Media clips
-
In 2016, CEOs at America’s largest firms made, on average, 271 times more than the average US worker. Fifty years ago, that ratio was 20-to-1.
The CEO-to-worker pay ratio, calculated annually by the Economic Policy Institute, a progressive think tank, has narrowed slightly in recent years; in 2014, it was 299-to-1. But it has grown by an order of magnitude since the Bureau of Labor Statistics started keeping data in the 1960s, and has even doubled many times over since the late 1980s, when it was 59-to-1. (whole story)
Bill Moyers July 21, 2017 -
In April, Trump ordered the Department of Commerce to investigate steel imports under a little-known part of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, Section 232, which allows the executive branch to place import restrictions or tariffs on steel for national security reasons. “Steel and aluminum are vital for U.S. national defense and critical infrastructure,” Robert E. Scott of the Economic Policy Institute, a left-of-center think tank, said in a piece supporting the idea. “The military needs high quality steel and aluminum to make products ranging from helmets and tanks to rocket fuel, fighter jets and aircraft carriers.” Foreign trade practices have made it impossible for the United States to supply its own steel for defense purposes, the theory goes.
The Atlantic July 21, 2017 -
Another Reason Why It’s Great The BBC Revealed Anchors’ Salaries
The Huffington Post/Emily Peck
“If you don’t have the information, you can’t act on it,” Elise Gould, a senior economist at the progressive Economic Policy Institute who studies the pay gap, told HuffPost. She pointed out that in unionized workplaces, where employees have more information about pay, there are smaller pay disparities between genders. In any workplace, information is power. Workers can’t advocate for equal pay until they know where they stand, compared with their colleagues. Public pressure that comes from releasing detailed information helps, too, Gould added.
The Huffington Post July 21, 2017 -
Daniel Costa, director of immigration law and policy research at the Economic Policy Institute, said the increase was “hypocritical.”
“The signs started pointing to a crackdown on the high-skilled visas — even if it was symbolic — and now it seems like there might be an expansion on the low-skilled ones,” Costa said. “The Republican party is pretty split when it comes to labor migration issues, and I think there is going to be a back-and-forth every time an issue like this comes out.”
San Francisco Chronicle July 21, 2017 -
In its announcement, the Department of Homeland Security noted that businesses only qualify for the visas if they can prove that they are likely to “suffer irreparable harm” if unable to hire foreign workers. But critics are skeptical that labor shortages are as severe as companies claim. The Economic Policy Institute, a liberal think tank that Trump has aligned himself with on certain issues, argued in a recent report that almost all of the top 10 occupations for H-2B workers have relatively high unemployment rates and have experienced stagnant or declining wages since 2004. That, the group argues, suggests there is no shortage of available workers, at least on a national level. (The report does note that it is possible that states and local areas are experiencing a limited labor pool for these jobs but claims the H-2B program maintains a framework that exploits foreign workers.)
FiveThirtyEight July 21, 2017 -
The pay gap between company bigwigs and ordinary working stiffs is narrowing, but there’s still a major chasm. CEOs at the largest U.S. firms now make 271 times more than the average worker, according to calculations by the Economic Policy Institute for 2016 salary numbers. Including stock options, average pay for those at the top of the corporate ladder came to $15.6 million in the group that the EPI examined. (whole story)
CNBC July 20, 2017 -
The CEOs of America’s largest firms made an average of $15.6m in compensation last year, or 271 times the annual average pay of the typical worker, according to an analysis released Thursday. The study by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) looked at compensation, including share options and other benefits, for the top bosses of the largest 350 companies in the US in 2016. Lawrence Mishel, EPI president and co-author of the report, said he was surprised to see a small dip in pay this year. The 2016 CEO-to-worker compensation ratio of 271-to-1 is down from 299-to-1 in 2014 and 286-to-1 in 2015. But the report points out it is still “light years beyond the 20-to-1 ratio in 1965 and the 59-to-1 ratio in 1989”. (whole story)
The Guardian July 20, 2017 -
A study by the Economic Policy Institute says the chief executive officers of America’s largest firms were paid an average of $15.6 million each in 2016. In a report published Thursday, authors Lawrence Mischel and Jessica Schieder say that amount is 271 times as much as a “typical” worker’s earnings at those same corporations. That boss-to-worker pay ratio is slightly lower than it has been in the past few years, but is still “light years” higher than the 20-to-1 gap between workers and bosses in 1965, or the 59-to-1 difference that was measured in 1989. (whole story)
Voice of America July 20, 2017 -
“I think generally increasing the number of workers in a program that is this flawed doesn’t make a lot of sense,” says Daniel Costa of the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute. “I think that [the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Labor] should focus on fixing the program, and making sure there are more worker protections in place.” Some safeguards are in place now. Employers must run job ads in local papers before hiring guest workers, and they have to pay a government-set prevailing wage. But Costa thinks exploitation is still too easy with each worker tethered to the employee that procured their visa.
PRI July 20, 2017 -
Daniel Costa with the Economic Policy Institute said that the visa is ripe for abuse. “So many employers are claiming they have labor shortages,” Costa said, “but nationwide – we don’t see that evidence.” Costa is also concerned that H-2B workers aren’t paid what they should be and are open to exploitation, given that their status in the U.S. is tied to their employer. Costa said he’s not opposed to immigration but wants a level playing field. “It has to be fair to migrant workers,” Costa said, “but also the U.S. workers should have a fair shot at those jobs and not be discriminated against.”
Fox News July 19, 2017