Resources
From peer-reviewed research to accessible policy briefs, explore the scholarship that’s shaping debates and driving change.
933 Results
What Work Does Generative AI Do? (opens in a new tab)
Essays SEP 8, 2026
Since August 2024, our Real-Time Population Survey (RPS), a nationally representative survey of U.S. adults ages 18 to 64, has tracked how many Americans use generative artificial intelligence (AI). The adoption…
By: Alexander Bick (opens in a new tab), Adam Blandin (opens in a new tab), David Deming (opens in a new tab), Tyler Schumacher (opens in a new tab)
What happens to U.S. workers without access to Unemployment Insurance amid economic downturns or disruptions related to AI? (opens in a new tab)
Essays SEP 2, 2026
The adoption of artificial intelligence in the workplace has led to predictions of U.S. labor market disruptions. In response, policymakers have increased attention on the fitness of the nation’s social…
By: Megan Rivera (opens in a new tab)
Economic research shows immigration is good for U.S. workers, the economy, and affordability (opens in a new tab)
Essays AUG 31, 2026
When President Donald Trump returned to the White House in 2025, mass deportations and immigration restrictions were renewed as one of the political priorities of his second administration. Since then,…
By: Christopher Bangert-Drowns (opens in a new tab)
What can federal data collection tell policymakers and researchers about artificial intelligence in the U.S. labor market? (opens in a new tab)
Issue Briefs AUG 24, 2026
It is impossible to perfectly predict how artificial intelligence will affect the U.S. labor market. Policymakers and researchers are grappling with important questions around this topic, including what new opportunities…
By: Mary Beech (opens in a new tab)
Terms and conditions for generative AI users outline a new legal framework that puts U.S. consumers at risk (opens in a new tab)
Essays AUG 20, 2026
Generative AI, or genAI, is a form of artificial intelligence that produces content in response to prompts and includes large language model chatbots such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT or Anthropic’s Claude.…
By: Chiara Chanoi (opens in a new tab)
Estimating AI exposure is useful for research but cannot yet tell policymakers the whole story of AI’s impact on the labor market (opens in a new tab)
Essays AUG 7, 2026
Artificial intelligence has the potential to substantially change the nature and availability of work. To effectively manage the transitions this technology might bring to the U.S. economy, policymakers need information…
By: Chiara Chanoi (opens in a new tab)
Tracking new research on artificial intelligence and its impact on the U.S. labor market (opens in a new tab)
Essays AUG 5, 2026
Headlines often paint extreme and dissonant pictures of the future impact of AI on the U.S. economy and labor market, with workers themselves echoing the conflicting feelings of optimism and…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Why Unemployment Insurance Alone Is Not Enough in the AI Era (opens in a new tab)
Essays JUL 8, 2026
Since the large language model ChatGPT was rolled out in November 2022, artificial intelligence has captured the public’s attention and generated myriad debates over the emerging technology’s potential impacts on…
By: Megan Rivera (opens in a new tab)
Personal Income in the United States nudges up in May but is down 0.76 percent in the past 6 months (opens in a new tab)
Essays JUN 25, 2026
According to today’s release of Personal Income estimates from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. household incomes have fallen 0.76 percent in the past 6 months, with month-to-month declines…
By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)
The United States can simultaneously foster an equitable AI boom and a clean energy economy (opens in a new tab)
Videos JUN 12, 2026
The Washington Center for Equitable Growth recently hosted a timely discussion exploring how the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence is colliding with—and reshaping—the clean energy transition. Bringing together researchers and…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
U.S. workers need sectoral bargaining now more than ever (opens in a new tab)
Essays JUN 4, 2026
U.S. union membership and coverage rates have declined for decades, fueled in part by legal barriers to new organizing, including the limiting of collective bargaining to specific workplaces or employers and misclassifying certain groups of workers so they…
By: Christopher Bangert-Drowns (opens in a new tab)
In Conversation with Costa Samaras (opens in a new tab)
In Conversation JUN 2, 2026
Equitable Growth in Conversation is a recurring series where we talk with economists and other academics to help us better understand whether and how economic inequality affects economic growth and…
By: Shayna Strom (opens in a new tab)
Navigating the research on the impacts of AI on work, workers, and the labor market (opens in a new tab)
Research Databases MAY 21, 2026
Artificial intelligence will have a largely unpredictable but potentially profound effect on the labor market. Individuals have speculated how AI will affect the workforce since its earliest developments. But public…
By: Chiara Chanoi (opens in a new tab)
What is the relationship between inflation, interest rates, and economic growth, and what does it mean for the new Federal Reserve chair? (opens in a new tab)
Issue Briefs MAY 18, 2026
Since regaining the Oval Office in early 2025, President Donald Trump has repeatedly called for lower interest rates and severely criticized former Federal Reserve Board Chair Jerome Powell’s cautious approach…
By: Jacob Robbins (opens in a new tab)
Research shows unions dampen support for right-wing populism and help workers navigate technological transitions (opens in a new tab)
Essays MAY 1, 2026
On May 1, much of the world—though not the United States—celebrates International Workers Day to honor the social and economic contributions of workers and labor unions. The May Day holiday began in large part to mark…
By: Christopher Bangert-Drowns (opens in a new tab)
How union contracts are protecting U.S. workers from automated management and surveillance in the workplace (opens in a new tab)
Reports MAR 12, 2026
Employers are increasingly using electronic and automated tools to collect data on their workers on and off the job and then using that data to inform decisions about workers’ pay,…
By: Alexander Hertel-Fernandez (opens in a new tab)
Lessons from past trade adjustment policies to support displaced workers in the era of artificial intelligence (opens in a new tab)
Reports MAR 11, 2026
More than 60 years ago, U.S. policymakers, economists, and labor leaders alike agreed that the potential for new economic forces to strengthen U.S. prosperity and security was just over the…
By: Jacob Leibenluft (opens in a new tab)
Factsheet: Using asset limits in public benefit programs (opens in a new tab)
Factsheets MAR 10, 2026
A household’s assets, or its overall wealth, are the resources required to ensure its family members can weather the financial disruption when unexpected expenses emerge. Yet many U.S. households do…
By: Megan Rivera (opens in a new tab)
ASSA 2026 Round-up: Day 3 (opens in a new tab)
Blog JAN 6, 2026
Yesterday was the third and final day of the 2026 annual meeting of the Allied Social Science Associations, which is organized by the American Economic Association. The 3-day conference, held…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
ASSA 2026 Round-up: Day 2 (opens in a new tab)
Blog JAN 5, 2026
Yesterday was the second day of the 2026 annual meeting of the Allied Social Science Associations, which is organized by the American Economic Association. The 3-day conference, held in Philadelphia…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
ASSA 2026 Round-up: Day 1 (opens in a new tab)
Blog JAN 4, 2026
Yesterday was the first day of the 2026 annual meeting of the Allied Social Science Associations, which is organized by the American Economic Association. The 3-day conference, held in Philadelphia…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Expanding eligibility for Unemployment Insurance helps low-income U.S. workers find better jobs (opens in a new tab)
Essays DEC 9, 2025
Unemployment Insurance serves as a critical income support program for U.S. workers who lose their jobs through no fault of their own. It is also a valuable tool to stabilize…
By: Casey McQuillan (opens in a new tab), Brendan Moore (opens in a new tab)
U.S. social insurance programs support workers and economic growth (opens in a new tab)
Essays DEC 2, 2025
Since coming to power in early 2025, Republican majorities in Congress have shifted resources away from the nation’s social insurance programs, most notably to offset the cost of H.R. 1,…
