Another year of congressional inaction has further eroded the federal minimum...
This week marks the eighth anniversary of the last time the federal minimum wage was raised, from $6.55 to $7.25 on July 24, 2009. Since then, the purchasing power of the federal minimum wage has...
View ArticleCorrecting the record: Consumers fare better under class actions than...
The new arbitration rule from Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) restores consumers’ ability to join together in class action lawsuits against financial institutions. Based on five years of...
View ArticleImpressive, incomplete, and under threat: Janet Yellen’s legacy at the...
Introduction and executive summary The Great Recession had a devastating impact on the livelihood of tens of millions of American families. It also brought renewed public attention to the role that the...
View ArticleAutopilot Economy Tracker: Benchmarks to beat in order to claim policy-driven...
EPI’s Autopilot Economy Tracker provides a set of real-time benchmarks to help Americans gauge how well the public officials elected to serve them are performing as stewards of the U.S. economy. The...
View ArticleEPI comment regarding the fiduciary rule and prohibited transactions exemptions
Office of Exemption Determinations Employee Benefits Security Administration Attention: D-11933 U.S. Department of Labor 200 Constitution Avenue NW Washington, DC 20210 RE: Request for Information...
View ArticleComment to the U.S. Department of Labor opposing the rescission of the...
EPI Associate Labor Counsel Marni von Wilpert sent the following comment to the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Labor-Management Standards, on August 9, 2017. U.S. Department of Labor Office of...
View ArticleCorporations pay between 13 and 19 percent in federal taxes—far less than the...
As the GOP push to pass “tax reform” starts to heat up, policymakers will debate whether the corporate tax rate is too high or too low. A standard but misleading talking point for those wishing to give...
View ArticleAnother fiduciary rule delay would cost retirement savers $10.9 billion over...
The Trump administration’s Department of Labor is actively working to weaken or rescind the “fiduciary” rule (the rule that requires financial advisers to act in the best interest of their clients)....
View ArticleWe still haven’t recovered well-paying construction and manufacturing jobs
The economy has added 8.2 million jobs in the private sector since the Great Recession began in December 2007, but creation of construction and manufacturing jobs continues to lag. These industries are...
View ArticleState Jobs Picture
Updated August 2017 The unemployment rate and the change in the number of jobs are important indicators of state labor market health. The unemployment rate is the share of the state’s labor force that...
View ArticleHow today’s unions help working people: Giving workers the power to improve...
Americans have always joined together—whether in parent teacher associations or local community organizations—to solve problems and make changes that improve their lives and their communities. Through...
View ArticleCity governments are raising standards for working people—and state...
Executive Summary On August 28, 2017, low-wage workers in St. Louis, Missouri, became the latest victims of state preemption laws. “Preemption” in this context refers to a situation in which a state...
View ArticleEPI comment regarding OSHA’s proposal to revoke the beryllium rule
OSHA Docket Office Docket No. OSHA–H005C–2006–0870 Room N-3653 U.S. Department of Labor 200 Constitution Avenue NW Washington, D.C. 20210 Attention: RIN 1218–AB76– Occupational Exposure to Beryllium...
View ArticleAfrican American and Hispanic unemployment continue to fall but remain higher...
In the second quarter of 2017, African Americans had the highest unemployment rate nationally, at 7.4 percent, followed by Latinos (5.1 percent), whites (3.6 percent), and Asians (3.4 percent).1 This...
View ArticleWho are today’s union members?
As Labor Day approaches, we honor the labor leaders and working people throughout history who have fought for labor protections and a voice on the job. In 2017, unions continue to fight for labor...
View ArticleWhat is the ideal mix of federal, state, and local government investment in...
Summary Infrastructure plays a vital role in economic growth, and over the past year we’ve seen the beginnings of bipartisan support, at least rhetorically, for increased investment in the nation’s...
View ArticleMethodology for estimating losses to retirement investors of partial...
The following is the methodology for EPI comments in response to the Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) Notice of proposed amendments to PTE 2016-01, PTE 2016-02, and PTE 84-24. EPI estimates that the...
View ArticleEPI comment on the proposed 18 month delay of key provisions of the fiduciary...
Office of Exemption Determinations Attention: D-11712, 11713, 11850 U.S. Department of Labor 200 Constitution Avenue NW, Suite 400 Washington, D.C. 20210 RE: RIN 1210-AB82 Submitted via:...
View ArticleOne-third of Native American and African American children are (still) in...
Last week the Census Bureau released data on income, poverty, and health insurance, which showed a slight decline in the national poverty rate (from 14.7 percent in 2015 to 14.0 percent in 2016). There...
View ArticleTestimony of David Cooper before the Massachusetts Joint Committee on Labor...
EPI’s David Cooper delivered the following testimony before the Massachusetts Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development in support of S.1004 and H.2365 on September 19, 2017. Chairmen Lewis...
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