February 15, 2012

Where the Jobs Are: Employment Trends and Analysis

10:15 a.m.
Rayburn House Office Building
Room 2123
45 Independence Ave, SW
Washington, D.C.

The Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade held the first in its series of hearings entitled “Where the Jobs Are.” The hearing focused on “Employment Trends and Analysis." Participants giving testimony included:

• John Abowd, Edmund Ezra Day Professor of Economics and director of the Labor Dynamics Institute at Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations.
• John Berlau, director of the Center for Investors and Entrepreneurs at the Competitive Enterprise Institute.
• Harold Sirkin, managing director at Boston Consulting Group, Inc.
• John Schmitt, senior economist at the Center for Economic and Policy Research.

A video of the testimony can be found below or after the jump.

February 10, 2012

Economic Mobility: What's the Problem and What to Do About It?

12:15 - 1:30 p.m.
New America Foundation
1899 L St NW
Washington, D.C. 20036

In a recent speech in Osawatomie, Kansas, President Obama described how the prospects of upward mobility for a child born into poverty have dimmed substantially, and he identified the path to inclusive prosperity as "the defining issue of our time." But has the climb up the economic ladder really become more arduous? Have more families in the middle class fallen downward? What can and should be done to increase economic security and create opportunities for upward mobility? The New America Foundation sponsored a discussion with Scott Winship, fellow in economic studies at the Brookings Institution and former research manager with the Economic Mobility Project. Participants included Heather McGhee, director of the Demos Washington Office; Shawn Fremstad, a senior research associate at the Center for Economic Policy Research; and Reid Cramer, director of the Asset Building Program at the New America Foundation.

A video of the event is available below or after the jump.

February 5, 2012

Retirement Heist: How Companies Plunder and Profit from the Nest Eggs of American Workers

5 p.m. ET/2 p.m PT.
Firedoglake

It’s no secret that hundreds of companies have been slashing pensions and health coverage earned by millions of retirees. Employers blame an aging workforce, stock market losses, and spiraling costs- what they call “a perfect storm” of external forces that has forced them to take drastic measures. But this so-called retirement crisis is no accident. In the new book, Retirement Heist, Ellen E. Schultz, award-winning investigative reporter for the Wall Street Journal, reveals how large companies and the retirement industry-benefits consultants, insurance companies, and banks-have all played a huge and hidden role in the death spiral of American pensions and benefits. CEPR Co-Director Dean Baker hosted a book salon on Firedoglake with Schultz.

February 4, 2012

Green Night Out

7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Singapore Vegetarian Kosher Chinese Restaurant
1006 Race Street, Chinatown
Philadelphia, PA, 19107

CEPR Senior Economist Eileen Appelbaum discussed "Paid Family Leave and Paid Sick Days: What Activists Need to Know and What They Can Do About It" at an event sponsored by The Green Party. The event also featured an endless supply of vegetarian kosher Chinese food for only $25 per person.

February 3, 2012

Empire Unplugged: A Salon with Dean Baker & Jeffrey Tucker on the Federal Reserve

8:00 p.m.
Montserrat House
2016 9th St NW
Washington, DC 20001

Is the Federal Reserve a legitimate or illegitimate institution? What is the case for it and against it? CEPR Co-Director Dean Baker took part in a debate with Jeffrey Tucker, an Austrian economics advocate, executive editor of Laissez Faire Books and former editorial vice president of The Mises Institute.

February 1, 2012

Rebuilding the Middle Class

9:00 - 10:30 a.m
Center for American Progress
1333 H St. NW, 10th Floor
Washington, DC 20005

In the State of the Union address, President Barack Obama challenged Congress to pursue policies that recognize that a strong middle class is the key driver of economic growth. He stressed that the United States will not have an economy that works until it has one that works for all Americans. At an event sponsored by the Center for American Progress, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), chairman of the Health, Education, Labor, & Pensions Committee, talked about what he's learned from the series of HELP Committee hearings and events on the decline of the middle class, and outlined a policy agenda that puts the middle class first. Senator Harkin's remarks were followed by a panel of distinguished economists and policy analysts exploring how the middle class is a key engine of economic growth. The panelists included:

• Heather Boushey, Senior Economist, Center for American Progress
• Isabel Sawhill, Senior Fellow of Economic Studies, Brookings Institution
• John Schmitt, Senior Economist, Center for Economic and Policy Research

A video of the event is available below or after the jump.

February 1, 2012

Debate: Progressive Economics and the Great Recession

9:30 - 11:00 a.m
Information Technology and Innovation Foundation
1101 K Street (Suite 601A)
Washington, DC 20005

The Great Recession has given way to a less-than-great recovery and the pressure is on for Washington to respond. ITIF President Rob Atkinson has taken on traditional Keynesians for pushing for additional public pump priming and for what he sees as their focus on distribution of the economic pie rather than the growth of the pie. But Dean Baker, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research, rejects Atkinson's critique. The event was moderated by American Public Media's John Dimsdale.

A video of the event can be found below or after the jump.

January 30, 2012

What's the Economy for, Anyway?: Why It's Time to Stop Chasing Growth and Start Pursuing Happiness

6:30 - 8 p.m.
Busboys and Poets
2021 14th St NW
Washington, D.C. 20009

Activist John de Graaf discussed and signed copies of his new book, "What's the Economy For, Anyway?: Why It's Time to Stop Chasing Growth and Start Pursuing Happiness," at the 14th and U Street Busboys and Poets. The event was sponsored by the Center for Economic and Policy Research, Teaching for Change and Busboys and Poets. More information on the book can be found here.

January 25, 2012

CEPR: Haiti Events on the Hill

Rayburn House Office Building
45 Independence Ave SW
Washington, D.C.

CEPR's Mark Weisbrot participated in a series of congressional panels on Haiti on the Hill — part of a Congressional Schedule of Events that took place Jan. 24-25.

January 24, 2012

Author Event, "Tectonic Shifts: Haiti Since the Earthquake"

6:30 p.m.
Busboys and Poets
2021 14th St NW
Washington, D.C. 20009

Editor Mark Schuller discussed the new book, "Tectonic Shifts: Haiti Since the Earthquake," which features chapters written by CEPR Co-Director Mark Weisbrot and research assistant Jake Johnston. The event was sponsored by TransAfrica Forum, the Center for Economic and Policy Research, Teaching for Change and Busboys and Poets.