By: Megan Rivera (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth hosts Econ 101 virtual event on how U.S. social insurance programs boost economic mobility (opens in a new tab)
Essays DEC 1, 2025
Microsoft Copilot helped draft this event recap. The Washington Center for Equitable Growth recently hosted its latest Econ 101 briefing aimed at providing in-depth evidence for policymakers on how U.S.…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
What impact is artificial intelligence having on the U.S. labor market and the nation’s economy? (opens in a new tab)
Essays NOV 14, 2025
As new and groundbreaking technologies emerge, they can function as a blank canvas onto which people project both aspirations and anxieties. Artificial intelligence—despite its quick uptake in broader society and…
By: Megan Rivera (opens in a new tab)
Workplace exposure to artificial intelligence is higher among U.S. workers with higher wages, depending on how AI is used (opens in a new tab)
Essays OCT 23, 2025
Recent advances using artificial intelligence in workplaces, particularly large language models such as Claude.ai and ChatGPT, are increasingly disrupting the U.S. labor market. The cognitive power of AI has the…
By: Chiara Chanoi (opens in a new tab), Christopher Bangert-Drowns (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth supports scholars studying the economics of the energy transition (opens in a new tab)
Essays OCT 22, 2025
The Washington Center for Equitable Growth today announced a new cohort of grantees. These nine scholars will study how the design and implementation of federal policy influences how businesses and…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Payment for schedule changes under Fair Workweek laws in three U.S. cities (opens in a new tab)
Essays OCT 16, 2025
Fair Workweek laws set new standards for scheduling U.S. workers in jobs and industries characterized by fluctuating and unpredictable work hours, such as jobs in retail and food service. A…
By: Susan Lambert (opens in a new tab), Julia Henly (opens in a new tab)
U.S. workers’ and managers’ experiences with Fair Workweek laws can inform enforcement and education (opens in a new tab)
Essays OCT 2, 2025
Fair Workweek laws are intended to set new standards for scheduling workers in jobs and industries characterized by fluctuating and unpredictable work hours, such as jobs in retail and food…
By: Susan Lambert (opens in a new tab), Julia Henly (opens in a new tab)
How Are Workers Experiencing Fair Workweek Laws? Evidence for policymakers and advocates (opens in a new tab)
Essays OCT 2, 2025
This factsheet, “How Are Workers Experiencing Fair Workweek Laws? Evidence for policymakers and advocates,” originally appeared on WorkRise at https://www.workrisenetwork.org/sites/default/files/2025-08/howareworkersexperiencingfairworkweeklaws.pdf. New laws that regulate employer scheduling practic…
By: Susan Lambert (opens in a new tab), Julia Henly (opens in a new tab)
Federal data is under attack, but data users can work together to preserve and democratize it (opens in a new tab)
Essays OCT 1, 2025
Staffing shortages, political interference, and a federal government shutdown are all disrupting the routine operations of the nonpartisan federal statistical agencies that reliably gather facts and publish data about the…
By: Peter Norlander (opens in a new tab)
Emergency paid leave during the COVID-19 pandemic offered essential protections for U.S. workers (opens in a new tab)
Essays SEP 23, 2025
When the COVID-19 pandemic swept across the United States in early 2020, it didn’t just bring about a public health emergency. It also exposed a longstanding weakness in the U.S.…
By: Tanya Byker (opens in a new tab), Elena Patel (opens in a new tab), Kristin Smith (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth announces funding for research on the impact of AI on U.S. workers and competition (opens in a new tab)
Essays SEP 18, 2025
The Washington Center for Equitable Growth today announced a new cohort of grantees studying how artificial intelligence and new technology can support workers and promote competition across the U.S. economy.…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Even health care, the strongest sector of the U.S. jobs market, cannot deliver the wages its workers deserve without unionization (opens in a new tab)
Essays SEP 10, 2025
The growth of jobs in the U.S. health care industry is the linchpin to a strong U.S. labor market in 2025 and beyond. Health care is one of only a…
By: Adam Dean (opens in a new tab), Jamie McCallum (opens in a new tab)
How artificial intelligence uncouples hard work from fair wages through ‘surveillance pay’ practices—and how to fix it (opens in a new tab)
Issue Briefs AUG 21, 2025
Correction: Freddie Mac and Udemy contacted the Washington Center for Equitable Growth on March 18, 2026 and April 2, 2026, respectively, to say they no longer had business relationships with…
By: Veena Dubal (opens in a new tab), Wilneida Negrón (opens in a new tab)
Adoption of generative AI will have different effects across jobs in the U.S. logistics workforce (opens in a new tab)
Essays JUL 10, 2025
Generative artificial intelligence promises to profoundly reshape labor markets, much like previous automation waves did, but with clear differences. Unlike earlier technologies, such as computerization, which primarily automated routine administrative…
By: Christophe Combemale (opens in a new tab), Dustin Ferrone (opens in a new tab), Andrew Barber (opens in a new tab), Laurence Ales (opens in a new tab)
Slow wage growth is the key to understanding U.S. inequality in the 21st century (opens in a new tab)
Issue Briefs JUL 8, 2025
The Washington Center for Equitable Growth today launched the U.S. Inequality Tracker, which tracks income and wealth inequality in the United States and highlights how particular components of income and…
By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)
The hidden trade-offs of nonwage job amenities for U.S. workers (opens in a new tab)
Essays JUN 10, 2025
When workers choose jobs with predictable schedules, safer conditions, or greater autonomy, they are often paying a price: lower wages. In some cases, these hidden trade-offs are considerable. Indeed, my…
By: Alex Bell (opens in a new tab)
The political implications of bad jobs and the decline of unions (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 13, 2025
Bad jobs have become a distinctive feature of the U.S. economy over the past few decades. Globally, a lack of adequate demand, or what economists call “secular stagnation,” has meant…
By: Adam Dean (opens in a new tab), Jamie McCallum (opens in a new tab)
Tariffs pose real risks to the U.S. labor market (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 12, 2025
Uncertainty around trade policy makes it difficult to discuss the current state of the U.S. labor market. Businesses, workers, and policymakers at all levels make decisions based on both what…
By: Kevin Rinz (opens in a new tab)
Why do some jobs pay better than others? Think about what workers do. (opens in a new tab)
Issue Briefs MAY 6, 2025
Most U.S. labor market data characterize jobs by describing the categories of industry and occupation to which the jobs belong. But to understand why some types of jobs tend to…
By: Kevin Rinz (opens in a new tab), Chiara Chanoi (opens in a new tab), Christopher Bangert-Drowns (opens in a new tab)
Analogies for AI policymaking (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 27, 2025
As a suite of technologies under the label of artificial intelligence increasingly take center stage, policymakers recognize the need to develop deep technical expertise about the deployment of evolving technologies…
By: Sorelle Friedler (opens in a new tab), Marc Aidinoff (opens in a new tab)
What makes a job ‘good’? How U.S. labor market data can provide insight to improve workers’ economic conditions (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 26, 2025
Since the Great Recession of 2007–2009, a great deal of U.S. economic policymaking has been dedicated to creating jobs. The tools used to do so vary widely, from awarding grants…
By: Kevin Rinz (opens in a new tab), Chiara Chanoi (opens in a new tab)
Do not abandon the care agenda (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 19, 2025
This column, co-authored by Equitable Growth President and CEO Shayna Strom and former Deputy Director of the White House Gender Policy Council Shilpa Phadke, first appeared in Democracy Journal in…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Tackling AI, taxation, and the fair distribution of AI’s benefits (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 5, 2025
