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** Millions still face economic suffering amidst the pandemic ([link removed])
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A note from EPI’s Krista Faries ([link removed]) : The COVID threat continues, as does the economic fallout. As Congress returns from recess this week to continue negotiating an economic relief bill, we look at EPI analysis of the current labor situation and what Congress needs to do to promote economic recovery.


** Six months into the recession, an 11.5 million jobs deficit remains ([link removed])
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When the pandemic hit, health officials and policymakers urged businesses across the country to shutter their doors and mitigate the spread of the coronavirus. Over 22 million jobs were lost and unprecedented numbers of workers filed for unemployment. Job losses disproportionately hit women, Latinx workers ([link removed]) , and certain low-wage sectors of the economy, notably leisure and hospitality. The effects have been particularly devastating for Black workers ([link removed]) and their families, who are less able to weather job losses. With the expiration of the extra $600 unemployment insurance benefit ([link removed].) , millions of workers across the country are facing eviction and hunger, and the resulting loss in demand will undoubtedly slow the recovery.

While jobs have started to return—the BLS reported an increase of 1.4 million jobs in August—the U.S. economy is still down 11.5 million jobs from where it was in February, before the pandemic hit. And the 1.4 million jobs added represents a steep slowdown in job growth compared with June and July. With this kind of slowing in job growth, it will take years to return to the pre-pandemic labor market. Read the Economic Indicators report » ([link removed])
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** Six months into the recession, an 11.5 million jobs deficit remains
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** Total initial UI claims have risen in each of the last four weeks ([link removed])
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In the week ending August 29, 1.6 million workers applied for unemployment insurance (UI) benefits: 881,000 applied for regular state unemployment insurance, and 759,000 applied for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA). This was the fourth week in a row that total initial claims have risen. Further, it was the 24th week in a row total initial claims were far greater than the worst week of the Great Recession. Read the blog post » ([link removed])


** Different economic crisis, same mistake—the Fed cannot make up for the Republican Senate’s inaction ([link removed])
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Following the Great Recession of 2008–2009, Congress did little to help recovery, and we relied almost exclusively on actions from the Federal Reserve to spur recovery. That was a mistake. Yet six months into the current crisis, we are in danger of repeating the same mistake. While it is true that the Fed has shown better judgement over the course of this crisis, the tools it currently has available to address it are weak. The tools Congress has are strong, but their actions have been stymied by the mystifyingly bad judgement of Senate Republicans. Read the blog post » ([link removed])


** Congress must increase federal spending to mitigate workers’ losses and promote economic recovery ([link removed])
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The economic shock of the coronavirus has been as sudden and jarring as any in U.S. history. The correct policy response to such a shock is to push deficits even larger than they would go on their own by providing expansions to relief and recovery efforts. As always, there are some who seem more concerned about the rise in federal budget deficits and public debt than by the rise in joblessness and losses of income generated by the shock. But prioritizing the restraint of debt in coming years over the restoration of pre-crisis unemployment rates is bad economics. EPI Research Director Josh Bivens explains why. Read the blog post ([link removed]) / Watch the video ([link removed])


** Previous webinars
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** Book event: Let Them Eat Tweets: How the Right Rules in an Age of Extreme Inequality ([link removed])
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To keep the gravy train going for mostly white one-percenters and prop up the plutocracy, political leaders are using toxic populism with a racially infused culture-war strategy to stay in power—a strategy led by Trump and playing out daily in his tweet storms, according to political scientists and authors of Let Them Eat Tweets ([link removed]) Jacob S. Hacker and Paul Pierson. Hacker and Pierson discussed their book, followed by a panel of EPI experts who talked about what can be done to derail this distorted political influence by the rich and derail rising inequality. EPI President Thea Lee moderated. Watch the video » ([link removed])


** Reconstruction 2020: Valuing Black Lives and Economic Opportunities for All ([link removed])
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EPI hosted a panel ([link removed]) of experts on why policy must be changed to reverse the nation’s culture of anti-Blackness and the economic inequality surrounding it. EPI Distinguished Fellow Richard Rothstein discussed his book The Color of Law ([link removed]) , followed by a discussion on reshaping the country into one that values Black lives and bolsters economic opportunities for all. Watch the video » ([link removed])


** EPI in the news
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EPI’s Valerie Wilson appeared on a CBS Sunday Morning ([link removed]) segment about economic inequality in the time of COVID-19. | Paying the Price: Income Inequality, and Coronavirus’ Economic Fallout ([link removed])
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Washington Post ([link removed]) columnist E.J. Dionne spoke with EPI president Thea Lee about Trump’s attacks on the working class and featured EPI’s recent CEO pay analysis ([link removed]) in an op-ed. | President Trump’s Most Important Broken Promise ([link removed])
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EPI senior fellow Terri Gerstein wrote a piece for The American Prospect ([link removed]) about how state attorneys general have been involved in protecting workers’ rights. A recent EPI report ([link removed]) documents this state AG activity in greater detail. | State Attorneys General Are Helping Workers in Hard Times ([link removed])
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The Nation ([link removed]) featured an article by EPI senior fellow Lynn Rhinehart, discussing how “we can build a sectoral bargaining system—and strong, democratic, worker-driven unions—from the ground up.” | How Workers Can Achieve Real Power ([link removed])
Follow EPI on Instagram ([link removed])


** What we’re reading
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When Republicans and Unions Got Along ([link removed])

In September 1952, Dwight D. Eisenhower spoke to a convention of labor leaders and told them that before joining the Army, he took a job at a dairy plant where “I worked 84 hours a week on the night shift from 6 to 6, seven nights a week.” Read more » ([link removed])

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The Silent Suffering of Cafeteria Workers ([link removed])

As schools navigate reopening for the fall, most coverage has focused on the safety of students and teachers. But another group on campus is also at risk. Read more » ([link removed])

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Farm Workers Face Double Threat: Wildfire Smoke and COVID-19 ([link removed])

With precision, farm workers swiftly harvest rows of strawberries at an organic field in Salinas, Calif. It's hard work, even without a global pandemic and wildfires burning in the background. Read more » ([link removed])

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The COVID jobs toll is still high—why Congress must act
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