Workplace

Reflections on the One-Day Work Week

Posted by Stephen Herzenberg on January 5, 2015 2:18 pm
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At the Keystone Research Center, we closed the office last week except for Friday, Jan. 2, giving our team an extra three days of well-deserved vacation along with the New Year's Day holiday. So we had a one-day work week.

Truth be told, I still came to the office on Monday and then worked at home much of the rest of the week.

Still, the quality of life that resulted from only "having" to come to the office on Friday provided a nice hint of what a world of shorter work time might feel like.

This is what the business lobby looks like on drugs

I just read this Mother Jones story on a letter from the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies (NAMIC) that focuses on whether or not auto insurance is affordable for low income consumers.  In making the case for the affordability of the auto insurance products of its members, NAMIC quoted statistics from the Consumer Expenditures Survey:

With Employer Health System Fraying, ACA Is More Important Than Ever

Posted by Chris Lilienthal on November 7, 2013 4:09 pm
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Our friends at the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) are out today with an interactive map showing how the 50 states stack up when it comes to employer-sponsored health insurance. With the nation’s employer-based health insurance system fraying rapidly in the past decade, the findings highlight just how important the Affordable Care Act is to many Americans.

Third and State This Week: Selling Snake Oil to the States, Medicaid Expansion Means Jobs, and the PA Budget Summit

Posted by Third and State on February 22, 2013 7:04 pm
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This week at Third and State, we blogged about how ALEC is trying to sell snake oil to the states, a new report finding that an expansion of Medicaid would support tens of thousands of new Pennsylvania jobs, and the Pennsylvania Budget Summit which took place in Harrisburg this week.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

  • On budget and fiscal policies, Sharon Ward blogged about new research striking a stake in the heart of claims by ALEC that its policies of lower taxes, fewer workplace protections, and diminished public investments is good for the public.
  • On health care policy and the economy, Chris Lilienthal wrote about a new report finding that the expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act would support more than 41,200 new jobs across Pennsylvania's economy in 2016.
  • On state budget and tax policy, we pulled together live tweets from the Pennsylvania Budget Summit all in one place.

IN OTHER NEWS:

  • The Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center has posted resources from the Budget Summit online. This includes our Just the Facts on Pennsylvania Spending, Taxes, Debt and Tax Fairness.
  • PBPC has launched a new Education Facts Page, with Pennsylvania data on enrollment in public, private and charter schools in the commonwealth as well as information about education funding and school poverty. Check it out.

ALEC Policies Sell 'Snake Oil to the States'

Posted by Shelley Aragoncillo on February 19, 2013 10:35 am
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Three national organizations offered a scathing criticism of policies endorsed by the American Legislative Exchange Council, or ALEC, in a conference call with reporters last week. Their findings strike a stake in the heart of ALEC claims that its view of the world — lower taxes, fewer workplace protections, and diminished public investments — is good for the public. 

Pennsylvania state lawmakers who look to ALEC for guidance on economic policy should stand up and take notice. 

Morning Must Reads: One Bidder? What Could Go Wrong?

The Keystone Research Center does not oppose the use of private contractors to provide services to federal, state and local governments as a matter of philosophy.

On pragmatic grounds, we DO support good governance, including carefully assessing the costs and benefits of privatization. Too often privatization is a goal in and of itself and good governance — careful weighing of pros and cons — isn't even in the vocabulary of privatization advocates.

Third and State This Week: Court Halts Voter ID Law, Changing the Subject on Payday Lending and Paying the Boss to Work

This week at Third and State, we blogged about a court decision halting enforcement of the Voter ID Law in the November election, an effort to change the subject on payday lending, a report on rising student debt, a lawsuit against the state to restore General Assistance and much more!

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

  • On voter ID, we highlighted a statement from the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center (PBPC) on a Commonwealth Court decision halting enforcement of the Voter ID Law in the November election. Chris Lilienthal also highlighted MSNBC's coverage of PBPC's recent report on the state's flawed implementation of the Voter ID Law.
  • On payday lending, Mark Price wrote about a recent state Senate hearing on the subject and why changing the subject doesn't make high-interest payday lending any better an idea in Pennsylvania.
  • On education, Jamar Thrasher blogged about a Pew Research Center report on the growing burden of student debt especially among the lowest-income students.
  • On jobs, Mark Price explained how the story of a Bucks County manufacturer who is finding it difficult to recruit workers made him think of a joke about parrots and economists. He also broke down the employment picture in Allentown.
  • On state tax policy, we shared a video from Reuters exploring the problems with programs that allow certain businesses to keep the income taxes paid by employees. The Pennsylvania House is considering a similar program.
  • On public welfare, Mark Price blogged about a lawsuit aimed at restoring Pennsylvania's General Assistance program.

More blog posts next week. Keep us bookmarked and join the conversation!

Pennsylvania Faces a Shortage of Skilled Parrots

The economist J.R. McCulloch once quipped that to pass for an economist, a parrot need only learn the phrase: “supply and demand, supply and demand.” In many cases, explaining trends in the economy often comes down to understanding supply and demand. 

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