In an article for Fortune, Prof. Amy Glasmeier and Alison Omens of JUST Capital underscore the importance of paying workers a living wage. “Those companies that will thrive in both the current and post-pandemic economy will be those that prioritize their workers—not just in their rhetoric but in paying them a living wage,” they write.
Writing for The New York Times, Prof. David Autor explores how the current labor shortage provides an opportunity to improve the quality of jobs in the U.S. “The period of labor scarcity, then, is an opportunity to catalyze better working conditions for those who need them most,” writes Autor.
Prof. David Autor speaks with Kara Miller of GBH’s Innovation Hub about the impact of Covid-19 on the future of work.
Motherboard reporter Lauren Kaori Gurley spotlights Unit, a new digital platform developed by MIT graduate James Earl White that is aimed at easing the unionization process. Gurley writes that White “founded Unit after volunteering with several labor organizing campaigns in college, and studying how unions can reduce income inequality.”
Greg Rosalsky of NPR’s Planet Money spotlights Prof. Daron Acemoglu’s research exploring how automation is driving inequality in America. Rosalsky notes that Acemoglu hopes his research “will get policymakers to take a new, smarter approach to technological change.”
Writing for The Boston Globe, Sloan Prof. Erin Kelly and University of Minnesota Prof. Phyllis Moen explore how to create an effect hybrid workplace. “Our hope is that after this past year’s normalization of remote work, more organizations will stop rewarding face time in favor of a future where a variety of work patterns are recognized as productive and welcome,” they write.
Elisabeth Reynolds, executive director of the MIT Task Force on the Work of the Future, speaks with Soledad O’Brien about how to ensure workers aren’t left behind in the transition to a more digital workforce. “If we can find pathways to the middle where we do see growth and demand for workers - construction, healthcare, the trades, manufacturing, places where we are seeing opportunities - that move can really be a new lifeline for people,” says Reynolds.
Prof. Amy Glasmeier speaks with Greg Iacuurci of CNBC about the calculator she and her colleagues developed that displays what an actual living wage is in different areas of the country. “People are not surviving on the minimum wage,” says Glasmeier,
Axios reporter Erica Pandey spotlights Prof. Thomas Kochan’s research that finds interest in unions has been steadily rising among workers. Kochan found that “the share of non-union U.S. workers who would vote to join one jumped from 32% in 1995 to 48% in 2017.”
CNBC reporter Greg Iacurci writes that a new paper by members of MIT’s Task Force on the Work of the Future demonstrates how the Covid-19 pandemic has exposed flaws in unemployment benefits for American workers.
Fast Company reports on Overload: How Good Jobs Went Bad and What We Can Do About It, a book co-authored by Prof. Erin Kelly, which shows that “employees with more control over their work schedules were happier, healthier, and had a better work-life harmony.”
A new white paper by Prof. Daron Acemoglu and graduate student Andrea Mandera finds that the U.S. tax code incentivizes companies to invest in automation rather than employees, reports Peter Coy for Bloomberg. “Favorable taxation of capital leads to excessive automation,” explains Acemoglu.
Wall Street Journal reporter Christopher Mims spotlights Prof. Daron Acemoglu’s research examining the impact of automation on employment and a new essay from Prof. David Autor and Dr. Elisabeth Reynolds that illustrates how the pandemic could exacerbate economic inequality.
MIT researchers have found that the Paycheck Protection Program helped protect around 2.3 million jobs, reports Jonnelle Marte for Reuters. “The researchers compared hiring trends at companies that were eligible for the program to those that were too large to qualify,” writes Marte. “They found that hiring at eligible companies rose after the launch of PPP when compared to companies that did not qualify.”
Bloomberg reporter Maeve Sheehey writes that a new study co-authored by MIT researchers finds that the Paycheck Protection Program helped to boost employment by 2% to 4.5%. “The research suggests that providing money directly to companies helped curb job losses during the pandemic,” writes Sheehey.