Three important economic distributions and the politics that shape them CEPR Basic Economics Seminar John Schmitt September 29, 2005

1
Three important economic distributions and the
politics that shape them CEPR Basic Economics
Seminar John SchmittSeptember 29, 2005
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Todays talk

• Three important economic distributions
• Wages
• Incomes
• Wealth
• Political forces shaping these distributions

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Table 1 Hourly wage distribution, 2004
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Table 4 Hourly wage distribution , by race and
gender, 2004
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Figure 1 Real hourly wage growth, all, 1979-2004
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Figure 2 Real hourly wage growth, men, 1979-2004
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Figure 3 Real hourly wage growth, women,
1979-2004
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Table 7 Annual family income distribution, 2001
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Figure 4 Real median family income, 1947-2003
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Figure 5 Annual growth real family income,
1947-2003
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Figure 6 Share of wealth, by wealth level,
1962-2001
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Table 9 Average wealth, by wealth class,
1962-2001
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Figure 7 Households with zero or negative net
wealth, 1962-2001
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Figure 8 Share of gains in wealth, 1983-2001
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Policies lowering bargaining power ofworkers,
relative to their employers

• Decline in purchasing power of minimum wage
• Decline in unionization rate
• Economic deregulation
• Privatization (state and local)
• Welfare Reform
• Recessionary macroeconomic policy
• Pro-corporate globalization

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Figure 10 Real value of the minimum wage,
1955-2004
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Figure 9 Share of workers in unions, 1948-2004
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Table 6 Health-care coverage rates, by wage
quintile 1979-2002
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Table 8 Distribution of household wealth,
1962-2001
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Figure 11 Prison and jail population, 1980-2003
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Reading List

• John Schmitt. Labor markets and economic
  inequality in the United States since the end of
  the 1970s, International Journal of Health
  Services, vol. 35, no. 4, pp. 655-673.
  Available in Working Paper form
  http//www.noapparentmotive.org/papers/schmitt_ijh
  s.pdf.
• John Schmitt. How Good is the US Economy at
  Creating Good Jobs? Center for Economic and
  Policy Research Briefing Paper, October 2005.
  http//www.cepr.net/publications/labor_markets_20
  05_10.pdf
• Lawrence Mishel, Jared Bernstein, and Silvia
  Allegretto. The State of Working America
  2004-2005. Ithaca, New York Cornell University
  Press, 2005.

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Three important economic distributions and the
politics that shape them John SchmittCenter
for Economic and Policy Researchwww.cepr.net