jobs and employment	266
economics	208
state and local government	191
education	190
indiana	176
economic development	174
taxes	149
budget and spending	149
law and public policy	148
workforce and human capital	142

Commentaries tagged with income and wages

July 6, 2025	Churchill Was Right About AmericansSuccess demands that we look a problem squarely in the eye.
June 22, 2025	We Have a Healthy Middle ClassThe biggest issue in the middle class involves changes to consumption, not earnings.
May 25, 2025	Previewing the Long-Term Effects of TariffsThe dominant effect of the Trump tariffs will be to raise production costs on almost every American manufacturing firm.
August 4, 2024	Childcare Problems Are Vexing and CostlyIndiana has both childcare and pre-kindergarten programs available to low-income households.
July 21, 2024	Why Don’t We Learn from Economic Development Failures?Educational attainment alone is now a more powerful predictor of a region’s economic success than everything else combined.
June 9, 2024	Advice for Young People Heading Directly into the Labor MarketSkipping college does not mean you cannot have a satisfying career, but it will take more planning and work to get there.
December 31, 2023	Education After High School Is the Path to Middle-Class LifeJobs of the future require at least some college training.
December 24, 2023	Leaving Behind Dickensian PovertyThis Christmas holiday is not about worldly wealth, but it is a time of giving thanks for the many blessings we enjoy.
December 3, 2023	The ‘Great Discordance’ of Economic Fact and FeelingThat Americans appear to prefer higher unemployment over historically mild inflation is not something any of us should be proud of.
November 19, 2023	Are We in a Period of New Union Activism?The bigger effect of unions appears to be how they influence labor markets outside the firms in which they’ve organized.
September 24, 2023	Don’t Expect the UAW to GrowThere is no evidence of a resurgence in the UAW or other industrial unions today.
July 23, 2023	Populists Are Wrong—Life Is Better TodayMany problems arise when comparing the past to today.
June 4, 2023	Increasing Importance of Summer JobsThese jobs offer an opportunity to learn as well as earn money.
May 21, 2023	Big Savings for Ending Prevailing WageMy statistical models show that repealing state prevailing wage laws save taxpayers money.
May 7, 2023	Money Illusion and InflationPrice fluctuation could cause inflation to last longer, but it didn’t cause the inflation, it simply extends the pain.
March 12, 2023	Remote Work and Labor MarketsThere are more remote workers today than there are immigrants in the U.S.
February 12, 2023	What Is Happening to Labor Supply?Wishing to employ someone is not the same as labor demand.
January 29, 2023	The 2023 ForecastThe reason for worry about a recession is the Federal Reserve’s response to high inflation.
September 11, 2022	Benefits and Costs of EducationFor the vast majority of students, college is among the best financial investments they will ever make.
September 4, 2022	Lingering Effects of COVID on WorkThe U.S. is still about 1.0 percent below its pre-COVID participation rate.
May 22, 2022	The Undersupply of College Graduates Is Clobbering Indiana’s EconomyNationwide, about 8 in 10 of all net new jobs go to 4-year college graduates.
February 18, 2022	More Thoughts on InflationLike George Bailey explained in “It’s A Wonderful Life,” the money held in his savings and loan wasn’t in the bank safe, it was in the mortgages and small business loans around the city.
November 28, 2021	A Time to Give ThanksIf Mr. Lincoln could find reason to call us together for a day of gratitude, we can now have no cause to do otherwise.
October 24, 2021	Deep Worries About Education and Employment Are Still With UsIndiana will start 2022 with three consecutive years of declining educational attainment of adults.
October 17, 2021	Market Adjustments Aren’t InflationToday, inflation is running far less than 1.0 percentage point off trend.
October 3, 2021	Automation and Today’s Labor Market ChallengesThe process of workers matching with employers is messy and slow.
September 26, 2021	What’s Happening in Labor MarketsWork environments and wages, as well as cost of care services, heavily influence choices in the current labor market.
July 11, 2021	What Is ‘Quality of Place?’When choosing a place to live, workers consider the wages they will earn against the cost of housing and access to amenities.
June 6, 2021	What Economists Got Right and Wrong about COVIDShifts in labor, occupational structure, and community amenities influence the degree of recovery.
May 30, 2021	Pay Shortage, Not Labor ShortageThe most relevant data is not on the quantity of jobs, but the wages that indicate whether or not there is a labor shortage.
May 16, 2021	College Grads and Today’s Job MarketFewer than half of adults with only a high school diploma are currently working, while more than two-thirds with a college degree are working.
May 2, 2021	Why Are We Hearing About a Labor Shortage?Government benefits are not to blame.
March 14, 2021	Two Sides of the Minimum WageWhat role should the government play?
May 3, 2020	What Are Essential Jobs?In normal times there is no such division as ‘essential’ or ‘non-essential’ workers.
March 15, 2020	Federal Stimulus, Local Leadership Are KeyThe farther away government gets from us, the less useful it becomes in matters that directly affect our lives.
