While many college students have voiced concerns about finding work or creating job opportunities because of the rise of artificial intelligence, some experts say that might not be the story.
The increase appears to be driven by an increase in labor force participation rather than a declining probability of having a job, according to the Economic Policy Institute.
Atlanta Journal Constitution
May 26, 2026
Black job losses in 2025 underscore the Fed’s reporting. According to the Economic Policy Institute’s Valerie Wilson, the Black unemployment rate rose 1.2 percent in the first quarter of 2026 compared to the same time last year. The Bureau of Labor Statistics also recently reported that the Black unemployment rate, which is typically higher than the national average, rose to 7.3 percent, making the rate as high as it was the pandemic in 2021. As I’ve previously noted, Black women endured sudden and staggering job loss as more than 300,000 were let go in the first few months of 2025.
Truthout
May 26, 2026
It is also important to note that AGI includes both wages and taxable investment income. An Economic Policy Institute (EPI) analysis of Social Security Administration data further examined average annual earnings among top earners and found the following.
Investopedia
May 26, 2026
Last month, 40 policy and labor organizations took their fight for a federal framework to protect workers from AI disruptions to Capitol Hill. Led by the Economic Policy Institute, the AFL-CIO Tech Institute, and two social justice groups, We Build Progress and Workshop, they reminded members of Congress that majorities of Americans want to establish guardrails that protect jobs and states’ regulatory powers.
The American Prospect
May 26, 2026
A new report finds that U.S. employers spend more than $1.5 billion a year to fight labor unions, hiring union-avoidance consultants and lawyers to prevent worker organizing.
The report, published jointly by the Economic Policy Institute and LaborLab on Wednesday, estimates that employers spend roughly $1.7 billion annually on union avoidance consultants and law firms to prevent workers “from organizing and bargaining for better pay and working conditions.”
Truthout
May 26, 2026
Using data from implementation of the Minnesota unemployment benefits, the Economic Policy Institute estimated that a similar bill would cost Illinois school districts $56.3 million. This figure omits implementation costs and unemployment take-up by colleges and university employees, although these figures are likely to represent a relatively small percentage of the total compared to school districts.
Medill News Service
May 26, 2026
The Economic Policy Institute argues that depressed hiring rates are broadly undermining labor markets for recent college graduates.
Chronicle of Higher Education
May 26, 2026
Vesconte is not alone. The college degree is “losing its edge”, according to a report this month from the Economic Policy Institute. Despite a growing economy and low unemployment rates, young college graduates are faced with dismal hiring prospects. Survey after survey show that gen Z is experiencing deep economic instability, along with eroding trust in the country’s leadership and weakened social connections.
The Guardian
May 26, 2026
GONZALEZ: Adewale is a labor economics researcher at the Economic Policy Institute. But actually seeing the European attitude toward work in person felt different. And it made Adewale think of this report he worked on a few years back.
MAYE: The name of the report is “No Vacation Nation,”
GONZALEZ: “No Vacation Nation.”
MAYE: Very, very on the nose.
NPR Planet Money
May 26, 2026
Union Democrat
May 26, 2026