Sebastian Hickey, an analyst at the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute, disagrees. “There continues to be an orthodox view that the minimum wage is destructive to economic outcomes, but 90 per cent of high-quality studies show that it doesn’t increase unemployment,” he said.
The Times (UK)
August 9, 2026
“People leave the labor force because they don’t see opportunities for themselves in it, and so they’re not actively looking for a job,” said Elise Gould, senior economist at the nonpartisan Economic Policy Institute.
CBS Moneywatch
August 9, 2026
The sector that lost the most jobs in July was local government education. That category is mostly K-12 public school roles, which were down almost 50,000.
Such a sharp drop could be a flaw in “seasonal adjustment,” said Elise Gould, senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute. She said many teachers are laid off in the summer.
“At the same time, local education employment has fallen every month since March,” Gould said — as in, when school is still in session. “We know that there have been funding cuts at the Department of Education. Worse budget cuts may be coming, and that could cause even more uncertainty about hiring or keeping teachers on staff.”
Marketplace
August 9, 2026
Wage equality helps define how workers share in economic growth. When top earners pull far ahead of median workers, rising high-end pay concentrates gains among a relatively small group. According to the Economic Policy Institute, earnings inequality has “redistributed wages away from most workers” and stifled “broader-based wage growth.” However, wider wage gaps may also reflect stronger rewards for specialized skills and experience, factors that can help drive productivity and economic expansion.
AZ Big Media
August 3, 2026
The Economic Policy Institute (EPI) reported in 2022 that the value of the federal minimum wage was at its lowest point in more than 60 years. A worker paid the minimum wage would have earned 27.4 percent less in inflation-adjusted terms compared to July 2009, according to the report.
Newsweek
August 3, 2026
At the top of the wealth heap, 208 taxpayers have $85 billion saved in IRA-type accounts, with an average balance of $409 million.
At that level of saving, “you’re basically amassing wealth for hereditary purposes, not for your own well-being,” said Monique Morrissey, a senior economist at the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute.
USA Today
August 3, 2026
Since 1979, wages for the nation’s highest earners have nearly doubled, while pay for the bottom 90% has risen just 44%, according to the Economic Policy Institute.
Sacramento Bee
August 3, 2026
Nationally, 14 million workers make less than $15 per hour and 20 million workers make less than $16, including overtime, tips and commissions, according to the Economic Policy Institute’s Low Wage Workforce Tracker.
Newark Advocate
August 3, 2026