The State of Working America, 1996-97 presents a statistical portrait of the standard of living of America's working families based on the most recent data available. By thoroughly analyzing areas such as family income, taxes, wages, jobs, wealth, and poverty, Mishel, Bernstein, and Schmitt show how the current economy is reflected in the lives of American workers. The new edition will update all statistical data and add a chapter on regional differences.

Praise for previous editions of The State of Working America: "The State of Working America remains unrivaled as the most-trusted source for a comprehensive understanding of how working Americans and their families are faring in today's economy." Robert B. Reich"It is the inequality of wealth, argue the authors, rather than new technology (as some would have it), that is responsible for the failure of America's workplace to keep pace with the country's economic growth. The State of Working America is a well-written, soundly argued, and important reference book." Library Journal "If you want to know what happened to the economic well-being of the average American in the past decade or so, this is the book for you. It should be required reading for Americans of all political persuasions." Richard Freeman, Harvard University "A truly comprehensive and useful book that provides a reality check on loose statements about U.S. labor markets. It should be cheered by all Americans who earn their living from work." William Wolman, former chief economist, CNBC's Business Week "The State of Working America provides very valuable factual and analytic material on the economic conditions of American workers. It is the very best source of information on this important subject." Ray Marshall, University of Texas, former U.S. Secretary of Labor"An indispensable work . . . on family income, wages, taxes, employment, and the distribution of wealth." Simon Head, The New York Review of Books "No matter what political camp you're in, this is the single most valuable book I know of about the state of America, period. It is the most referenced, most influential resource book of its kind." Jeff Madrick, author, The End of Affluence "This book is the single best yardstick for measuring whether or not our economic policies are doing enough to ensure that our economy can, once again, grow for everybody." Richard A. Gephardt "The best place to review the latest developments in changes in the distribution of income and wealth." Lester ThurowThe State of Working America, prepared biennially since 1988 by the Economic Policy Institute, includes a wide variety of data on family incomes, wages, taxes, unemployment, wealth, and poverty-data that enable the authors to closely examine the effect of the economy on the living standards of the American people."

Not since the Great Depression of the 1930s has the United States faced such a prolonged period of high unemployment and underemployment. Recovery from the "Great Recession" that began in 2008 has been slow, and is projected to remain sluggish over the next several years, while another shock to the global economy could erase the meager gains of the past months. Economic conditions remain fragile and employment challenges show no sign of letting up. With persistently high unemployment and underemployment-and growing inequality in wages-an increasing number of American families are no longer adequately supported by employment income and basic benefits. Many older workers have "retired" before they are ready, and many young workers cannot find a foothold in the job market. A silent crisis is underway, with huge social and economic costs for the nation. iWorking and Living in the Shadow of Economic Fragilityi examines the current state of employment through historical, macroeconomic, cultural, sociological and policy lenses, in order to address fundamental questions about the role and value of work in America today. The book offers suggestions for how to address the short- and long-term challenges of rebuilding a society of opportunity with meaningful and sustaining jobs as the foundation of the American middle class.

Prepared biennially since 1988 by the Economic Policy Institute, this work includes a wide variety of data on family incomes, wages, taxes, unemployment, wealth and poverty, allowing the authors to examine the effect of the economy on the living standards of the American people.

This book is about how much people earn and why the distribution of earnings has been changing over time. The gap between the top and bottom in the United States has widened significantly since 1980. Why has this happened? Is it due to new technologies? What is the role of globalisation? Are there historical precedents? The book begins with the "race" between technology and education, and shows that continuing technical progress does not necessarily imply a continuing rise in dispersion. It then examines the experience of 20 OECD countries over the twentieth century, material presented in the form of 20 country case studies. The book breaks new ground in assembling data on the distribution of individual earnings covering much of the twentieth century and drawing on a variety of under-exploited sources. The findings overturn a number of widely-held beliefs. It is not the earnings of the low paid that have been most affected by the recent changes; widening is largely due to what is happening at the top. The recent rise in earnings dispersion is not unprecedented, but should be seen as part of a longer-run history of successive compression and expansion of earnings differences.

First published in 1998, this volume contains an edited selection of papers presented at the Fifth International Research Seminar on ‘Issues in Social Security’, held on 14-17 June 1997 in Sweden by the Foundation for International Studies on Social Security (FISS) in memory of Brian Abel-Smith. The chapters cover a wide range of subjects related to old age pension reform, family policy, employment, privatization of social security and health care. The authors form a body of well-established researchers and scholars of world-wide reputation as well as younger scientists, stemming from various continents, and representing a range of relevant disciplines. This volume is the fourth in a series on international studies of issues in social security. The series is initiated by the Foundation for International Studies on Social Security (FISS). One of its aims is to confront different academic approaches with each other, and with public policy perspectives. Another is to give analytic reports of cross-nationally different approaches to the design and reform of welfare state programs.

Examines the impact of the economy on the living standards of the American people over the post-World War II. Comprises seven chapters which cover: family income; wages; employment, unemployment; wealth; income distribution and poverty; regional disparities; and international comparisons.

Unemployment is down--but so is job security. Mergers, spin-offs, and strategic realignments can changes corporations practically overnight. Whole industries can decline as stock prices fall and capital is routed electronically to the next big venture. Careers can end suddenly and incomes drastically fall. Emphasizing the increasing inequity among women workers--some advance rapidly in their careers while those at society's margins barely get by--Barbara Hilkert Andolsen's study is the first feminist analysis to connect religious understandings of economic justice with the issues facing both workers and the wider community. Expanding her scope to address all workers, she urges the knowledge elites to lessen the distance between themselves and the unskilled and poor in order to forge solidarity between common concerns. The New Job Contract investigates the buyouts and restructurings to expose the underlying economic transition afoot--and the broader implications for society and families.

Lovett (Tulane Law School), Eckes (a former commissioner of the U.S. International Commission during the Reagan and Bush I administrations), and Brinkman (international economics, Portland State U.) evaluate the evolution of U.S. trade policy, focusing on the period from the establishment of the Gen