Readings in Inequality. September 2019 Links

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Each Sunday Tony Wikrent posts a list of links at Real Economics and Ian Welsh. Some are political, many lead to news about runaway inequality. This post borrows a few that seem to fit together very well. The New York Times reported that inequality is getting worse, which for poor people means more sickness and an earlier death. Peter Turchin, at Evonomics, discusses what it is that sometimes (like in the post World War II era) decreases inequality. Namely policy changes when disenchantment with inequality reaches a boiling point. Bloomberg takes a look at the growing disenchantment with capitalism in the US and …

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About the Business Roundtable’s Mission Change

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The Business Roundtable was formed in 1972 with the goal of undermining New Deal-forged worker rights and corporate regulation by the federal government. The Roundtable worked to weaken antitrust regulations, undermine labor protections and stopped Ralph Nader’s attempt to create a consumer protection agency in 1977. This was a group of hundreds of the country’s top companies working to escape federal regulations, decrease taxes, and promote the better business environment. And free trade. But last week they issued a letter that said (from the NY Times): “Breaking with decades of long-held corporate orthodoxy, the Business Roundtable issued a statement on …

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Elizabeth Warren Announces Her Plan to Stop the Financialization of the US Economy.

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You can read her ideas and plans here. Key quote: Here’s the problem with the belief that helping Wall Street always helps the economy: it isn’t true. In recent decades, Wall Street has grown bigger and financial sector profits have gone from 10% to 25% of total corporate profits, but everyone else in America has lived through a generation of stagnant wages and sluggish economic growth. Even today, big banks are making record profits and handing out huge bonuses as average wages barely budge. The truth is that Washington has it backwards. For a long time now, Wall Street’s success hasn’t helped the broader economy — it’s come at …

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The High Price of Child Care

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Child care is expensive because good child care employs a high ratio of caregivers to children. That’s good for children but a problem for working people earning on the low end (and even the middle) of the wage scale. The Economic Policy Institute took a look at child care costs and found that infant care in New York cost more than $14,000, and in 33 states and Washington DC, the cost of child care was higher than the cost to attend the state’s colleges. Follow the link to see how much child care costs in your state. This Vox article …

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CEOs Make How Much More Than Their Workers?

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The AFL-CIO Paywatch program keeps an eye on the executive compensation figures public corporations are required to report thanks to the Dodd Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010. That’s information companies didn’t want to report, and a closer look shows why. Read it here. A few takeaways: In the past 10 years, CEOs have seen their compensation increased by $5,200,000 each. In those same 10 years, employees have seen their compensation increase by $7,858. That’s a ratio of 662 to 1. After the big Trump tax cut in 2017, the top 10 companies in stock buybacks …

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More Than a Trickle Up

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The People’s Policy Project is a think tank run by Matt Breunig, who previously worked as a lawyer for the National Labor Relations Board and as a policy analyst at the Demos Think Tank. The 3P, as they refer to themselves, took a look at the recent Federal Reserve report that tracks the distribution of wealth in the US. You can get to the original data here. By comparing the data from 1989, the first year they were collected, to 2018, the most recent set, and making adjustments for consumer durables (taking them out) and inflation (making all dollars equal …

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The Nitty Gritty Had This to Say About Runaway Inequality

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RUNAWAY INEQUALITY—This is the most pressing issue that affects all working people and the poor. After World War II the US emerged as a super power because its economy built up a strong middle class. The system at that time saw the height of union involvement so workers could negotiate with business for improved wages and benefits. Government regulated businesses, banks and Wall Street. Corporations and the wealthy paid their fair share of taxes. Wages and productivity went up together, side by side. During those years, workers did a little better each year with raising wages and government programs began …

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Will the Democrats Abandon Lordstown to Trump?

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Lordstown is the poster child for modern financialized capitalism and runaway inequality By Les Leopold The vacant Lordstown General Motors facility is a frightening sight—6.2 million square feet of modern industrial might spread over 900 acres doing absolutely nothing except depressing the regional economy and the spirits of northeast Ohio. Just a few months ago it produced the Chevy Cruze and provided thousands of good paying industrial jobs with excellent benefits. Now it’s gone, and unless the Democrats have something meaningful to say about it, they too may be gone. Lordstown is the poster child for modern financialized capitalism and …

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