Sylvia Allegretto

Bryce LiedtkeandSylvia Allegretto

Workers and the COVID-19 Recession: Trends in UI Claims & Benefits, Jobs, and Unemployment

The COVID-19 crisis that hit the world and the United States has resulted in profound changes to our way of life. While this paper focuses on workers and economic effects, we note that the crisis is foremost one of a pandemic. The economic situation is a byproduct. Public policy and investment will largely determine our rates of sickness, death and economic pain.

Michael Reich,Sylvia Allegretto,Ken JacobsandClaire Montialoux

The Effects of a $15 Minimum Wage in New York State

UC Berkeley Center on Wage and Employment Dynamics report Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York has proposed economy-wide minimum wages of $15 in New York City by 2019 and in the balance of the state by mid-2021. In this prospective study, we assess the impact of the proposal on workers, businesses, and consumers to estimate the net effect of the policy proposal on employment over the phase-in period.

Sylvia Allegretto,Marc Doussard,Dave Graham-Squire,Ken Jacobs,Dan ThompsonandJeremy Thompson

Fast Food, Poverty Wages: The Public Cost of Low-Wage Jobs in the Fast-Food Industry

Medicaid, the Earned Income Tax Credit and the other public benefits programs discussed in this report provide a vital support system for millions of Americans working in the United States’ service industries, including fast food. We analyze public program utilization by working families and estimate total average annual public benefit expenditures on the families of front-line fast-food workers for the years 2007–2011.