EPI in the news

• Wells Fargo shifts sexual harassment response policy

  The group cited a survey by the Economic Policy Institute that determined that more than half of nonunion, private-sector employers have mandatory arbitration procedures.

  Winston-Salem Journal | February 19, 2020
• Strikes are 257% up in 2 years, even though labor union membership is down — why more workers are taking a stand

  That divide, she said, has been worsened by companies that are hostile to organized labor pressing for better wages. Employers spend almost $340 million every year hiring “union avoidance advisers” according to Economic Policy Institute estimates.

  MarketWatch | February 19, 2020
• More discouraging numbers for union employment

  “It is worth noting,” said Heidi Shierholz of the labor-backed Economic Policy Institute, “that the erosion of union coverage is not because workers don’t want unions anymore – survey data show that in fact, a higher share of nonunion workers today say they would vote for a union in their workplace than was the case 40 years ago.

  “One key contributor to the decline of unions is fierce corporate opposition to union organizing. It is now standard, when workers seek to organize, for employers to hire union avoidance consultants to coordinate intense anti-union campaigns. We estimate that employers spend nearly $340 million per year hiring union avoidance advisers to help them prevent employees from organizing.”

   

  Michigan Building and Construction Trades Council | February 19, 2020
• Why I paid $50,000 for a year of child care

  Surprisingly, the cost of care in New York isn’t even the highest in the nation. Washington, D.C., can claim that honor, with parents paying annual child care costs of $24,243 for one infant, according to the Economic Policy Institute. In New York City, it’s $15,394 for one infant and $27,752 for two kids annually. In the least expensive state for child care, Mississippi, parents still pay $5,436 a year for one infant.

  The New York Times | February 19, 2020
• House Democrats want to spend surplus on early childhood

  A recent report from the nonprofit Economic Policy Institute found widespread evidence of what Petri is talking about. The average cost of infant care in Minnesota is more than $1,300 per month. That’s more than in-state tuition for a four-year public college. It’s also about 30 percent more than the average rent.

  MPR News | February 19, 2020
• California considers tax on companies with large pay gaps between CEOs and their workers

  According to a 2019 report from the Economic Policy Institute, CEO salaries have risen 940% since 1978, while pay for the average worker has grown only 12% over the same timeframe. The overall ratio of CEO pay (including stock options) to average worker compensation stands at about 278 to one. Report coauthor Lawrence Mishel also pointed out that the growth in CEO salaries has not corresponded to an increase in executive productivity. “CEO compensation has risen far faster than profits,” Mishel told Capital & Main.

  Fast Company | February 19, 2020
• Big Law’s associate pay scale stagnated as partner profit soared

  It is worth noting this isn’t unique to Big Law. Business owners typically benefit from profit increases, and CEO compensation in the U.S. has vastly outgrown employee wages. CEOs of the 350 largest publicly traded companies made 278 times their average employees’ salary in 2018, up from 58 times in 1989, according to the Economic Policy Institute.

  Bloomberg Law | February 19, 2020

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