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NewsFlash: August 15, 2008
News Conference Call: The State of Working America, 2008-2009
Join EPI economists by conference call on Wednesday, August 20, 12:00 noon EDT, for a preview and discussion of two new publications from the Economic Policy Institute. See bottom to sign up for the call and contact for online materials.
Publication #1:
The State of Working America, 2008-2009
(Under EMBARGO until Thursday, August 28, 12:01 AM.)
Lawrence Mishel, Jared Bernstein, Heidi Shierholz
The recession-recovery cycle that started in 2001 is looking like one for the record books. GDP and historically high productivity growth should have raised paychecks up and down the income ladder, but instead, the benefits of that growth have bypassed most of the people who made it possible. For the first time on record, middle-class families are at or near the end of a recovery without ever having regained the ground they lost during the recession that preceded it.
- Middle-class families’ incomes are likely to be no higher – and possibly even lower – than at the beginning of the business cycle.
- Job growth has been historically slow and unemployment stints longer, as the share of employed Americans has shrunk and underemployment has risen.
- Meanwhile, labor market conditions have been deteriorating since 2007 and for working families this is what a recession looks like.
The full facts and trends are detailed in the 11th edition of EPI’s authoritative volume, The State of Working America, 2008-2009.
Publication #2:
A Plan to Revive the American Economy
EPI’s Agenda for Shared Prosperity
Developed through two years of consultation with leading thinkers and experts in their fields, this handbook sketches out workable, affordable, and bold policy prescriptions to get our faltering economy back on the right track. These ideas, which cover nine key economic focus areas, are being shared with activists, public officials, and candidates, and are already having an impact in the national policy debate.
SIGN UP/LEARN MORE:
Conference call, Wednesday, August 20, 12 noon EDT. Click here to register and receive call-in instructions.
The State of Working America, 2008-2009 (Embargoed until Thursday, August 28, AM): CONTACT: Nancy Coleman or Karen Conner, news@epi.org , 202-775-8810.
A Plan to Revive the American Economy
Click here for the press release and access to a PDF of the full handbook.
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