Artificial intelligence poses significant challenges to income growth, inequality, and meaningful work. At the same time, AI has geopolitical significance, with many national and supranational governments shying away from intervening…
By: Mona Sloane (opens in a new tab), Ekkehard Ernst (opens in a new tab)
Boosting U.S. worker power and voice in the AI-enabled workplace (opens in a new tab)
Blog FEB 19, 2025
The deployment of Artificial Intelligence in the workplace has grown rapidly in the United States. Labor unions have been at the forefront of efforts to encourage more productive and sustainable…
By: Virginia Doellgast (opens in a new tab), Nell Geiser (opens in a new tab)
As the U.S. labor market stabilizes, is nominal wage growth now too hot? (opens in a new tab)
Blog FEB 13, 2025
After the tumultuous swings of the early COVID-19 pandemic period and years of normalization since then, economic data from the past several months suggest that the U.S. labor market may…
By: Kevin Rinz (opens in a new tab)
Understanding market concentration in the AI supply chain (opens in a new tab)
Blog JAN 28, 2025
Artificial intelligence is more than just the applications we use, such as chatbots and predictive algorithms. Beneath the surface of AI lies a technology stack that is increasingly concentrated at…
By: Tejas Narechania (opens in a new tab)
ASSA 2025 Round-up: Day 3 (opens in a new tab)
Blog JAN 6, 2025
Yesterday was the third and final day of the 2025 annual meeting of the Allied Social Science Associations, which is organized by the American Economic Association. The 3-day conference, held…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
ASSA 2025 Round-up: Day 1 (opens in a new tab)
Blog JAN 4, 2025
Yesterday was the first day of the 2025 annual meeting of the Allied Social Science Associations, which is organized by the American Economic Association. The 3-day conference, held in San…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Accelerating research can help fill the AI knowledge gaps for U.S. policymakers (opens in a new tab)
Issue Briefs DEC 17, 2024
It is hard for policymakers to ignore today’s “AI arms race” and the public debate on the economic and social significance of generative artificial intelligence. The discourse is fueled in…
By: Rohini Kosoglu (opens in a new tab), Christian Edlagan (opens in a new tab)
Recent research shows how paid leave impacts women’s employment and financial security in the United States (opens in a new tab)
Blog DEC 13, 2024
During the first several months of the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government ensured that all U.S. workers had access to at least 2 weeks of paid sick leave and up…
By: Shira Markoff (opens in a new tab)
New research highlights the impact of COVID-era unconditional cash benefits for U.S. workers and families (opens in a new tab)
Blog DEC 10, 2024
The breadth of the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic ushered in sweeping, albeit temporary, changes to income support programs and tax policies in the United States. These changes include…
By: Shira Markoff (opens in a new tab)
The U.S. labor market keeps beating projections (opens in a new tab)
Blog NOV 5, 2024
No single economic indicator fully describes the state of the U.S. labor market. Yet a range of commonly used measures, from the unemployment rate and the prime-age employment-population ratio to…
By: Kevin Rinz (opens in a new tab)
Changing earnings requirements for Unemployment Insurance could improve access and better support U.S. workers (opens in a new tab)
Blog OCT 24, 2024
Temporary changes to the Unemployment Insurance program played an enormous role in the U.S. policy response to the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting sharp-but-short recession in 2020. Typically, Unemployment Insurance replaces…
By: Kevin Rinz (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth renews collective bargaining agreement with Nonprofit Professional Employees Union (opens in a new tab)
Blog OCT 7, 2024
The Washington Center for Equitable Growth has renewed its 3-year collective bargaining agreement with the Nonprofit Professional Employees Union IFPTE Local 70. The agreement, which was signed on August 23,…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Estimating the prevalence of automated management and surveillance technologies at work and their impact on workers’ well-being (opens in a new tab)
Reports OCT 1, 2024
Evidence from a new national survey and implications for U.S. federal policy U.S. employers are deploying artificial-intelligence-powered and automated tools to monitor and manage workers, including tracking workers’ locations, activities,…
By: Alexander Hertel-Fernandez (opens in a new tab)
The upcoming U.S. election’s most important policy effects are under the radar (opens in a new tab)
Blog SEP 3, 2024
Although the old maxim that Labor Day marks the true beginning of U.S. presidential campaigns may no longer hold, the end of summer and beginning of fall remain a period…
By: Kevin Rinz (opens in a new tab)
Will labor’s surging popularity result in new union members in the United States? (opens in a new tab)
Blog AUG 29, 2024
Mass strikes across U.S. industries, successful organizing drives in multiple sectors of the economy, and a U.S. president who declares himself proud to be labeled “the most pro-union president in…
By: Jake Rosenfeld (opens in a new tab)
New labor market data suggest that U.S. wage growth may be cooling too much (opens in a new tab)
Blog AUG 6, 2024
After increasing rapidly over the course of 2021, nominal wage growth (before accounting for inflation) in the United States has been trending down consistently across measures since early- to mid-2022.…
By: Kevin Rinz (opens in a new tab)
New federal heat standard will protect U.S. workers from the ill effects of high temperatures amid intensifying climate change (opens in a new tab)
Blog AUG 1, 2024
U.S. workers are more vulnerable than ever to the ill effects of high and rising temperatures as the world continues to shatter heat records this year. Climate-related deaths and injuries…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
New federal heat standard offers novel distributional analysis to determine which workers benefit and how (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUL 16, 2024
The U.S. Department of Labor recently released a much-anticipated proposed rule that promises to protect workers from on-the-job injuries and deaths that result from toiling in the heat. The timing…
By: David S. Mitchell (opens in a new tab)
The new Labor Department overtime rule is a win for workers—and good policy, too (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUL 8, 2024
On July 1, the first step of the U.S. Department of Labor’s new overtime rule went into effect, meaning about 1 million salaried, white-collar workers currently exempt from overtime began…
By: Janelle Jones (opens in a new tab), Rajesh Nayak (opens in a new tab)
A researcher’s guide to identifying policy-relevant research questions for the federal government (opens in a new tab)
Essays MAY 30, 2024
Social science researchers play an important role in the policymaking process. Researchers help policymakers at all levels of government to understand key trends and issues in the U.S. economy and…
By: Alexander Hertel-Fernandez (opens in a new tab)
What is going on with wage growth in the United States? (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 16, 2024
Fast wage growth is a key feature of a strong labor market. U.S. workers, and low-wage workers in particular, experienced exceptional wage growth over the past couple of years, which…
By: Kevin Rinz (opens in a new tab)
U.S. workers, generative AI, and the future of work (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 9, 2024
The launch of ChatGPT in November 2022 captured the world’s attention and illustrated the potential of generative Artificial Intelligence to instantly perform tasks long considered quintessentially “human.” Already, the technology…
By: Molly Kinder (opens in a new tab)
New workplace surveillance bill would protect U.S. workers and address new technological risks (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 2, 2024
Across the U.S. economy, the risks posed by unchecked automated surveillance and management technologies are widespread—and growing. These technologies can sometimes be beneficial for workers, customers, and businesses alike. For…
By: Alexander Hertel-Fernandez (opens in a new tab)
An Unemployment Insurance modernization bill now before the U.S. Senate is a much-needed step in the right direction (opens in a new tab)
Blog APR 9, 2024
The nearly 90-year-old federal-state Unemployment Insurance program provides much-needed relief to unemployed workers who lose their jobs through no fault of their own and helps to stabilize the U.S. economy…
