EPI in the news

• Gender pay gap shrinks in New York: But wage disparity widens nationally in a reversal of decades of progress

  D’Esposito isn’t alone. Ten years after stepping back from her law career in 2016, women across the country and on Long Island still face wage discrimination. Nationally, the gender pay gap widened marginally in 2025 for the third year in a row, reversing decades of progress. Smaller pay gap in New YorkOn average, women were paid 18.6% percent less than men last year – a wider gap than the 18% difference between men and women’s pay in 2024, according to a recent report from the Economic Policy Institute, a Washington, D.C.-based think tank.

  Newsday | March 26, 2026
• What employees actually want from flexible scheduling, and what’s holding it back

  These findings mirror broader national workforce research. Reporting from the Economic Policy Institute notes that surveys of U.S. workers consistently show strong demand for flexible scheduling, particularly flexible start and end times. Across multiple polls, majorities of employees say flexibility helps them better manage work and personal responsibilities.

  Stacker | March 26, 2026
• A proposal would cap Social Security at $100,000. Will it fly?

  “The short answer is that it’s a bad idea – a distraction from what would really make a difference: taxing all earnings at the same rate,” said Monique Morrissey, senior economist at the progressive Economic Policy Institute.  

  Her organization favors a different approach to closing the shortfall: Eliminating an existing cap on the payroll taxes that fund Social Security. 

  Workers pay into Social Security with a levy split between employers and employees. In 2026, earnings above $184,500 are not taxed for Social Security. Eliminating that cap could fund nearly three-fourths of the Social Security shortfall, EPI estimates. 

  USA Today | March 26, 2026
• Suit: Immigrants hired to sell home alarms in Vegas feared deportation for missing quotas

  Daniel Costa, the director of immigration law and policy research at the Economic Policy Institute, said that a big issue with the H-2B visa program is that workers fear retaliation for complaining about work conditions. He added that employers are required to pay for the transportation of their H-2B visa workers in and out of the country.  

  “They’re very afraid to complain because you know if the employer gets wind of this, they could just fire them, which means they become deportable,” Costa said. 

  He also pointed out that a big issue with the H-2B visa program is lack of oversight over foreign recruiters. Costa said that recruiters often charge illegal fees to workers, making them vulnerable, and that workers often may not get the jobs or wages they were promised.

  Nevada Independent | March 26, 2026
• National medical school accreditor drops remaining DEI requirements

  Other groups believe the Fair Admissions ruling and the administration’s quest to eradicate DEI policies will only lead to less diverse schools and workplaces.

  “Without protected and equitable pathways for students of color, we risk returning to a higher education system defined by exclusion rather than opportunity,” wrote Adewale Maye, a policy and research analyst for the Economic Policy Institute, last year. 

  The Center Square | March 26, 2026
• Zohran Mamdani is giving fast-food workers in NYC up to $10,000 for suffering unpredictable schedules. Many Americans don’t have these protections

  That leaves millions of workers without the same safeguards. According to the Economic Policy Institute, at least 17% of the U.S. workforce has an unstable or unpredictable schedule, a trend that can disrupt income and daily life (3).

  MoneyWise | March 26, 2026
• DOGE Damage Drags on in DC, Where Inequality is Widening as a Result

  Federal work powers much of the I-95 corridor, employing residents in Maryland’s Calvert, Charles, Anne Arundel, Prince George’s, Montgomery and Baltimore counties, and northern Virginia counties, including Fairfax and Stafford. But it’s in D.C. that job loss has been most acute. The District logged the highest unemployment rate in the nation in 2025, according to the Economic Policy Institute, likely because of the high concentration of federal jobs there.

  Talking Points Memo | March 26, 2026

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