Areas of expertise
Macroeconomics • Globalization • Social insurance • Public investment
Biography
Josh Bivens is the director of research at the Economic Policy Institute (EPI). His areas of research include macroeconomics, fiscal and monetary policy, the economics of globalization, social insurance, and public investment. He frequently appears as an economics expert on news shows, including the Public Broadcasting Service’s “NewsHour,” the “Melissa Harris-Perry” show on MSNBC, WAMU’s “The Diane Rehm Show,” American Public Media’s “Marketplace,” and programs of the BBC.
As a leading policy analyst, Bivens regularly testifies before the U.S. Congress on fiscal and monetary policy, the economic impact of regulations, and other issues. He has also provided analyses for the annual meeting of Project LINK of the United Nations and the Trade Union Advisory Committee (TUAC) of the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
Bivens is the author of Failure by Design: The Story behind America’s Broken Economy (EPI and Cornell University Press) and Everybody Wins Except for Most of Us: What Economics Really Teaches About Globalization (EPI). He is the co-author of The State of Working America, 12th Edition (EPI and Cornell University Press) and a co-editor of Good Jobs, Bad Jobs, No Jobs: Labor Markets and Informal Work in Egypt, El Salvador, India, Russia and South Africa (EPI).
His academic articles have appeared in the International Review of Applied Economics, the Journal of Economic Issues and the Journal of Economic Perspectives. Bivens has also provided peer-reviewed articles to several edited collections, including The Handbook of the Political Economy of Financial Crises (Oxford University Press), Public Economics in the United States: How the Federal Government Analyzes and Influences the Economy (ABC-CLIO), and Restoring Shared Prosperity: A Policy Agenda from Leading Keynesian Economists (AFL-CIO and the Macroeconomic Policy Institute).
Prior to becoming director of research, Bivens was a research economist at EPI. Before coming to EPI, he was an assistant professor of economics at Roosevelt University and provided consulting services to Oxfam America. He has a Ph.D. in economics from the New School for Social Research and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland at College Park.
Education
Ph.D., Economics, New School for Social Research
B.A., Economics, University of Maryland at College Park
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With smart policy, a temporary collapse in GDP doesn’t have to cause great human suffering
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Despite some good provisions, the CARES Act has glaring flaws and falls short of fully protecting workers during the coronavirus crisis
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The coronavirus economic policy response must include relief and redistribution now and major demand stimulus once the crisis passes
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The coronavirus fiscal response should be as big as needed—but current forecasts indicate at least $2.1 trillion is needed through 2020: The expected hit to the economy would mean almost 14 million job losses by summer
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Coronavirus shock will likely claim 3 million jobs by summer: Policy is needed now to curb further losses
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Why a fiscal stimulus that is big and fast is so necessary—and why it should continue so long as the economy is weak
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Trump’s payroll tax cuts are a terrible opening bid to address the economic fallout of COVID-19: But employer tax credits can be part of the economic response if they finance direct benefits for workers
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Getting serious about the economic response to COVID-19
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Even HBO’s John Oliver didn’t provide the full context on ‘Medicare for All’ and jobs
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Fundamental health reform like ‘Medicare for All’ would help the labor market: Job loss claims are misleading, and substantial boosts to job quality are often overlooked
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Economic policy and COVID-19—Mitigate harm and plan for the future: A list of considerations for policymakers
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The U.S. federal tax and spending system is the biggest tool to combat inequality, but it could do much more
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News from EPI › Judy Shelton’s troubling record disqualifies her as Federal Reserve governor
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The signal the unemployment rate provides can change a lot over time: EPI Macroeconomics Newsletter
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News from EPI › New GDP data show that business investment slows for 3rd straight quarter: More evidence that tax cuts have failed
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Yes, David Brooks, there really is a class war
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How to make federal aid to state and local governments more transparent and effective: Boost direct grants and make them respond more automatically to downturns
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Still terrible at two: The Trump tax act delivered big benefits to the rich and corporations but nearly none for working families
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Looking for evidence of wage-led productivity growth: EPI Macroeconomics Newsletter
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Analyses claiming that taxes on millionaires and billionaires will slow economic growth are fundamentally flawed
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News from EPI › EPI welcomes Fed’s rate cut
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Wage growth targets are good economics—if you get the details right: EPI Macroeconomics Newsletter
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Thinking seriously about what ‘fiscal responsibility’ should mean: Full employment and reduced inequality are the most important targets of fiscal policy
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Why is the economy so weak? Trade gets headlines, but it’s more about past Fed rate hikes and the TCJA’s waste
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Wage growth is being held back by political decisions and the Trump administration is on the wrong side of key debates
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News from EPI › EPI welcomes Fed rate cut
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Not just ‘no heat’ but signs of cooling: The case for FOMC rate cuts has real merit
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News from EPI › Investment spending crumbles in second quarter
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News from EPI › Congress should pass the Middle Class Health Benefits Tax Repeal Act of 2019 to strengthen the ACA
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Focus on the boom, not the slump—The Fed’s new policy framework needs to stop cutting recoveries short: EPI Macroeconomics Newsletter