Media clips

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• The Fraught Realities of Financial Relief During a Pandemic

  Ultimately, for all its limits, the CARES Act is “much more balanced than most things to come out of Congress,” said Josh Bivens, the research director at the Economic Policy Institute. “The real way that policy benefits the wealthy over everyone else is in the day-to-day grind of policymaking.” These benefits come in many forms, from laws limiting union power to the stagnant federal minimum wage to a tax code that has, remarkably, done little to offset the dramatic rise in income inequality in the U.S. over the last four decades. “When there’s less of a spotlight, then the people who have more resources to put on that pressure every single day, they just win those fights. There’s just not an apparatus of people waking up every day looking to fight for the economic interest of low- and middle-income workers.”

  The New Republic May 7, 2020
• Jobless claims, now at 33 million, likely undercount people who aren’t working due to COVID-19

  And Cooper’s not alone. We found in our Marketplace-Edison Research Poll that nearly half of those who are out of work haven’t applied for unemployment. Many others have tried and failed. Elise Gould, senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute, said for every 100 people who successfully file, “37 additional workers tried to apply, but couldn’t get through the UI system to make a claim.”

  Marketplace May 7, 2020
• Want to WFH? Companies Offering High-Pay, Remote Jobs

  In San Francisco, an experienced director of communications might make $120,00 a year, which turns into about $80,400 cash in hand after state, local and federal taxes are factored in. The office is 15 miles away and an hour commute each way. That’s another $4,380 per year, using a cost-of-commuting calculator, and roughly 21 days spent each year driving to and from work. Housing for a couple, according to the Economic Policy Institute’s budget calculator, runs about $28,700.

  Research by Rate May 7, 2020
• ‘The government is failing us’: Laid-off Americans struggle in coronavirus crisis

  In the past six weeks, states have struggled to process over 33 million jobless claims, more than they typically see in a year. That figure does not capture those who have been unable to even file a claim due to bureaucratic hurdles — up to 14 million more, according to an Economic Policy Institute study released last week.

  Reuters May 7, 2020
• Surge in Unemployment Filings Continues

  Still, the job losses may be far worse than government figures indicate. And that might dictate how this downturn, unique and breathtaking in its severity, is tackled. A study by the Economic Policy Institute found that roughly 50 percent more people than counted as filing claims in a recent four-week period may have qualified for benefits but were stymied in applying or didn’t even try because they found the process too formidable.

  Hunt Scanlon Media May 7, 2020
• Six in 10 H-1B positions may be paying below the local median wage

  Six in 10 H-1B positions that are certified by the US department of labor (DoL) are assigned below the median of the local wage for the occupation, according to a paper published on May 4 by Washington DC-based think tank Economic Policy Institute (EPI).

  Quartz May 7, 2020
• Restructuring Argentina’s Private Debt is Essential

  NEW YORK – The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed humanity toward the worst global recession in modern times. Pressure on public finances has become enormous, particularly in developing countries that were already highly indebted.

  We believe a sustainable agreement benefits both sides: a struggling economy with 45 million people and the creditors themselves. Now is the time for private creditors to act in good faith. A responsible resolution will set a positive precedent, not only for Argentina, but for the international financial system as a whole.

