The Economic Policy Institute disagrees with the theme of CEI’s paper, having stated in testimony in February before the House of Representatives Committee on Education and Labor that an increase in the minimum wage to $15 would be “good for workers, good for businesses and good for the economy.” It cited recent economic research indicating that “both the average study as well as the best research show that there has been little downside to raising minimum wages,” reducing poverty, improving the living conditions of women, children and people of color and even allowing people to save for emergencies and eventual retirement.
Benefits Pro
October 8, 2019
The moderate jobs gain in September and drop in the unemployment rate was generally taken as positive news, especially amid predictions of a economic downturn. But, according to the Economic Policy Institute (EPI), the continued slow wage growth may be cause for concern; though EPI noted September’s results are only one month’s figures, the left-leaning organization said that future wage outcomes bear watching.
HR Dive
October 8, 2019
Lower wage workers have less leverage than they did in previous generations because unions are weaker now, said Josh Bivens, research director for the Economic Policy Institute. Long periods of high unemployment have also limited workers’ ability to push for better pay, he said.
Reuters
October 8, 2019
A footnote: One thing that struck me about this piece was the conspicuous absence of the Economic Policy Institute, probably the closest thing we have to a genuine New Deal think tank in the country.
The Nation
October 8, 2019
Lower wage workers have less leverage than they did in previous generations because unions are weaker now, said Josh Bivens, research director for the Economic Policy Institute. Long periods of high unemployment have also limited workers’ ability to push for better pay, he said.
“In the last 30 years, lots of those things that provided wage growth for low- and moderate-wage workers have been stripped away,” Bivens said.
Reuters
October 8, 2019
The striking workers, members of Teamsters Local 25 in Boston, have been on strike since August, after Republic refused to agree to a contract with a livable wage and affordable health care. On average, they are paid 40 percent below what it takes to make a living wage in Massachusetts for a family with one adult and one child, according to the Economic Policy Institute’s Family Budget Calculator.
Cision
October 7, 2019
Uber drivers are not entrepreneurs – NLRB General Counsel ignores the realities of driving for Uber [Economic Policy Institute]
My Take: This is a very legalistic view on the matter. It spins it out in great detail. For those who want to spend the time reading it, it’s there. It’s a critical issue in light of AB5 being signed by the California governor.
Cision
October 7, 2019
Countered Heidi Shierholz of the labor-backed Economic Policy Institute: “While the administration may be trumpeting this rule as a good thing for workers, that is a ruse. In reality, the rule leaves behind millions of workers who would have received overtime protections under the much stronger rule, published in 2016, that the Trump administration abandoned.”
Michigan Building and Construction Trades Council
October 7, 2019
According to the Economic Policy Institute, 5.3 million workers will have their pay rates increase this year as a result of the numerous minimum wage hikes that went into effect Jan. 1. The institute projects the rate increases will result in an extra $5.4 billion worth of pay, on average $90 to $1,300 per year-round employee, depending on the state.
Caledonian Record
October 7, 2019
“There’s a chance the recent low of 2.9% is a blip, but it’s certainly a troubling sign and something to watch in coming months especially after the deceleration experienced in the first half of 2019,” wrote Elise Gould, senior economist at the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute, in a Friday analysis.
“The report suggests the Federal Reserve is doing the right thing by gradually lowering interest rates to ensure the longest recovery in modern economic history can be sustained—rather than peter out just as many lower- and middle-income households are starting to feel its benefits.”
The Hill
October 7, 2019