November 3, 2019	Monopsony Problems Get Hearing in CongressSummary: Firms mistake the presence of monopsony power for a labor shortage.
October 7, 2018	Amazon and Some Harsh Facts About Pay and Labor ShortagesIn several industries, businesses are unwilling or unable to pay market wages for the workers they want.
July 1, 2018	Public Sector Union Hurting Municipal GovernmentsUnions flourished when workers were interchangeable.
June 3, 2018	Workforce Development Problems Are Deeper Than They SeemSince 1990, the United States has not created a single net new job for workers who have not been to college.
April 15, 2018	We Need Better Thinking About the Gender Pay GapPay gaps are due primarily to occupational, educational and family choices.
January 7, 2018	Relax: Charitable Giving Will Rise in 2018There is a great deal of uncertainty about the ultimate size of the impact.
October 1, 2017	Tax Reform a Bipartisan IssueBoth corporate tax rates and income tax rates should be revised and standardized.
August 20, 2017	How an Economic Study WorksEconomic research can help us identify the real problems instead of trying to remedy vague or fictitious ones.
December 11, 2016	The Problems of Slow Economic GrowthSlow economic growth leads to a delayed standard of living increase.
July 31, 2016	Labor Markets and InequalityFixing labor market inequality is no easy task.
July 24, 2016	Human Capital, Monopolies, Unions and the Vanishing Middle ClassWas the robust middle class simply a post-war boom?
June 26, 2016	Income Inequality and EducationThe link between education and earnings is very strong.
October 19, 2014	Polarized Labor Markets and the Supply and Demand of Unskilled Workers High-skilled and low-skilled workers face very different futures in this economy.
April 27, 2014	Some Truth of Men’s and Women’s WagesOccupation, education, job tenure and experience explain almost all wage differences; gender, almost none.
April 20, 2014	Taxes and Government ValueAs with any value determination, the price (or tax rate) is only half the story.
March 2, 2014	The Minimum Wage Debate Is a Complex OneAn increase in minimum wage will lead to a decrease in jobs.
March 2, 2014	The Minimum Wage Debate Is a Complex OneAn increase in minimum wage will lead to a decrease in jobs.
February 23, 2014	Assortive Making, Social Mobility and Income InequalityA century ago, most Americans married young and locally, with education playing a much smaller role.
February 16, 2014	Disliking the Rich Among UsNintey-nine percent of the top 20 percent of households earn their income through employment.
February 9, 2014	The Changing State of the Middle ClassOur middle class was built upon an unsustainable combination of low-productivity, high-wage jobs in large factories.
February 2, 2014	Policy on Income Inequality and Poverty Hasn’t WorkedIt is what kids learn at home, not how much their parents make that affects income mobility.
January 26, 2014	Consumption Inequality, Not Income Inequality, Is the Real IssueWellbeing is determined from benefits from consumption, not earnings.
January 19, 2014	The Choices of Income InequalityLabor markets value different skills in different ways.
September 8, 2013	Income, Amenities and Affordable HousingPerceived value of employment and quality of school districts are two factors affecting personal income in our communities.
February 24, 2013	Stagnant Wages for Low-Wage Workers Are a ProblemToday, the plight of low-wage workers is a real and growing concern
February 17, 2013	Let’s Try a $25 Minimum WageLabor markets are subject to the laws of supply and demand.
January 27, 2013	Middle Class and Income InequalityThe middle class was built upon an abundance of well-paying but relatively low-skilled jobs.
October 28, 2012	More Clarity on Gender and PayIt should not be surprising that the majority of wage differences between men and women can be explained by schooling, occupational choice, and experience.
January 17, 2012	What to Expect from Right-to-Work Legislation in Indiana...we should expect no effect on manufacturing, for good or ill, in wages or employment as a consequence of RTW.
August 30, 2010	College Majors, Jobs and WagesEven college graduates with degrees in the lowest paying major at graduation were earning on average more than $50,000 within a decade.
February 26, 2007	What's Behind Income Inequality "...inequality has been growing slowly and steadily over a span of decades."
January 1, 2007	Payroll Envy "It’s hard to speak dispassionately about people who earn more in a month than the average American makes in a lifetime."
October 9, 2006	What Keeps Bad Economic Ideas Alive?"But examples of foolish economic notions supported by public rhetoric, if not legislation, are depressingly common."
August 21, 2006	Understanding Low Wages "In an era when advanced educational credentials are a requirement to even be considered for many careers, we hear the shocking news that as many as one in four ninth graders in high school will not graduate with their class."
March 20, 2006	Indiana Employment Report Card Arrives "...like wine, we should let the data on state and metro area job growth age a bit before we act on what it tells us."
September 27, 2002	Getting a Handle on Indiana's Low-Wage Status "In terms of employment, the higher wage industries and regions within the state have essentially stagnated over the course of the last twenty years."

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Commentaries tagged with income and wages