Studies on NAFTA’s impact tend to conflict. Sanders cites a report from the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute that says the trade deal with Canada and Mexico cost 800,000 American jobs, but a report from the Congressional Research Service called NAFTA’s impact “relatively modest.”
Buffalo News
April 5, 2016
Entering the workforce as a child care trainee will increase the incomes of most participating women above the average Clinton-Peabody $7,200 household income. But is clearly not a pathway out of poverty. The Economic Policy Institute reported in November 2015 that the median hourly wage for child care workers is $10.31, less than two-thirds of the median income for other occupations.
St. Louis Post Dispatch
April 5, 2016
Others argue that decades of wage stagnation warrant ambitious increases. “The fact that these proposals are outside the bounds of recent experience does not automatically make them ill-conceived,” Economic Policy Institute’s Larry Mishel and David Cooper wrote. “Moving beyond the timidity of most recent minimum wage hikes is exactly what is needed if we are to undo decades of falling wages and deteriorating living standards for the lowest-paid third of America’s workforce.”
The American Prospect
April 5, 2016
But even defenders will admit that eventually, as the minimum wage keeps rising past its historical high-water mark, it’s possible that some jobs could be lost. You hear the phrase “uncharted waters” a lot, because anything could happen. That’s why some liberal economists, such as the Economic Policy Institute, have only gone so far as to endorse a national hike up to $12 an hour by 2020. Liberal-ish columnists have been especially skeptical.
The Washington Post
April 4, 2016
The fight for a $15 per hour minimum wage has won its biggest victories yet. California lawmakers voted for a bill to raise the minimum by 2022, while New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he reached a deal to hike the wage in New York City by the end of 2018. Judy Woodruff examines the consequences with Douglas Holtz-Eakin of American Action Forum and David Cooper of the Economic Policy Institute.
PBS News Hour
April 4, 2016
The government estimates 1.7 million people are “marginally attached” to the labor force: those who would like a job but haven’t looked in the past year because of school or family obligations or because they’ve simply given up hope of finding one. Some economists believe the number could be even higher. An analysis by the Economic Policy Institute estimates more than 2 million workers missing from the labor force.
The Washington Post
April 4, 2016
Most of the improvement in participation is coming from prime-age workers, those who are re-entrants, said Sophia Koropeckyj, a labor economist at Moody’s Analytics. The inflow of younger workers, those who are new entrants or have been students, accounts for less than one-quarter of the increase in the labor force, she said. “People who gave up see the unemployment rate dropping,” said Elise Gould, a senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute, offering one reason for their return. She noted that other government data show job openings are up. “Maybe they’re seeing more ads in the newspaper,” she said. “Maybe it’s just word of mouth.”
Los Angeles Times
April 4, 2016
Elise Gould, senior economist at the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute, said that while March’s jobs numbers showed signs of improvement, “wage growth continues to be below target levels, a sign that there continues to be substantial slack in the labor market.” She suggested the Federal Reserve continue to refrain from further interest rate hikes.
Politico
April 4, 2016
What’s more, extra people looking for work raises the national labor force participation rate – which measures the share of Americans at least 16 years old who are either employed or actively looking for work. That rate ticked up for the second consecutive month to 63 percent—its highest level in two years. “The unemployment rate ticked up slightly, while the labor force participation rate continued to show signs of improvement—an indication that workers are feeling optimistic and are beginning to come off the bench and take some practice swings,” Elise Gould, a senior economist and director of health policy research at the Economic Policy Institute, wrote in a research note Friday.
U.S. News & World Report
April 4, 2016