April Jobs report: Disappointing job gains mean the damage from the coronavirus recession may be long term, especially for young workers
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The U.S. labor market delivered employment gains that were far below expectations last month. According to the Employment Situation Summary released this morning by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, between mid-March and mid-April the U.S. economy added only 266,000 non-farm payroll jobs, and the shar…
The evidence behind Biden’s big plans for rebuilding infrastructure, reducing poverty, and combating inequality
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During his first 100 days in office, President Joe Biden turned core elements of his Build Back Better campaign plan into concrete policy proposals for congressional consideration. Dubbed the American Jobs Plan and the American Families Plan, his two most recent proposals are designed to complement…
Overheating is not a concern for the U.S. economy
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Critics of President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan and further public investments financed through a combination of tax increases and deficit spending—such as his administration’s proposed American Jobs Plan, at roughly $2 trillion, and the forthcoming American Families Plan—often a…
Factsheet: What does the research say about the economics of paid leave?
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The United States is the only advanced economy in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development that does not guarantee any paid family and medical leave to its entire workforce. Though 10 U.S. states and localities have currently implemented or have begun to implement programs for thei…
Factsheet: What does the research say about care infrastructure?
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The United States is emerging from the greatest health, economic, and caregiving crises in a century. Many policymakers are looking for ways to jumpstart the economy and, recognizing the tie between infrastructure and economic growth, have turned their sights on investments in U.S. physical and care…
Investing in an equitable future
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The United States faces four converging and overlapping challenges—a public health crisis and resulting economic one, a reckoning over structural racism, and the worsening effects of climate change—all of which require substantially greater public investment to overcome. Indeed, a growing body of re…
Roads, bridges, bottles, and blocks: Rethinking infrastructure for the post-pandemic U.S. economy
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When the COVID-19 pandemic eventually wanes and economic conditions improve, many Americans will be able to safely resume familiar activities that have been curtailed amid the health and economic crises. For many, particularly those who are unemployed, underemployed, or telecommuting, this will mean…
The latest Jobs Day report is encouraging yet the number of U.S. workers jobless for 27 weeks or more keeps climbing
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According to the latest Employment Situation Summary by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. economy added 916,000 jobs in March, the biggest month-to-month jump since August of last year. Other measures on the health of the U.S. labor market also point to a recovering economy as the public…
What the U.S. Census Household Pulse Survey reveals about the first year of the coronavirus recession, in six charts
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The U.S. Census Bureau’s new Household Pulse Survey is an invaluable and near real-time source of information for understanding how the coronavirus recession is affecting U.S. workers, families, and communities. By asking U.S. households since April 23, 2020 about their health, employment status, an…
The latest economic research demonstrates why concerns about federal budget deficits and U.S. debt levels are overblown
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Overview A growing number of economists are reconsidering long-held views about the appropriate level of public borrowing and the consequences of federal budget deficits and debt on U.S. economic growth and well-being. Their cutting-edge research suggests that previous concerns about deficits and de…