News & Stories

Yesterday on KUOW’s Weekday with Steve Scher, Economist (and EOI Board Member) Dean Baker debunked myths about Social Security failing, explained how current proposals to “save” Social Security would have the same effect as doing nothing, and suggested realistic ways to put our Social Security system on sound financial footing for the long term. Co-Director of the Center […]

If the Affordable Care Act (ACA) – also known as ‘Obamacare’ – is overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court, 800,000 uninsured Washingtonians will lose their shot at health care – and millions more will lose basic consumer protections written into the bill. A recent report by Washington state Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler notes that when […]

Every student learns the American mantra from their teachers and parents: work hard, play by the rules, and you’ll have a chance to get ahead. This month’s crop of graduating high school seniors is powerful evidence that Washington’s students do step up to their responsibilities. But we (voters and legislators alike) have defaulted on our […]

Recent research from the Iowa Policy Project (IPP) takes a historical look at the rise and fall of union membership in America – and corresponding trends in income inequality. IPP found when union membership was meager in the early 1900s, income inequality was stark – with nearly 40% of national income going to the top […]

Recent research shows the average American household could be paying as much as $155,000 in fees for retirement plans over their lifetime – a surprisingly large bite out of retirement savings. Think that’s bad? Here’s the kicker: the majority of people paying these fees aren’t even aware of it. Although rules require funds and managers […]

“No bill shall become a law unless on its final passage the vote be taken by yeas and nays, …and a majority of the members elected to each house be recorded thereon as voting in its favor.” That quote is directly from Washington’s Constitution, and was key to a recent court ruling that found Initiative 1053 […]

Expecting Better, a recent report by the National Partnership for Women and Families, tells a story most parents in America already know: outdated family leave laws are making pregnancy and parenthood especially difficult for working parents. The report takes a critical look at federal family leave policy in the U.S. – one of only a […]

The beauty of Social Security is its simplicity. Social Security is a self-financing system that workers and employers pay into, and upon retirement (or in the case of disability or death), workers and their families receive benefits commensurate with average wages. Pretty simple, and critical for millions of Americans. So when someone tries to distort the […]

As the issue of child care provider unionization is considered in multiple states, a better understanding is needed regarding the effects of unionization on improvements in training, access to information, and  quality of care to children and communities. Two recent studies, one conducted by EOI and the other by Rutgers University, help to shed light […]

We have a lot of public heroes. We tend to think of the firefighters, EMTs and police who arrive at an accident, save lives, care for the injured, and clean up the mess. But we often ignore some lower profile public heroes, who we literally depend on for the health of our community. You can […]

The federal government enacted the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) in 1993 to ensure up to twelve weeks of unpaid leave per year for workers to recover from their own serious health condition, bond with a new child, or care for a seriously ill spouse, child or parent. The law also provides job protection while […]

The economic gains of paid leave are a key benefit to working families, but paid family leave also impacts quality of care. When workers on leave are ensured some level of wage replacement, they can better focus their attention on loved ones. People of all ages have better health and life outcomes when loved ones […]

As women’s participation in the workforce has increased, families have become more dependent on women’s earnings – particularly since the Great Recession left significantly more men without jobs. Yet, women continue to take home less than their male counterparts across industries, age ranges and education levels. According to research by the Center for American Progress, […]

While few workers have a designated paid family leave benefit, many do have limited amounts of paid leave available as vacation, sick leave, or paid time off. However, access to paid leave benefits varies across the labor force. In general, low-wage and part-time workers, workers without advanced degrees, and women of color are unlikely to […]

If you think our elected representatives should be working to undercut – instead of boost – people’s wages, this news won’t make you happy. But there’s good news for everyone else: a three-pronged effort to diminish Washington’s prevailing wage law met a well-deserved defeat during the 2012 legislative session. First enacted in 1945, Washington’s prevailing […]

Significant changes in workforce demographics have led to increased need for family-friendly workplace policies that enable workers to better balance the responsibilities of family, health and career. But absent new public standards and programs, private employers have responded slowly. Paid leave benefits have generally been limited to those workers with the greatest bargaining power, either […]

Mother’s Day is just around the corner, and I’ve been thinking long and hard about how to honor my mom for all the sacrifices she has made for me and my siblings over the last four decades. My ever-busy mom worked throughout her child-rearing years. And while she has enjoyed her career, I know it […]

Middle- and low-income families are struggling to get by in this economy – and few are feeling the pain like students and their families, according to a new report by D?mos. The culprit: states are shifting costs for higher education to students and families – and sadly, Washington state is a perfect example. From 1990-2010, Washington’s […]

Since the 1980s, Social Security statements have been mailed annually to all workers 25 and older. So if you’re a worker – and over the age of 25 – maybe you’ve been wondering where your Social Security benefit statement is. Thanks to budget cuts, the Social Security Administration (SSA) stopped mailing out statements last year. But […]

If you lived in a run-down house and all of a sudden your family got a lot of money, what would you do? Most people would think about fixing up the rickety front steps, replacing the leaky shower, and painting the back bedroom, for starters. But what if that new money came in the form […]

Part 1 | Part Two Social Security is one of the great achievements of American democracy. It represents the best of our values – honoring our parents, respecting hard work, and supporting families. It provides stable income to 56 million people in one in four American households – in both good economic times and bad. For the […]

Part 1 | Part Two Working Americans and their employers each pay 6.2% on the first $110,100 of earnings into Social Security. Those payments insure 159 million workers and their families from loss of income due to disability, premature death, or retirement. They also fund benefits averaging $1,125 monthly for 56 million Americans, including:[i] Retirees age 62+. […]

At one time considered the best in the world, America’s infrastructure is now crumbling – and it’s holding back our economic recovery. There’s never been a better time to start rebuilding – and to get the best economic bang for our public bucks, we should begin with our nation’s water, waste management and energy systems. […]

A few days ago, economist Joseph Stiglitz said something quite provocative: “We’ve been shaping our society to create people who are more selfish.” The eye is drawn to the last part, “… create people who are more selfish.” My takeaway message is at the beginning, “We’ve been shaping our society … .” In the same […]

There are two main reasons why America can’t get out of the economic doldrums. The first is, wages are stagnant: The U.S. economic recovery – slow as it is – is leaving workers’ wages in the dust. Average hourly wages, which took a big hit in the Great Recession, are growing slower than they did […]

Fueled by a blitzkrieg advertising strategy and some questionable recruitment practices, for-profit colleges sporting billboard-friendly names like DeVry University, University of Phoenix, and ITT Tech have made big profits in higher education. But at what cost? Big gains come under big scrutiny While public and private not-for-profit institutions of higher education have historically claimed the […]

OLYMPIA, Wash. – April is Community and Technical College Month, but two-year colleges in Washington have been too busy to commemorate it. The system serves 60 percent of all public college students in the state, with 470,000 people enrolled. The supplemental state budget signed this week by Gov. Chris Gregoire includes $39 million to build […]