By: Alexander Hertel-Fernandez (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth hosts State of the Union press briefing with leading U.S. economists (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 7, 2024
The Washington Center for Equitable Growth last week hosted an online press briefing in prelude to tonight’s State of the Union address to the U.S. Congress by President Joe Biden.…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
The state of the U.S. labor market 4 years after the start of the COVID-19 recession (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 5, 2024
Over the past 4 years, the U.S. economy—in particular the U.S. labor market—weathered some incredible shocks and fluctuations. From the COVID-19 pandemic and supply chain breakdowns to global energy shocks…
By: Michael Linden (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s recent ‘Econ 101’ assessed the state of the U.S. economy and recovery for Capitol Hill staff (opens in a new tab)
Blog FEB 13, 2024
The Washington Center for Equitable Growth hosted a briefing last week—part of a series we call “Econ 101”—presenting insight on the state of the U.S. economy and how the current…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Sameera Fazili and Mary Beth Maxwell join Equitable Growth’s Board of Directors (opens in a new tab)
Blog NOV 15, 2023
The Washington Center for Equitable Growth today announced the addition of two new members to its board of directors: Sameera Fazili, former deputy assistant to the president and deputy director…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
New evidence suggests that receiving benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program facilitates work in the long run (opens in a new tab)
Blog NOV 13, 2023
One of today’s most heated debates around U.S. income support programs is about work requirements. From the removal of work requirements through the 2021 enhancements to the Child Tax Credit…
By: Alix Gould-Werth (opens in a new tab)
What the minimum wage can tell us about the future of the U.S. child care system (opens in a new tab)
Blog NOV 1, 2023
The U.S. child care market is plagued by a math problem. Families in the United States are stretched thin, dedicating substantial portions of their household budgets to child care expenses.…
By: Sam Abbott (opens in a new tab)
What recent research says about the benefits of labor strikes and growing worker power for broader U.S. economic growth (opens in a new tab)
Blog OCT 25, 2023
Labor organizing and strikes are experiencing a resurgence in the United States. Before this year’s bevy of labor actions—including Hollywood strikes, autoworker walk-outs, healthcare labor stoppages, and more—2022 and 2021…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
New research finds $15 minimum wages raise pay and increase employment for low-wage workers (opens in a new tab)
Blog OCT 16, 2023
Increasing the minimum wage has repeatedly been shown to raise the pay of low-wage workers and improve the overall economy. While the federal minimum wage remains at its 2009 level…
By: Michael Reich (opens in a new tab), Justin Wiltshire (opens in a new tab), Carl McPherson (opens in a new tab)
Strong unions push firms to reduce riskier debt, lowering risks of unemployment for U.S. workers (opens in a new tab)
Blog SEP 27, 2023
Unionization efforts and labor organizing are increasingly ubiquitous in the United States. Indeed, July 2023 was one of the busiest months for strikes in 30 years, following two years of…
By: Carlos Fernando Avenancio-Leon (opens in a new tab), Alessio Piccolo (opens in a new tab), Roberto Pinto (opens in a new tab)
New research shows that differences in state Unemployment Insurance rules cause inequity and inefficiency (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUL 19, 2023
The Unemployment Insurance system in the United States aims to provide temporary and partial wage replacement for workers who become unemployed through no fault of their own. In helping unemployed…
By: Daphné Skandalis (opens in a new tab), Ioana Marinescu (opens in a new tab), Maxim Massenkoff (opens in a new tab)
Algorithmic wage discrimination requires policy solutions that enforce predictability and the U.S. spirit of equal pay for equal work (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUL 12, 2023
U.S. consumers generally believe that gig workers who labor for companies such as Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. are free to set their own hours and thus able to…
By: Veena Dubal (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: June 2023 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUL 7, 2023
On July 7th, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of June. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: May 2023 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUL 6, 2023
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab), Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)
Ahead of the June Jobs Day report, here is what the past three months of employment data say about the health of the U.S. labor market (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUL 6, 2023
The U.S. economy is now flush with many more jobs than prior to the onset of the COVID-19 recession in early 2020, and employment growth in the country continues to…
By: Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Industrial policies will be more effective at supporting good jobs and a stronger U.S. economy where there is institutional support for worker power (opens in a new tab)
Reports JUL 6, 2023
Fast facts Interest in industrial policies as tools to address the climate crisis, reach national security goals, and boost domestic economic growth and innovation is surging, with more and more…
By: Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Paid sick leave means dads can spend more time caring for loved ones and less time worrying about missing work (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUN 15, 2023
The economic story of the United States in the post-WWII era is arguably the dramatic surge in women’s labor force participation. The increases in hours worked and income generated by…
By: Sam Abbott (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: May 2023 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUN 2, 2023
On June 2nd, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of May. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
New IRS report examines free tax filing option to reduce the cost and complexity for U.S. taxpayers (opens in a new tab)
Issue Briefs JUN 1, 2023
Filing a tax return with the Internal Revenue Service is one of the most common interactions Americans have with the federal government. Unfortunately, this process is often time-consuming and complex.…
By: Andre Gobbo (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: April 2023 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 31, 2023
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab), Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth grantee Gabriel Zucman awarded the 2023 John Bates Clark Medal (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 9, 2023
Earlier this month, associate professor of public policy and economics Gabriel Zucman at the University of California, Berkeley—and a Washington Center for Equitable Growth 2018 grantee—won the 2023 John Bates…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
In Conversation with Daron Acemoglu (opens in a new tab)
In Conversation MAY 8, 2023
Equitable Growth in Conversation is a recurring series where we talk with economists and other academics to help us better understand whether and how economic inequality affects economic growth and…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: April 2023 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 5, 2023
On May 5, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of April. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Raksha Kopparam (opens in a new tab), Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: March 2023 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 2, 2023
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Raksha Kopparam (opens in a new tab), Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth delivers comment letter responding to the Federal Trade Commission’s Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Non-Compete Clauses (opens in a new tab)
Blog APR 20, 2023
The Washington Center for Equitable Growth this week delivered a comment letter responding to the Federal Trade Commission’s Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Non-Compete Clauses. In our comment letter,…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Seven ways the inflation debate in the United States has changed since last year and how the Fed can now recalibrate its monetary policy (opens in a new tab)
