Benefits and Challenges for U.S. Workers Through Clean Energy, Manufacturing, and Infrastructure Policies
PERI researchers Jeannette Wicks-Lim and Robert Pollin estimate the labor supply, labor demand, and potential labor shortages resulting from three major new U.S. economic policy laws—the BIL (Bipartisan Infrastructure Law), IRA (Inflation Reduction Act) and CHIPS Act. They find that 20 occupations, mostly in construction and manufacturing, could face labor shortages because of these measures. Increasing opportunities for workers to receive training, apprenticeships, and related forms of support, including childcare and fair hiring practices, are needed for workers to fully benefit from the increased opportunities.
Busting the Bankers' Club
PERI researcher Gerald Epstein’s book Busting the Bankers’ Club: Finance for the Rest of Us uncovers the deep roots of Wall Street’s political and economic power. The book describes how, due to the long-term erosion of regulatory policies, current U.S. financial practices promote instability and crises and produce destructive impacts on workers and communities. Epstein also examines in depth the “Club Busters.” These are the political activists, organizations, financial regulators, legal scholars, economists, and policymakers who are fighting the destructive power of finance and aiming to build a financial system that serves the rest of us.
The Contemporary Mexican Economy in its Labyrinth
Luis Monroy Gomes Franco analyzes the performance of the Mexican economy over the past two decades. He focuses on the economy’s aggregate and sectoral dynamics as well as the changes and continuities in the conduct of macroeconomic and labor market policy with the arrival of a new administration in 2018. This enables him to provide an integrated view of the background within which Mexico will face three structural challenges going forward: the medium and long-run effects of the COVID-19 pandemic; the integration of artificial intelligence into the production process; and climate change.
Shifting the Debate About Social Protection and Informality
The introduction of social protections for individuals engaged in paid employment frequently comes up against arguments that such measures would have adverse impacts on employment, reduce access to formal jobs, and result in greater informality. PERI researchers James Heintz and Jayati Ghosh critically evaluate such arguments and provide responses to the claim that social protections lead to higher informality. They also consider the challenges involved in providing social protection to different types of workers, including not only those employed by others but specifically the self-employed and unpaid workers.