  This commentary is co-signed by: Jeffrey D. Sachs, Columbia University; Dani Rodrik, Harvard Kennedy School; Thomas Piketty, School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences; Mariana Mazzucato, University College London; Kenneth Rogoff, former IMF chief economist and Harvard University; Brad Setser, Council on Foreign Relations; Ricardo Hausmann, former IADB Chief Economist and Harvard Kennedy School; Carlos Ominami, former Economy Minister, Chile; Yu Yongding, former member of the Monetary Policy Committee, People’s Bank of China; Erik Berglof, former EBRD chief economist and London School of Economics; Nora Lustig, Tulane University; Nelson Barbosa, former Minister of Finance and Planning; Justin Yifu Lin, former World Bank chief economist and Peking University; Partha Dasgupta, University of Cambridge; Kevin P. Gallagher, Boston University; Stephany Griffith-Jones, Columbia University; Stephanie Blankenburg, UNCTAD; Richard Kozul-Wright, UNCTAD; Ricardo French Davis, University of Chile; James K. Galbraith, University of Texas; Jean-Paul Fitoussi, Sciences Po; Amar Bhattacharya, Brookings Institution; Robert Boyer, National Scientific Research Council; Robert Pollin, University of Massachusetts-Amherst; Robert Howse, NYU Law; Giovanni Dosi, Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna; Juan Carlos Moreno Brid, National Autonomous University of Mexico; Josh Bivens, Economic Policy Institute; Arjun Jayadev, Azim Premji University; David Soskice, London School of Economics; Jayati Ghosh, Professor of Economics, Jawaharlal Nehru University; Mauro Gallegati, Università Politecnica Delle Marche; Natalya Naqvi, London School of Economics; Daniela Gabor, UWE Bristol; Marcus Miller, University of Warwick; John E. Roemer, Yale University; William H. Janeway, University of Cambridge; Dean Baker, Center for Economic and Policy Research and University of Utah; Gerald Epstein, University of Massachusetts-Amherst; Anwar Shaikh, New School University; Kaushik Basu, Cornell University; Matias Vernengo, Bucknell University; Philippe Aghion, London School of Economics; Anne Laure Delatte, Centre d’Etudes Prospectives et d’Informations Internationales; Sudhir Anand, London School of Economics; Christoph Trebesch, University of Kiel; John Weeks, University of London; David Vines, University of Oxford; Saskia Sassen, Columbia University; Sandra Polaski, Boston University; Thomas Pogge, Yale University; Rhys Jenkins, University of East Anglia; Jurgen Kaiser, Jubilee Germany; Gary A. Dymski, University of Leeds; Andreas Antoniades, University of Sussex; Raphael Kaplinsky, University of Sussex; Diane Elson, University of Essex; Ernst Stetter, former secretary general, Foundation for European Progressive Studies; Ozlem Onaran, University of Greenwich; Todd Howland, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights; Isabel Ortiz, Columbia University; Carolina Alves, University of Cambridge; Eric LeCompte, Jubilee USA Network; Richard Jolly, University of Sussex; Christoph Trebesch, University of Kiel; Diego Sanchez-Ancochea, University of Oxford; Mark Weisbrot, Center for Economic and Policy Research; Lara Merling, International Trade Union Confederation; Pedro Mendes Loureiro, University of Cambridge; Ilene Grabel, University of Denver; Sabri Öncü, CAFRAL; David Hall, University of Greenwich; Jose Esteban Castro, Newcastle University; Andy McKay, University of Sussex; Stefano Prato, Society for International Development; Rosemary Thorp, University of Oxford; Barry Herman, The New School for Public Engagement; Andrés Arauz, former Minister of Knowledge and Central Bank General Director, Ecuador; Manuel Alcántara, University of Salamanca; Alex Izurieta, UNCTAD; Michael Cichon, UNU Maastricht; Biswajit Dhar, Jawaharlal Nehru University; Jens Martens, Global Policy Forum; Nicolas Pons-Vignon, University of the Witwatersrand; Jean Saldanha, European Network on Debt and Development (Eurodad); Leonidas Vatikiotis, Debtfree Project; Valpy FitzGerald, University of Oxford; Giovanni Andrea Cornia, University of Florence; Matthias Thiemann, Sciences Po; Yılmaz Akyüz, former chief economist, South Centre, Geneva; Stephan Schulmeister, University of Vienna; Eduardo Strachman, São Paulo State University; Peter Dorman, Evergreen State College; C.P. Chandrasekhar, Jawaharlal Nehru University; Leopoldo Rodriguez, Portland State University; Chris Tilly, University of California Los Angeles; Tracy Mott, University of Denver; Jeffrey Madrick, Schwartz Rediscovering Government Initiative; Günseli Berik, University of Utah; Joseph Ricciardi, Babson College; Lorenzo Pellegrini, Erasmus University Rotterdam; Erinc Yeldan, Bilkent University; Sunil Ashra, Management Development Institute; Mustafa Özer, Anadolu University, Turkey; Rolph van der Hoeven, Erasmus University Rotterdam; Al Campbell, University of Utah; Antonella Palumbo, Università Roma Tre; Arthur MacEwan, University of Massachusetts Boston; Neva Goodwin, Tufts University; Korkut Boratav, Turkish Social Science Association; Michael Ash, University of Massachusetts-Amherst; Alicia Puyana, Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales, Mexico; John Willoughby, American University; Marco Palacios, El Colegio de Mexico; Reza Mazhari, Gonbad Gavous University, Iran; Ann Markusen, University of Minnesota; Renee Prendergast, Queens University; Michael Moore, University of Warwick; Carlos A. Carrasco, Universidad de Monterrey, Mexico; Robert Lynch, Washington College; John Schmitt, Economic Policy Institute; Venkatesh Athreya, Bharathidasan University; Jeff Faux, Economic Policy Institute; Kunibert Raffer, University of Vienna; Jenik Radon, Columbia University; Maria Joao Rodrigues, Foundation for European Progressive Studies; Stephanie Seguino, University of Vermont; Gustavo Indart, University of Toronto; Cyrus Bina, University of Minnesota; Alberto Minujin, The New School; Philip Alston, NYU; Sudhir Anand, London School of Economics; José Gabriel Palma, Cambridge University; Michael A. Cohen, The New School; Jeff Powell, University of Greenwich; Christopher Sims, Nobel laureate in economics and Princeton University; and Rob Johnson, President, INET.  

  Project Syndicate May 7, 2020
• The H-1B Visa Program is Government-Sanctioned Exploitation of American Workers

  Even in a normal job market, it is hard to fathom the Department of Labor (DOL) would “let H-1B employers undercut” over qualified American applicants so they can insource foreign workers, who they pay at below-market wage levels. Yet, that is exactly what is occurring, according to a new report from the non-partisan Economic Policy Institute (EPI).

  Immigration Reform May 7, 2020
• The US would have 350,000 deaths before July if all states reopened today, according to new analysis

  “We want to do whatever we can to help states and localities get through that period – and not clamp down on the recovery,” Elise Gould, an economist at the Economic Policy Institute, previously told Business Insider.

  “People are under the false impression that there’s this dichotomy between protecting people’s health and protecting people’s economic wellbeing,” Gould added. “That’s where policymakers really need to step up more.”
  Business Insider May 7, 2020
• What is Medicaid, and how do you get it?

  More than 50 percent of Americans receive their health insurance through their employer; a recent analysis by the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute forecast that 3.5 million workers had lost their insurance in the last two weeks of March alone.

  FOX 26 News May 7, 2020