Blog APR 12, 2023
Inflation in the United States today is considerably cooler than at its peak in the first half of 2022, but it will remain at the center of the economic policy…
By: Michael Madowitz (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: March 2023 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog APR 7, 2023
On April 7, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of March. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: February 2023 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog APR 4, 2023
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Executive actions to strengthen unions and increase worker power in the United States (opens in a new tab)
Blog APR 3, 2023
Relevant federal agencies: U.S. Department of Labor White House Relevant federal laws: The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. § 203) National Labor Relations Act of 1935 (Public…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Executive actions to reduce inequality and improve job quality for U.S. workers (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 16, 2023
Relevant federal agencies: Federal Trade Commission Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Office of Personnel Management Relevant laws: Federal Trade Commission’s Trade Regulation Rule on Commercial Surveillance and Data Security, Commercial Surveillance…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: February 2023 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 10, 2023
On March 10, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of February. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
The importance of the American Rescue Plan for U.S. workers and families on the law’s second anniversary, in 8 charts (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 10, 2023
Tomorrow marks 2 years since the American Rescue Plan Act was signed into law. One year after the COVID-19 pandemic that began in early 2020 triggered enormous employment losses and…
By: Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab), Raksha Kopparam (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: January 2023 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 8, 2023
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Ahead of new U.S. jobs data releases, here’s what employment growth and job switching mean for wage disparities in the U.S. labor market (opens in a new tab)
Issue Briefs MAR 7, 2023
Later this week, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics will release data on February 2023 job growth through its Employment Situation Summary. It will also release information on job openings,…
By: Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth delivers letter responding to the NTIA’s Privacy, Equity, and Civil Rights Request for Comment (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 6, 2023
The Washington Center for Equitable Growth this week delivered a comment letter responding to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s Privacy, Equity, and Civil Rights Request for Comment. Our comment…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab)
Access to paid family leave improves U.S. women’s labor market outcomes following a spouse’s health shock (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 6, 2023
Women now make up almost half of the U.S. labor force, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, and families are increasingly reliant on women’s earnings. Despite their growing labor…
By: Courtney C. Coile (opens in a new tab), Maya Rossin-Slater (opens in a new tab), Amanda Su (opens in a new tab)
Fair competition in the U.S. labor market is threatened by more than the noncompete clauses targeted by new Federal Trade Commission rule (opens in a new tab)
Blog FEB 23, 2023
When a worker gets a new job, it is normally a cause for celebration and not litigation. Yet noncompetition clauses in employment agreements, and a veil of other threats buried…
By: Peter Norlander (opens in a new tab)
Executive actions to strengthen U.S. income support programs and support research about them (opens in a new tab)
Blog FEB 22, 2023
Relevant federal agencies: U.S. Department of Labor U.S. Department of Agriculture Relevant federal laws: The Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (P.L. 115-334) Social Security Act of 1935 (P.L. 74-271) Advisory…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: January 2023 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog FEB 3, 2023
On February 3, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of January. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: December 2022 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog FEB 1, 2023
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
What is social infrastructure, and how does it support economic growth in the United States? (opens in a new tab)
Videos JAN 26, 2023
The word “infrastructure” brings to mind the big physical systems that underpin the U.S. economy, such as highways, bridges, tunnels, and water and sewage systems. Indeed, infrastructure is composed of…
By: Alix Gould-Werth (opens in a new tab), Sam Abbott (opens in a new tab), Emilie Openchowski (opens in a new tab)
Automated and algorithmic management is already here, invisibly shaping job quality for U.S. workers (opens in a new tab)
Blog JAN 24, 2023
Predictions about which jobs may be “lost” in the United States as employers implement new automation and algorithmic technologies often consider management tasks and roles as the least vulnerable to…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: December 2022 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog JAN 6, 2023
On January 6 the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of December. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Austin Clemens (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: November 2022 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog JAN 4, 2023
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
The importance of understanding how job quality affects U.S. workers and the entire economy, and how to boost access to good jobs (opens in a new tab)
Blog DEC 22, 2022
Even during economic expansions and periods of robust employment growth, millions of workers in the United States face economic insecurity and precarious working conditions. Low pay, safety hazards, lack of…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
A missed opportunity to expand the Child Tax Credit will affect U.S. families and the broader economy now and for years to come (opens in a new tab)
Blog DEC 21, 2022
Earlier this week, the U.S. Congress released its proposed omnibus bill that funds the federal government through September 2023 and makes various other reforms to the nation’s retirement system, antitrust…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
How the new Global Repository of Income Dynamics database sheds light on income inequality and economic mobility (opens in a new tab)
Blog DEC 15, 2022
Economists have long known that a rigorous understanding of inequality is only possible with high-quality data. To this end, developments in economic models since the 1970s have helped advance our…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Why workplace dignity is valuable to U.S. workers, employers, and the broader economy (opens in a new tab)
Blog DEC 14, 2022
The role of employment in the lives of many U.S. workers and their families is more than just a way to provide for oneself and one’s loved ones. Jobs are…
By: Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab)
Unions in the United States improve worker safety and lower health inequality (opens in a new tab)
Reports DEC 13, 2022
Ros Reggans was overjoyed when she learned that her employer, a Chicago-area nursing home chain, had received more than $12 million in COVID-19 relief funds through the 2020 Coronavirus Aid,…
By: Adam Dean (opens in a new tab), Jamie McCallum (opens in a new tab), Atheendar Venkataramani (opens in a new tab)
Early evidence on federal government income supports for U.S. individuals, workers, and families during the COVID-19 pandemic (opens in a new tab)
Reports DEC 13, 2022
This report focuses on preliminary research surrounding the three largest income support programs totaling $1.6 trillion that were paid directly to U.S. individuals, workers, and families amid the first two…
By: Alex Bell (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth delivers comment letter responding to U.S. Department of Labor’s Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on classifying employees and independent contractors (opens in a new tab)
Blog DEC 13, 2022
