Labor Market & Workforce

Testimony: Overall Impact of a $15 State Minimum Wage

January 7, 2016. James Parrott testified at a New York State Senate Standing Committee on Labor hearing. In his conclusion, Parrott asserts that it would be sound public policy for New York State to phase in a $15 an hour minimum wage. Considerable economically sound research supports the conclusion that the businesses can accommodate such an increase. A higher wage floor would generate significant cost savings due to reduced turnover and there is room for modest price increases to ease the adjustment without jeopardizing overall [...]

Fiscal Policy Institute2024-12-18T12:27:02-05:00January 7th, 2016|Economic Trends & Policy, Labor Market & Workforce, State Budget, Tax & Budget, Testimony|

A Fair Wage for Human Services Workers: Ensuring a government funded $15 per hour minimum wage for human services workers throughout NYS

December 9, 2015. A new report prepared by the FPWA, Human Services Council and FPI, documents the current state of the nonprofit sector providing State-funded human services and discusses the implications of the Governor’s proposed $15 an hour minimum wage. The groups support inclusion of the nonprofit sector workers in the wage increase and make the case for increased State funding in human service contracts. More than 200,000 human services workers across NYS are the driving force behind services like afterschool programs, child welfare, early [...]

Fiscal Policy Institute2024-12-18T12:27:02-05:00December 9th, 2015|Economic Trends & Policy, Labor Market & Workforce, Press Releases, Reports, Briefs and Presentations|

Business profits in New York State have grown much faster than wages since 2001

December 1, 2015. In a new analysis, the Fiscal Policy Institute finds that business profits per worker in New York State increased by 61% from 2001-13, while labor compensation per worker has risen by only 34%, and the typical worker received wage increases of 25-29%, much less than inflation. James Parrott, the Institute’s Deputy Director and Chief Economist stated: “These data confirm once again that most workers in New York have not been sharing in the fruits of the state’s economic growth over the past [...]

Fiscal Policy Institute2024-12-18T12:27:03-05:00December 1st, 2015|Economic Outlook, Economic Trends & Policy, Labor Market & Workforce, Reports, Briefs and Presentations|

Fact Checking the Empire Center-American Action Forum Analysis of NY’s Proposed $15 Minimum Wage: Flawed Methods Produce Erroneous Results

November 19, 2015. James Parrott, Deputy Director and Chief Economist of the Fiscal Policy Institute, and Paul Sonn, General Counsel and Program Director of the National Employment Law Project, released this policy brief fact checking the Empire Center/American Action Forum report Higher Wages, Fewer Jobs. The report predicts significant job losses if Governor Cuomo’s proposal to increase New York’s minimum wage to $15 is enacted. The Empire Center/American Action Forum report uses outdated economics that ignores both the troubling gap between wage and business profit growth [...]

Fiscal Policy Institute2024-12-18T12:27:03-05:00November 19th, 2015|Economic Trends & Policy, Labor Market & Workforce, Reports, Briefs and Presentations|

FPI-NELP Response to NYS Business Council Statement on Gov. Cuomo’s $15 Minimum Wage Proposal

October 8, 2015. The New York State Business Council’s statement on the Governor’s proposal to raise New York’s minimum wage to $15 by 2021 leaves out several “inconvenient” truths: 1. A phased-in minimum wage increase will boost the purchasing power of roughly 3 million low-wage New York workers, pumping that increased consumer spending into local businesses and jobs all across the state. Above all else, small businesses need customers; a minimum wage increase will provide them. 2. A higher wage floor benefits businesses because workers [...]

Fiscal Policy Institute2024-12-18T12:27:03-05:00October 8th, 2015|Economic Trends & Policy, Labor Market & Workforce, Reports, Briefs and Presentations|

Governor Cuomo’s Call for Raising New York’s Minimum Wage to $15 Statewide

September 10, 2015. FPI and the National Employment Law Project have again teamed together on a background brief supporting Governor Cuomo's announcement today proposing a statewide $15 minimum wage. The brief includes demographic data on the 3 million New York workers who would be directly affected by the proposal, along with a summary of the economic arguments in support of a higher New York minimum wage.

Fiscal Policy Institute2024-12-18T12:27:03-05:00September 10th, 2015|Economic Trends & Policy, Labor Market & Workforce, Reports, Briefs and Presentations|

The Importance of a $15 Wage Floor for New York’s Nonprofits

August 17, 2015. This op-ed by James Parrott, FPI's deputy director and chief economist, and Jennifer Jones-Austin, CEO and executive director of the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies, appeared in City & State. New York’s leaders should build on the historic recommendation of the Fast Food Wage Board appointed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo and begin moving toward an across-the-board $15-per-hour wage floor. A growing number of major cities around the country have already enacted, or are considering, a $15 floor. Legislation has been introduced in Washington [...]

Fiscal Policy Institute2024-12-18T12:27:03-05:00August 17th, 2015|Economic Trends & Policy, Labor Market & Workforce, Letters|

Letter to Wage Board on $15 Minimum Wage for Fast-Food Workers

June 26, 2015. James Parrott, deputy director and chief economist, authored this letter to the Fast Food Wage Board to support testimony he previously presented to the Board.

