EPI in the news

• Sebastian Martinez Hickey on Minimum Wage, Saru Jayaraman on History of Tipping

  We get a different view on raising the minimum wage from Sebastian Martinez Hickey, researcher for the EARN (Economic Analysis and Research Network) team at the Economic Policy Institute.

  FAIR Counterspin | January 12, 2024
• The US cities where inflation is highest

  Luckily, a set of minimum wage increases for Florida workers began in September 2023, raising base pay by $1, up to $12 per hour. The minimum wage is set to hike to $16 per hour by the end of 2026, according to the Economic Policy Institute (EPI).

  Quartz | January 12, 2024
• White House H-1B visa proposals spur controversy

  The present law exempts some nonprofit research organizations from the 85,000 H-1B annual cap. In its comments on the proposed rule, the Economic Policy Institute, a  think tank, said the White House is loosening the definition of nonprofit research entities “for the express purpose of expanding eligibility” for H-1B visa groups. It argues that the rule change could enable, for instance, a nonprofit hospital to use H-1B workers to move IT jobs overseas. 

  Tech Target | January 12, 2024
• Why visa reforms benefit not just California’s tech sector but the economy overall

  But increasing the number of visas alone won’t solve the problem if corporate giants stay the course. If you look at the top companies sponsoring H-1B visas in 2023, it’s a virtual who’s who of Big Tech. According to the Economic Policy Institute, Meta employs so many H-1B workers that it has declared itself an “H-1B dependent” firm in government filings for years because more than 15% of its total U.S. workforce is H-1B workers.

  CalMatters | January 12, 2024
• Florida bill weakening child labor law gets OK from Republican-dominated House panel

  According to the Economic Policy Institute, Florida is the 16th state so far where legislation has been proposed over the past two years to ease child labor restrictions, even though violations of child labor law have been on the rise.

  Orlando Weekly | January 12, 2024
• Rep. Cori Bush Calls on Congress to End Race-Based Hair Discrimination

  While 24 states have adopted the CROWN Act, Republican senators have successfully blocked the anti-discrimination bill’s passing on a federal level twice since its introduction in 2021. According to the Economic Policy Institute, legislators did not bring it before Congress in 2023.

  Mother Jones | January 12, 2024
• The Shoplifting ‘Epidemic’ is a Lie

  Karakatsanis doesn’t mention wage theft in this passage, but according to data from the Economic Policy Institute, U.S. employers steal as much as $50 billion a year from workers in the form of unpaid wages. 

  Current Affairs | January 12, 2024

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