The Washington Center for Equitable Growth this week delivered a comment letter responding to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division’s proposed rulemaking on how to determine who…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth delivers comment letter responding to the National Labor Relations Board’s Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Joint-Employer Standard (opens in a new tab)
Blog DEC 7, 2022
The Washington Center for Equitable Growth this week delivered a comment letter responding to the National Labor Relations Board Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Joint-Employer Standard. The comment letter…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: November 2022 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog DEC 2, 2022
On December 2 the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of November. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Frequently asked questions about paid sick time for U.S. workers and their families and the broader U.S. economy (opens in a new tab)
Blog NOV 30, 2022
Sometimes people in the United States experience health conditions that affect their ability to work, whether it’s a cold, flu, or cancer. This may lead to questions about whether they…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Railway negotiations highlight the importance of paid sick time for U.S. workers and the broader economy (opens in a new tab)
Blog NOV 30, 2022
The U.S. Congress this week is considering legislation imposing a new contract on U.S. railroad workers to avert a potential strike following a breakdown in negotiations between several of the…
By: Alix Gould-Werth (opens in a new tab), Sam Abbott (opens in a new tab)
Ahead of the November jobs report, here’s what recent disaggregated data say about the state of the U.S. labor market and economic growth (opens in a new tab)
Blog NOV 30, 2022
Ahead of the release of November’s Employment Situation Summary on December 2, an examination of the past few months of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics employment data shows some signs…
By: Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab), Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab), Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: October 2022 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog NOV 30, 2022
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth delivers comment letter responding to FTC’s Advanced Notice of Proposing Rulemaking on Commercial Surveillance and Data Security (opens in a new tab)
Blog NOV 21, 2022
The Washington Center for Equitable Growth this week delivered a comment letter responding to the Federal Trade Commission’s Advanced Notice of Proposing Rulemaking on Commercial Surveillance and Data Security. The…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
In Conversation with Lenore Palladino (opens in a new tab)
In Conversation NOV 16, 2022
Equitable Growth in Conversation is a recurring series where we talk with economists and other academics to help us better understand whether and how economic inequality affects economic growth and…
By: Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab)
Enacting a minimum wage for tipped workers is on the ballot in two U.S. cities. Here’s what the research says (opens in a new tab)
Blog NOV 4, 2022
In most cities and states across the United States, servers and other so-called front-of-house staff in the restaurant industry earn a subminimum wage for tipped workers. Whether and how this…
By: Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: October 2022 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog NOV 4, 2022
On November 4, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of October. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab), Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: September 2022 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog NOV 1, 2022
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
What federal statistical agencies can do to improve survey response rates among Hispanic communities in the United States (opens in a new tab)
Blog OCT 14, 2022
Between 2010 and 2020, the Hispanic American population grew 23 percent, making it one of the fastest-growing communities in the United States. According to the 2020 decennial census, Hispanic Americans…
By: Raksha Kopparam (opens in a new tab)
Latino workers are often segregated into bad jobs, but a strong U.S. labor movement can boost job quality and U.S. economic growth (opens in a new tab)
Issue Briefs OCT 13, 2022
Latino workers represent a large and growing share of the U.S. workforce. But even with the highest employment rates in the United States, Latinos face a number of barriers to…
By: Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: September 2022 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog OCT 7, 2022
On October 7, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of September. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: August 2022 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog OCT 4, 2022
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Better data collection can help lift the LGBTQ+ community out of economic hardship in the United States (opens in a new tab)
Videos SEP 15, 2022
Over the past 2-plus years amid the COVID-19 pandemic, widespread evidence has underscored the reality that various communities and demographic groups in the United States experience socioeconomic hardships differently. Numerous…
By: Raksha Kopparam (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth names Shayna Strom as interim president and CEO (opens in a new tab)
Blog SEP 8, 2022
The Washington Center for Equitable Growth today announced that Shayna Strom has been named its interim president and CEO. Strom comes to the organization with decades of experience bridging nonprofits,…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Measuring spending inequality in the United States in real time (opens in a new tab)
Blog SEP 8, 2022
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting recession in 2020, followed by a swift U.S. economic recovery, offer lessons today about why real-time data are so crucial to…
By: Loujaina Abdelwahed (opens in a new tab), Jacob Robbins (opens in a new tab), Cole Campbell (opens in a new tab), Shogher Ohannessian (opens in a new tab), Todd Czurylo (opens in a new tab)
How corporate governance strategies hurt worker power in the United States (opens in a new tab)
Issue Briefs SEP 6, 2022
Researchers studying the decades-long rise in earnings inequality and wage stagnation in the United States point to a number of reasons why the country’s income divide grew over the past…
By: Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: August 2022 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog SEP 2, 2022
On September 2, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of August. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Raksha Kopparam (opens in a new tab)
Ahead of September’s jobs report, here is what the past 3 months of labor market data reveal about the health of the U.S. labor market (opens in a new tab)
Blog AUG 31, 2022
Over the past few months, the U.S. labor market continued its strong recovery from the initial shock delivered by the COVID-19 crisis, reaching pre-pandemic levels of nonfarm payrolls in July.…
By: Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab), Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: July 2022 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog AUG 30, 2022
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Why the Inflation Reduction Act is key to strong, broad-based U.S. economic growth (opens in a new tab)
Blog AUG 16, 2022
The Inflation Reduction Act spells good news for the U.S. economy. The newly signed legislation makes historic investments to combat climate change, lower healthcare costs, and crack down on tax…
By: David S. Mitchell (opens in a new tab)
How to stop a recession by strengthening income supports in the United States (opens in a new tab)
Blog AUG 15, 2022
Income support programs, such as Unemployment Insurance and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, are powerful tools to deploy when the threat of recession looms and unemployment climbs. By providing income…
By: Alix Gould-Werth (opens in a new tab)
American Sociological Association 2022 conference highlights inequities among vulnerable U.S. populations (opens in a new tab)
Blog AUG 12, 2022
The American Sociological Association held its 117th Annual Meeting from August 5–9, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. This event gathers sociologists and those involved in the scientific study of society…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
The economic evidence behind the Inflation Reduction Act and why it will boost strong, broad-based economic growth (opens in a new tab)
Blog AUG 5, 2022
