A 2015 paper by the Economic Policy Institute found that wages are 3.1 percent lower in “right-to-work” states than ones without the law, representing a roughly $1,558 drop in wages for a typical full-time worker in a “right-to-work” state.
Truthout
February 14, 2024
The Economic Policy Institute, a progressive think tank, called the bill “dangerous” and pointed to recent safety violations uncovered by the U.S. Department of Labor, including the case of a 13-year-old working at a landscaping supplier, who was found to be operating a forklift, and a 15-year-old working for a roofing contractor, who sustained severe head and spinal injuries after falling from a roof. Both incidents happened in Florida.
“Proposals to extend teens’ work hours fly in the face of decades of research documenting that excessive work hours jeopardize teen health, development, and safety on the job,” EPI wrote in a September blog post on the proposal.
HR Dive
February 14, 2024
Judge explained that most salaries are deflated in value due to the “productivity-pay gap.” She cited the Economic Policy Institute’s (EPI) explanation of this phenomenon: it’s the difference between the growth of the economy (“productivity”) and workers’ wages (“pay”).
EPI discovered that there is indeed a massive productivity-pay gap in the U.S.: hourly pay has increased by 14.8% from 1979 to 2022, whereas productivity has increased by a whopping 64.7% — more than four times as much as hourly pay.
MoneyWise
February 14, 2024
While many minimum wage workers are unskilled teens, the vast majority of workers who benefit from minimum wage hikes are over the age of 20, according to research by the Economic Policy Institute.
Christian Science Monitor
February 14, 2024
The wealthiest Americans are far more likely to hold stocks than those with lower incomes. Josh Bivens, chief economist at the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute, said stock market gains are “really about how the wealthiest are faring” and are “mostly irrelevant to most peoples’ real economic circumstances.”
Politico
February 14, 2024
A single person in the Twin Cities metro area needs to earn $47,442 a year — about $22 an hour — to afford the basics: food, housing, health care, transportation and a cell phone. For a family of four, the parents need to earn at least $119,229 a year — or about $28 an hour each.
That’s according to the Economic Policy Institute’s latest Family Budget Calculator, which estimates how much it costs to make ends meet across America.
Minnesota Reformer
February 14, 2024
Employment dipped by 15%, or nearly 6 million workers, for people 55 and over in the early months of 2020, according to an analysis by the Economic Policy Institute.
USA Today
February 12, 2024
To illustrate regional differences — and to help people assess whether their own budgets are in line with their neighbors’ — the Economic Policy Institute has unveiled a family budget calculator with 2023 data for all counties and metro areas across the nation. The calculator estimates seven basic expense categories — housing, food, transportation, child care, health care, taxes and other basic necessities — for 10 family types (one or two adults with zero to four children).
Arizona Republic
February 12, 2024
A 2014 study from the Economic Policy Institute found that wage theft “costs American workers as much as $50 billion a year.” It deserves massive attention.
New Republic
February 12, 2024
According to the Economic Policy Institute, the net worth of the top 1% of American households rose steadily through the second half of the 20th century and beyond.
Investopedia
February 12, 2024