Areas of expertise
Wages • Jobs • Economic inequality • Care economy
Biography
Elise Gould joined EPI in 2003. Her research areas include wages, jobs, economic inequality, and the care economy. She is a co-author of The State of Working America, 12th Edition. Gould authored a chapter on health in The State of Working America 2008/09; co-authored a book on health insurance coverage in retirement; published in venues such as The Chronicle of Higher Education, Challenge Magazine, and Tax Notes; and written for academic journals including Health Economics, Health Affairs, Journal of Aging and Social Policy, Risk Management & Insurance Review, Environmental Health Perspectives, and International Journal of Health Services. Gould has been quoted by a variety of news sources, including Bloomberg, NPR, The Washington Post, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal, and her opinions have appeared on the op-ed pages of USA Today and The Detroit News. She has testified before the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means, Maryland Senate Finance and House Economic Matters committees, the New York City Council, and the District of Columbia Council.
Education
Ph.D., Economics, University of Wisconsin at Madison
Master of Public Affairs, University of Texas at Austin
B.A., Sociology, Wesleyan University
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Data accountability dashboard
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Amid the shutdown data blackout, state unemployment insurance claims continue to shed light on the labor market
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Access to paid sick leave continues to grow but remains highly unequal by geography and wage level
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Job quality is a policy decision: Better jobs can spur higher labor force participation for both men and women
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Assessing the strength of the labor market: Preliminary downward revisions do not necessarily signal a weaker 2024 labor market, but there are warning signs for 2025
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CEO Pay
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CEO pay increased in 2024 and is now 281 times that of the typical worker: New EPI landing page has all the details
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Good news and bad news about U.S. labor force participation: Many headwinds from the 2010s are gone, but we’re not investing enough in the future
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Today’s BLS preliminary benchmark revisions are necessary for timely and accurate data—not fodder for Trump’s attacks
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Next week’s 2024 Census data will give us the final snapshot of the economy’s health before Trump
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Recession FAQ
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Class of 2025: Young workers were poised to graduate into a promising labor market, but Trump policy actions could unravel progress
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What to watch for in this week’s labor market data: Will there be signs of widespread economic distress?
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How should we assess and characterize worker wage growth in recent decades?
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Wage growth since 1979 has not been stagnant, but it has definitely been suppressed
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Equal Pay Day: Gender pay gap hits historic low in 2024—but remains too large
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Deliberate policy decisions have disempowered workers and increased labor market inequality: The new State of Working America Data Library shows the latest trends in productivity, wages, labor markets, unionization, and CEO pay
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Strong wage growth for low-wage workers bucks the historic trend
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Child care is unaffordable for working families across the country—including in New Mexico
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It’s time for Colorado to remove barriers to unionization: Outdated “second election” rule is rooted in anti-worker, white supremacist history
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EPI’s updated Family Budget Calculator shows that states like Virginia need a higher minimum wage
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The Economic Policy Institute’s Family Budget Calculator: Technical Documentation
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Wage inequality fell in 2023 amid a strong labor market, bucking long-term trends: But top 1% wages have skyrocketed 182% since 1979 while bottom 90% wages have seen just 44% growth
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Actually, the U.S. labor market remains very strong
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Access to paid sick leave continues to grow but remains highly unequal
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CEO pay declined in 2023: But it has soared 1,085% since 1978 compared with a 24% rise in typical workers’ pay
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Real median household income rose sharply in 2023—a testament to the strength of the economic recovery
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The labor market remains strong yet the Fed should cut rates in September
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A 2023 Census data preview: Household incomes likely rose because of a strong labor market and falling inflation
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What to watch on jobs day: The labor market is better by some measures than before the pandemic