The Inflation Reduction Act spells good news for the U.S. economy. The proposed legislation now before the U.S. Senate would make historic investments to combat climate change, lower healthcare costs,…
By: David S. Mitchell (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: July 2022 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog AUG 5, 2022
On August 5, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of July. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
The inequitable consequences of ‘heat islands’ within the metropolitan areas of the United States and what to do about it (opens in a new tab)
Blog AUG 3, 2022
Environmental science finds that so-called heat islands occur when urbanized areas experience much higher temperatures than neighboring outlying areas within major metropolitan areas. In and around U.S. cities, more affluent…
By: Michael Garvey (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: June 2022 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog AUG 2, 2022
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
NBER Summer Institute 2022 Round-up: Week 3 (opens in a new tab)
Blog AUG 1, 2022
On July 11, the National Bureau of Economic Research kicked off its summer institute, an annual 3-week conference featuring discussions and paper presentations on various topics in economics, including environmental…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
A primer on monopsony power: Its causes, consequences, and implications for U.S. workers and economic growth (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUL 27, 2022
At its most basic, monopsony refers to a market where there is a single buyer of a good or service. Economist Joan Robinson first introduced the term in the early…
By: Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
NBER Summer Institute 2022 Round-up: Week 2 (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUL 26, 2022
On July 11, the National Bureau of Economic Research kicked off its summer institute, an annual 3-week conference featuring discussions and paper presentations on various topics in economics, including disaggregating…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
New working paper examines the evolution of economic thought on the impact of technological change in the labor market (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUL 19, 2022
How have automation and digital technologies contributed to wage inequality in recent decades? It may seem like a straightforward question, but it is one that has been difficult for economists…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab)
NBER Summer Institute 2022 Round-up: Week 1 (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUL 18, 2022
On July 11, the National Bureau of Economic Research kicked off its summer institute, an annual 3-week conference featuring discussions and paper presentations on various topics in economics, including monopsony…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
COVID-19 recession and ensuing economic recovery reveals why Unemployment Insurance fails to reach marginalized U.S. workers (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUL 13, 2022
Policymakers at the state and federal levels of government in the United States who are steeped in the nation’s Unemployment Insurance system are well aware that many unemployed workers fail…
By: Eliza Forsythe (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: June 2022 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUL 8, 2022
On July 8, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of June. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: May 2022 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUL 6, 2022
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Reduced job turnover in small U.S. firms is an overlooked benefit of paid sick leave (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUL 5, 2022
For those U.S. workers fortunate enough to have access to it, paid sick leave is a vital tool for protecting both the public’s health and their own economic stability when…
By: Hilary Wething (opens in a new tab)
Factsheet: What the research says about the economic impacts of reproductive care (opens in a new tab)
Factsheets JUN 27, 2022
Before the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on June 24 in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, more than five decades of liberating access to contraception and abortion care had demonstrable…
By: Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab), Emilie Openchowski (opens in a new tab)
In Conversation with Lee Badgett (opens in a new tab)
In Conversation JUN 23, 2022
Equitable Growth in Conversation is a recurring series where we talk with economists and other academics to help us better understand whether and how economic inequality affects economic growth and…
By: Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab)
May jobs report: Young workers are entering a uniquely evolving U.S. labor market (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUN 3, 2022
The recovery in the U.S. labor market continued in May, with 390,000 jobs added and the unemployment rate holding steady at nearly its pre-pandemic level at 3.6 percent, according to…
By: Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab), Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: May 2022 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUN 3, 2022
On June 3, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of May. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Raksha Kopparam (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: April 2022 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog JUN 1, 2022
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Raksha Kopparam (opens in a new tab)
Is there a skilled labor shortage? The economic evidence on skills gap and labor shortage concerns (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 31, 2022
Claims of a “skills gap” or “labor shortage” in the United States are often cited during times of high unemployment as the reason why workers are unable to find jobs…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab)
Developing a research agenda on racial and gender equity in the pandemic-era U.S. labor market (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 24, 2022
This summation of a joint roundtable discussion was written in partnership with The Century Foundation. Now, more than 2 years after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United…
By: Sam Abbott (opens in a new tab), Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab), Julie Kashen (opens in a new tab)
New research explains how better-quality work schedules increase U.S. retail workers’ productivity and store profits (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 24, 2022
In the retail and service sectors, store managers are engaged in a perpetual balancing act to ensure that their supply of both goods and labor ebbs and flows with customers’…
By: Sam Abbott (opens in a new tab)
New research shows Fair Workweek laws ensure workers have more predictable schedules without sacrificing their hours worked (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 23, 2022
Low-income workers in the United States, especially those in the service sector, face highly unpredictable work hours and pay. Many workers report chaotic employer practices that make balancing work and…
By: Elizabeth Oltmans Ananat (opens in a new tab), Anna Gassman-Pines (opens in a new tab), John Fitz-Henley II (opens in a new tab)
Recent working paper explores connection between capital investment and labor demand in the United States (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 20, 2022
The increasing visibility of artificial intelligence and other advanced technologies in the workplace is drawing new attention to how employers integrate technology into work processes and what effects these decisions…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab)
Child care costs are going to rise, but policymakers can help U.S. families manage these increases (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 18, 2022
For decades, the U.S. child care market has been on the verge of a crisis. As any parent knows, child care in the United States has long been too expensive,…
By: Sam Abbott (opens in a new tab)
New research shows unstable schedules do not offer more flexibility for U.S. workers (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 18, 2022
A growing body of research documents the costs of schedule instability for workers in the United States. Inconsistent shifts make it harder for workers to maintain routines or plan their…
By: Peter J. Fugiel (opens in a new tab)
Making Short-Time Compensation work for the low-wage service sector (opens in a new tab)
Reports MAY 11, 2022
