Media clips
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The rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer, at least in the United States. The top 1 percent of families took home an average of 26.3 times as much income as the bottom 99 percent in 2015, according to a new paper released by the Economic Policy Institute, a non-profit, nonpartisan think tank in Washington, D.C. This has increased since 2013, showing that income inequality has risen in nearly every state. (whole story)
CNBC July 20, 2018 -
The gap between the rich and the poor in America has ballooned over the last several decades. In 2015, the top 1% of Americans made 26.3 times as much income as the bottom 99 percent — an increase from 2013, when they earned 25.3 times as much, according to a study released Thursday from the Economic Policy Institute, a left-leaning Washington, D.C. think tank. A family needed an annual income of $421,926 to be part of the 1% nationally, the study said, but in some states the threshold was higher. The top 1% of Americans took home more than 22% of all income in 2015, the study found. That’s the highest share since a peak of 23.9% just before the Great Depression in 1928. (whole story)
MarketWatch July 20, 2018 -
The map was created by the Economic Policy Institute to go along with their report on income inequality across America. Their report found that income inequality has risen in almost every state since the 1970s. Other findings from the study:
- From 2009 to 2015, the incomes of the top 1% grew faster than the incomes of the bottom 99% in 43 states and the District of Columbia.
- The top 1% captured half or more of all income growth in nine states.
In 2015, a family in the top 1% nationally received, on average, 26.3 times as much income as a family in the bottom 99%. (whole story)
Fast Company July 20, 2018 -
Massachusetts has the sixth-biggest gap between its highest-paid residents and everyone else, according to a new report, with the state’s top 1 percent of families in 2015 earning 31 times what the average of the bottom 99 percent made. The analysis, out Thursday from the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute, cites tax data to examine income inequality by state, metro area and county. Its methodology uses income before taxes and transfers, like unemployment benefits. The average income of the top 1 percent of families in Massachusetts in 2015 was $1.9 million, according to EPI. That’s about 31 times the average income of everyone else that year, which was around $62,000. (whole story)
WBUR July 20, 2018 -
All politics, the old political saw goes, is local. By the same token, all economics may be local, too. We don’t experience our economy as a national or a global phenomenon. We experience our economic life in much more localized spheres. Researchers at the Economic Policy Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based progressive think tank, have understood this reality for decades now. They’ve supplemented their nationally focused work with a series of landmark collaborations that explore how our unequal economic order is playing out at the subnational level. (whole story)
Inequality.org July 20, 2018 -
Who is the “1 percent?” In Louisiana, it’s a household earning at least $318,393 per year. A new report from the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute offers easy-to-read data on income inequality (the unequal distribution of income among people who are making money) throughout the U.S., examined by state, city and metropolitan area. Authors Estelle Sommeiller and Mark Price echo the conclusion of many other economists: in most states and nationwide, incomes for a very small group of households are growing much faster than incomes for the remaining 99 percent of households. In nine states, just 1 percent of families has captured half or more of all income growth since the Great Recession. (whole story)
The Advocate July 20, 2018 -
A new report from the Economic Policy Institute highlighting wage disparities between whites and Hispanics across the United States shows a wage gap that has remained steady since 2000. Local data show that the wage gap is even wider in Oklahoma, something local agencies are working to address.
In 2017, Hispanic men working full time made 14.9 percent less in hourly wages than comparable white men, while Hispanic women made 33.1 percent less than comparable white men, according to the report. (whole story)
Tulsa World July 20, 2018 -
The Economic Policy Institute researched the impact of RTW across the nation and compared the quality of life in non-RTW states. The report highlights the differences in wages and quality of life based on race and gender. Black workers, already suffering in low-wage jobs, should expect no breaks. The only breaks will be those for the rich and greedy.
The St. Louis American July 20, 2018 -
MIXED REVIEWS FOR WORKFORCE PLEDGES: President Donald Trump gathered business executives at the White House Thursday to sign workforce training pledges. At the same session, Trump inked an executive order to create a new workforce task force. The East Room event took on the format of a fundraising dinner, with Trump walking around the room and soliciting training pledges from executives at companies such as FedEx, General Motors, IBM and Microsoft (“Give my regards,” Trump said to Home Depot CEO Craig Menear, without mentioning anyone in particular). Amid the handshakes, Trump’s comments 11 months ago about “both sides” sharing the blame for a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville — and the corporate exodus from the president’s business councils that followed — seemed a distant memory. Trump secured guarantees from nearly two dozen businesses and trade groups to train a collective 3.8 million workers, according to the White House. Thomas Donohue, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said the initiative would “help close the skills gap and build a workforce that supports our robust economy.” But responses from other business groups were more subdued. Robert Crestani, president of the International Franchise Association, said that by focusing on higher-level skills, the White House’s plan misses the point that even the most basic skills, such as operating a cash register, need to be taught. (IFA didn’t participate in Thursday’s pledge.) Heidi Shierholz, a senior economist with the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute, said the White House’s efforts will do little to increase stagnant wages for workers, a problem that has baffled economic experts. “If they are trying to do this as a response to the weak wage growth, they are totally just trying to solve a very real problem … by addressing something that’s not part of the problem at all,” Shierholz said. Read Trump’s executive order here.
Politico Pro July 20, 2018 -
One of the most punishing ramifications of the gig economy is the outsourcing of typical benefits on the grounds that gig workers are not true employees — a significant financial toll for those contractors that is not immediately apparent from the start of the gig. Though Uber drivers nationwide earn $11.77 per hour, accounting for outside costs like health insurance drops that wage to $9.21 per hour, according to a May 2018 report from the Economic Policy Institute — below the minimum wage in 29 U.S. states.
The Outline July 20, 2018