Employment Policies Institute

The Employment Policies Institute is a fiscally conservative, non-profit American think tank that conducts and publishes research on employment issues, particularly aimed towards reducing the minimum wage. It was established in 1991 by Richard Berman,[2][3] and it has been described as "a nonprofit research group that studies issues of entry-level employment."[4]

Employment Policies Institute
AbbreviationEPI
Formation1991 (1991)
TypeThink tank
HeadquartersWashington, D.C., United States
Parent organization
Berman and Company
Revenue (2013)
$2,347,584[1]
Expenses (2013)$2,131,002[1]
Websiteepionline.org

Employment Policies Institute does not have its own employees or office, but rather its staff work for Berman and Company, which is a public affairs firm owned by Richard Berman, who lobbies for the restaurant, hotel, alcoholic beverage and tobacco industries.[3][5][6] The charity evaluator Charity Navigator has issued a donor advisory concerning The Employment Policies Institute.[7]

Employment Policies Institute should not be confused with the older, similarly named Economic Policy Institute, which is a liberal think tank advocating for low to moderate-income families in the United States.

Issues

The Employment Policies Institute has released a number of studies[8][9] that look at the economic effects of policies (like the minimum wage, health care mandates, and employment tax credits) on low-wage labor markets. It also regularly analyzes job market data in the United States[10][11] Typically, studies are contracted by university economists and published under its name.[12]

In 2009, The Employment Policies Institute launched a campaign, Defeat The Debt, focusing on the national debt.[13]

Minimum wage

The Employment Policies Institute argues that increases to the minimum wage also increase unemployment among groups of workers like teens and less-educated and unskilled workers.[14] Economists have varied views on the impact of minimum wage laws.

It weighed in when David Card and Alan Krueger concluded that a 1992 minimum wage hike in New Jersey did not decrease employment in the state. Card and Krueger surveyed fast food employers in New Jersey before and after an April 1992 increase in the state minimum wage (from $4.25 to $5.05 per hour) and found a slight increase in employment.[15] Critics of the analysis, including The Employment Policies Institute,[16] noted that because Card and Krueger's research was based on informal headcounts acquired through telephone surveys, it could not be easily replicated.[17] Subsequent analysis of these restaurants' payroll data records found that employment actually decreased by 4.6 percent after the minimum wage hike,[18] and The Employment Policies Institute's findings were later verified by independent economists.[18] This result would mean that the total amount of wages paid to minimum wage employees in the fast food industry in New Jersey increased 13.4 percent as a result of the increase in the minimum wage (employment declined 4.6 percent, but the minimum wage increased 18.8 percent, for a total change in wages paid of 13.4 percent).

In 2000, Card and Krueger redid their study using a data set from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and reproduced their earlier conclusions.[19] They also showed that Neumark and Wascher's results were due to a non-random biased sample of restaurants.

In the time since the Card–Krueger study was released, many economists have tried to look at the effects of minimum wage increases on employment prospects. A 2006 review by Neumark and Wascher of over 100 studies on the minimum wage concluded that the general consensus view agreed that wage increases hurt employment opportunities for youths.[20]

In 2014 they took out billboards in San Francisco telling workers they will be replaced by iPads if they ask for a living wage.[21]

Staff and Management

Michael Saltsman has been identified on a number of occasions as The Employment Policies Institute research director.[22] Samantha Summers is the nonprofits communications director.[23]

Campaigns

National debt

Defeat The Debt, is a project of The Employment Policies Institute that is focused on the national debt and was launched towards the end of 2009.

See also

References
  1. "Employment Policies Institute Foundation" (PDF). Foundation Center. 20 November 2014. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
  2. "About The Employment Policies Institute". Employment Policies Institute. Archived from the original on 2010-09-22. Retrieved 2010-08-23.
  3. Lipton, Eric (February 9, 2014). "Fight Over Minimum Wage Illustrates Web of Industry Ties". The New York Times. Retrieved 2018-11-25.
  4. Whitaker, Barbara (June 9, 2007). "Ample Jobs, but Youths Are Choosy". New York Times.
  5. Graves, Lisa (2013-11-13). "Corporate America's new scam: Industry P.R. firm poses as think tank!". Salon. Retrieved 2018-11-25.
  6. Mark Drajem, Brian Wingfield (November 1, 2012). "Union Busting by Profiting From Non-Profit May Breach IRS". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2018-11-25.
  7. "Employment Policies Institute Foundation | Rating by Charity Navigator".
  8. "Millions Decide to Go Without Health Insurance Coverage". St. Petersburg Times. July 4, 2009.
  9. "Economists Say Hike in Teen Unemployment Rate Related to Minimum Wage Increase". Inland Valley Daily Bulletin. March 5, 2010.
  10. Li, Shan (June 29, 2010). "Summer Job Market Cold for Teens". Los Angeles Times.
  11. Clabaugh, Jeff (July 7, 2010). "Summer jobs for teens down 38 percent". Portland Business Journal.
  12. "Think Tanks". Truman State University. Retrieved August 24, 2010.
  13. "Group Launches Campaign to Raise Awareness About Soaring National Debt". Fox News. September 2, 2009.
  14. "Seniors Pushing Young Adults Out of the Workforce". Forbes. February 24, 2010.
  15. Minimum wage#Card and Krueger
  16. "Policy Wonks Go to Battle Over Minimum Wage". Christian Science Monitor. January 26, 1996.
  17. "Myth and Measurement: The New Economics of the Minimum Wage". The Cato Journal Book Review. Retrieved August 24, 2010.
  18. Neumark, David; Wascher, William (2000). "Minimum Wages and Employment: A Case Study of the Fast-Food Industry in New Jersey and Pennsylvania: Comment". American Economic Review. 90 (5): 1362–1396. doi:10.1257/aer.90.5.1362.
  19. Card, David; Krueger, Alan B. (2000). "Minimum Wages And Employment: A Case Study Of The Fast-Food Industry In New Jersey And Pennsylvania: Reply". American Economic Review. 90 (5): 1397–1420. doi:10.1257/aer.90.5.1397. S2CID 1140202.
  20. Neumark, David; Wascher, William (November 2006). "Minimum Wages and Employment: A Review of Evidence from the New Minimum Wage Research". NBER Working Paper No. 12663. doi:10.3386/w12663.
  21. "New San Francisco billboard warns workers they'll be replaced by iPads if they demand a fair wage". Pando. 2014-07-17. Retrieved 2020-12-12.
  22. "Industries, unions fund nonprofits' studies to aid lobbying".
  23. "Commentary: No longer the season for seasonal workeers? | HeraldNet.com". HeraldNet.com. 2018-12-02. Retrieved 2018-12-02.
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