Fiscal Policy Institute2024-12-18T12:27:04-05:00June 26th, 2015|Economic Trends & Policy, Labor Market & Workforce, Letters|

Comments Provided to the New York Fast Food Wage Board

June 1, 2015. FPI played an important role in the efforts to convince the New York Fast Food Wage Board in June and July 2015 to recommend a $15 wage floor for 136,000 workers in large fast-food chains. FPI materials include the following: Testimony at the Buffalo hearing of the Fast Food Wage Board, June 5, 2015 Supplemental comments to the Fast Food Wage Board, June 26, 2015 Op-ed, “Boosting the Wages of Fast-Food Workers Will Help the Economy,” in the July 20, 2015 Albany [...]

Fiscal Policy Institute2024-12-18T12:27:04-05:00June 5th, 2015|Economic Trends & Policy, Labor Market & Workforce, Letters, Reports, Briefs and Presentations, Testimony|

Testimony on Increasing the Minimum Wage in the Fast-Food Industry

June 5, 2015. James Parrott presented testimony to the New York State Department of Labor Wage Board hearing on increasing the minimum wage in the fast-food industry. Fast-food is a highly profitable and fast-growing industry. Fast-food employment has risen across New York, adding significantly to the growing problem of low-wages that are far from adequate in allowing a worker to meet basic family budget needs. A significant portion of fast-food workers are trying to raise families, but more than two out of every five workers [...]

Fiscal Policy Institute2024-12-18T12:27:04-05:00June 5th, 2015|Economic Trends & Policy, Labor Market & Workforce, Testimony|

Statement on Mayor’s Budget Commitment to Increase Wages for Low-wage Nonprofit Social Sector Workers

May 8, 2015. Contact: James Parrott, Deputy Director, Fiscal Policy Institute, 212-721-5624 "The Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies (FPWA) and the Fiscal Policy Institute (FPI) applaud the Mayor for including in his Executive Budget a first-ever $11.50 per hour wage floor for the City's contracted social service workforce. FPWA and FPI have been advocating for this important commitment over the past year. This will mean a big earnings boost for 10,000 workers whose wages currently average less than $10.00 per hour. These front-line workers, many [...]

Fiscal Policy Institute2024-12-18T12:27:04-05:00May 8th, 2015|Economic Trends & Policy, Labor Market & Workforce, Press Releases, State Budget, Tax & Budget|

Real Living Wage NYC Educational Breakfast Forum

April 23, 2015, Manhattan. James Parrott delivered this presentation at the Community Church of New York for the Real Living Wage NYC Educational Forum, a gathering of New York City faith leaders committed to a "faith-based movement for racial and economic justice. Parrott uses the 2014 NYC Self-Sufficiency Standard as a basis for identifying a "real living wage" level for New York City.

Fiscal Policy Institute2024-12-18T12:27:04-05:00April 23rd, 2015|Economic Trends & Policy, Fact Sheets, Labor Market & Workforce, Reports, Briefs and Presentations|

New York City’s Recovery Finally Starts Generating Wage Gains

April 13, 2015. In this report, FPI's analysis shows that New York City's recovery is finally starting to generate wage gains. After years of wage and family income declines since the 2008-09 recession, several signs are emerging of real wage growth in New York City. The three major current government economic data sets all point to fairly widespread and firmly-established wage growth beginning in 2014. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) average private hourly earnings data show a 2.7 percent real gain for the six months [...]

Fiscal Policy Institute2024-12-18T12:27:04-05:00April 13th, 2015|Economic Outlook, Economic Trends & Policy, Labor Market & Workforce, Reports, Briefs and Presentations|

Budget Savings from a Minimum Wage Increase

March 27, 2015. As negotiations over New York State’s budget draw to a close, Governor Cuomo and the legislature are trying to hammer out an agreement to raise the state’s minimum wage, which is currently just $8.75 and is currently scheduled to top out at $9.00 at the end of this year. Both Governor Cuomo and the Assembly have proposed measures to raise New York State’s minimum wage, including a higher minimum wage level for New York City in the Governor’s bill, or, in the [...]

Fiscal Policy Institute2024-12-18T12:27:05-05:00March 27th, 2015|Economic Trends & Policy, Labor Market & Workforce, Reports, Briefs and Presentations, State Budget, Tax & Budget|

Living Wage and Minimum Wage Efforts

July 30, 2015. Given the long-standing gap between the growth in wages and productivity that has eroded living standards for most workers and their families in New York and around the country, raising the wage floor has become an economic policy imperative. FPI has been at the forefront in efforts in New York State and New York City to raise wages for low-wage workers. FPI played an important role in efforts to convince the New York Fast Food Wage Board in June and July 2015 [...]

Fiscal Policy Institute2024-12-18T12:27:06-05:00February 9th, 2015|Economic Trends & Policy, Labor Market & Workforce, Reports, Briefs and Presentations|