 2020
According to the Economic Policy Institute, the policy could result in 52,600 fewer green cards if it stays in place for 60 days. If extended for a whole year, that could lead to 316,000 fewer green cards.
The Gainesville Times
May 27, 2020
The workers faring best during the pandemic are those with high wages, access to healthcare, paid sick leave and the ability to work from home. But those benefits are exceedingly rare for much of the workforce, says Heidi Shierholz, director of policy at the Economic Policy Institute, a labor-oriented think tank. The coronavirus crisis has “uncovered the weakness in our social safety net,” she says. More than 40% of workers are employed in low-wage jobs and some 28 million non-elderly adults lack health insurance. Moreover, federal data suggests only about 30% of workers have the ability to work from home—and the rate is even lower for black and Latino workers.
In These Times
May 27, 2020
• Energy efficiency – The Economic Policy Institute, a national nonpartisan think tank, found that $50 billion in building retrofits and smart grid investments would support 445,000 jobs across the United States, or 8.9 jobs per $1 million invested.
Central Jersey
May 27, 2020