Economic Conditions

short readsSep 8, 2014

Who makes minimum wage?

Perhaps surprisingly, not very many people earn minimum wage, and they make up a smaller share of the workforce than they used to.
reportSep 4, 2014

Views of Job Market Tick Up, No Rise in Economic Optimism

Survey Report In advance of Friday’s jobs report, the public’s assessment of job availability in their local communities has improved modestly. But that has done nothing to boost overall economic optimism. For Americans, jobs are only part of the economic picture: 56% say their family’s incomes are falling behind the cost of living. That is […]
short readsAug 29, 2014

For Labor Day, a look at the state of underemployment

Although the official unemployment rate was down to 6.2% in July, many economists and other analysts have concluded that that measure doesn’t fully capture what’s happened to the U.S. economy since the Great Recession officially ended in the summer of 2009.
short readsAug 13, 2014

Birth rate for unmarried women declining for first time in decades

For the first time in decades, the non-marital birth rate in the U.S. has been declining. It’s likely that the decline occurred as a result of the economic recession of 2007-2009.
reportAug 5, 2014

Modest Improvement in Views of Economic News

Survey Report Amid recent reports on the U.S. unemployment rate and gross domestic product, public views of economic news have improved modestly since February. A 64%-majority of the public says they are hearing “a mix of both good and bad news” about the economy these days, little changed over the last several months. But about […]
short readsAug 1, 2014

Chart of the Week: Which states have the most nurses, and where are they paid the most?

This interactive chart makes comparing occupational employment and pay across states not only easy but fun.
short readsJul 25, 2014

Chart of the Week: The Great Baby Recession

States that were hit the hardest by the Great Recession experienced the biggest birthrate declines.
reportJul 17, 2014

In Post-Recession Era, Young Adults Drive Continuing Rise in Multi-Generational Living

The number of Americans living in multi-generational households, which spiked during the Great Recession, has risen to a record 57 million in 2012, including about one-in-four young adults ages 25-34.
short readsJul 15, 2014

At the statehouse, ideological press tries to fill a void in news coverage

When the bottom fell out of the news industry during the recession, many newspapers cut their reporting power in statehouse press rooms.
short readsJul 1, 2014

Wage gap between high and low earners rising most among Hispanics

The earnings gap in the nation’s workforce has widened in recent years as the pay of high-wage workers has risen and the pay of low-wage workers has fallen, but Hispanics may be feeling the impact more acutely than others.