A first step to making Short-Time Compensation work for the broader U.S. economy Fast facts Short-Time Compensation—a social insurance program also known as worksharing that is part of the larger…
By: Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab), Alix Gould-Werth (opens in a new tab)
New research documents the high cost of residential racial segregation in Northern cities of the United States (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 9, 2022
The violent effects of systemic racial segregation are ever-present in U.S. cities today, especially in the big Northern cities that were destinations for Black Americans fleeing racial oppression and violence…
By: Jamein Cunningham (opens in a new tab), Alberto Ortega (opens in a new tab), Robynn Cox (opens in a new tab), Kenneth D. Whaley (opens in a new tab)
Jobs report: Amid continued job gains, Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander workers experience the U.S. labor market in different and often hidden ways (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 6, 2022
Between mid-March and mid-April, the U.S. economy added a strong 428,000 jobs, making it the 12th consecutive month in which employment growth surpasses 400,000 jobs. In addition, according to the…
By: Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab), Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: April 2022 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 6, 2022
On May 6, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of April. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Protecting livestock producers and chicken growers (opens in a new tab)
Reports MAY 5, 2022
For more than a decade, ranchers, contract chicken growers, and other livestock producers have expressed concerns about the actions of the meatpackers who buy the livestock and slaughter it, and…
By: Michael Kades (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: March 2022 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAY 3, 2022
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Unions and the enforcement of labor rights: How organized labor protects U.S. workers against unfair and illegal employment practices (opens in a new tab)
Blog APR 29, 2022
After decades of declining unionization rates and rising income inequality in the United States, the past few years have seen glimmers of the vibrancy of the U.S. labor movement in…
By: Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
In Conversation with Cecilia Conrad (opens in a new tab)
In Conversation APR 26, 2022
Equitable Growth in Conversation is a recurring series where we talk with economists and other academics to help us better understand whether and how economic inequality affects economic growth and…
By: Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab)
Factsheet: Six frequently asked questions about schedule quality and Fair Workweek laws across the United States (opens in a new tab)
Factsheets APR 15, 2022
Seven cities and one state have implemented Fair Workweek laws—legislation that aims to improve the quality of work schedules that employers offer to their workforce. If your jurisdiction is considering…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson will bring new perspectives on mass incarceration to U.S. Supreme Court jurisprudence (opens in a new tab)
Issue Briefs APR 7, 2022
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson made history today after the U.S. Senate confirmed her nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court by a vote of 53 to 47. The Senate vote sealed…
By: Shanteal Lake (opens in a new tab)
Kate Bahn testimony before the Select Committee on Economic Disparity and Fairness in Growth on imbalance of power (opens in a new tab)
Blog APR 6, 2022
Thank you, Chair Himes, Ranking Member Steil, and members of the Select Committee on Economic Disparity and Fairness in Growth, for inviting me to testify today. My name is Kate…
By: Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab)
Understanding the economics of monopsony: How labor markets work under imperfect competition (opens in a new tab)
Blog APR 6, 2022
Contrary to what many of us were taught in Introduction to Economics courses in college and graduate school, markets are rarely perfectly competitive. In the case of the market for…
By: Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Jobs report: U.S. employment data shows continuing strong job gains, with employment in the warehousing and transportation industry well-above pre-pandemic levels (opens in a new tab)
Blog APR 1, 2022
The U.S. economy experienced another month of strong employment gains between mid-February and mid-March, adding 431,000 new jobs. According to the most recent Employment Situation Summary released this morning by…
By: Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab), Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: March 2022 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog APR 1, 2022
On April 1, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of March. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management conference spotlights the value of diversity in U.S. policy analysis and research (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 31, 2022
Earlier this week, the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management held its 2021 fall conference in Austin, Texas. The event, which was rescheduled late last year due to the…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
The 2022 Midwest Economic Association annual meeting features key sessions on labor market monopsony (opens in a new tab)
Videos MAR 30, 2022
The Midwest Economic Association held its 86th annual meeting this past weekend, featuring six important sessions on labor market monopsony that the Washington Center for Equitable Growth co-organized as part…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: February 2022 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 29, 2022
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Walmart is a monopsonist that depresses earnings and employment beyond its own walls, but U.S. policymakers can do something about it (opens in a new tab)
Issue Briefs MAR 29, 2022
Labor income inequality is a major cause for concern in the U.S. economy. For 35 years beginning around 1980 the wages of workers steadily grew more and more unequal. This…
By: Justin Wiltshire (opens in a new tab)
JOLTS Day Graphs: January 2022 Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 9, 2022
Every month the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics releases data on hiring, firing, and other labor market flows from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, better known as JOLTS.…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Revisiting timely research that explores U.S. intersectional wage gaps amid Women’s History Month (opens in a new tab)
Issue Briefs MAR 8, 2022
The U.S. labor market faced one of the most severe challenges in recent history with the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in March 2020. In the 2 years since then,…
By: Equitable Growth (opens in a new tab)
February Jobs Day report: U.S. employment growth is still strong, but some care sector workers are being left behind (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 4, 2022
The U.S. economy continued its streak of strong month-to-month employment gains, adding 678,000 jobs between mid-January and mid-February. According to data released this morning by the U.S. Bureau of Labor…
By: Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab), Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab)
Equitable Growth’s Jobs Day Graphs: February 2022 Report Edition (opens in a new tab)
Blog MAR 4, 2022
On March 4, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released new data on the U.S. labor market during the month of February. Below are five graphs compiled by Equitable Growth…
By: Kathryn Zickuhr (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
Stratification economics: What it is and how it advances our understanding of inequality (opens in a new tab)
Issue Briefs FEB 28, 2022
Different manifestations of inequality are among the most persistent features of the U.S. economy, yet mainstream economics traditionally explains disparities between groups solely as they relate to differences in either…
By: Kate Bahn (opens in a new tab), Carmen Sanchez Cumming (opens in a new tab)
African American men and the U.S. labor market during recessions and economic recoveries (opens in a new tab)
Blog FEB 11, 2022
In my 2017 book, African American Men and the Labor Market During The Great Recession, I provided a multidimensional background on the disproportionate impact experienced by African American male workers…
By: Michelle Holder (opens in a new tab)
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