by Cara Brumfield, Adiam Tesfaselassie, Chris Geary and Siddhartha Aneja | Mar 17, 2022 | Report
Market power exists when one or more companies can profitably set prices for goods, services, and wages; and determine the quality, accessibility, and availability of goods and services. Market power, intertwined with deeply entrenched structural racism and class inequality, can have life-or-death consequences. This report explores the real-world impact of market power on the lives of people of color and people with low incomes–as workers, consumers, and entrepreneurs–their communities, and society at large. The research shows that market power contributes to economic insecurity and hardship in low-income communities and communities of color, including by driving down wages and benefits; limiting and controlling the availability of goods, services, and jobs; and undermining American prosperity and democracy.
by Vincent Palacios, Casey Goldvale, Chris Geary and Laura Tatum | Apr 30, 2021 | Data & Workbooks, Report
Higher education offers millions of people the opportunity to improve their financial well-being. However, higher education is prohibitively expensive and can saddle people with insurmountable debt. Costs beyond tuition—such as housing, food, child care, and transportation—are large, essential components of the cost of attending college for students. In order to better understand how these living costs add up and vary, this report offers estimates of costs beyond tuition for older students between the ages of 25 – 45, who make up roughly one-third of college students and face unique barriers to college access and completion. The report shows that the real cost of college for older students is higher than commonly understood, examines older students’ challenges with financial aid and public benefits programs, and offers policy recommendations to address costs beyond tuition and improve college access and success for older students.
by Chris Geary, Jeanna Capito and Jessica Duggan | Sep 4, 2020 | Brief
Before the COVID-19 crisis, home visiting programs provided essential services to help support pregnant people and parents of young children, strengthen parent-child interactions, promote healthy child development, and facilitate stable family systems. During the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting recession, many families face new and increased needs that home visitors can work to address. This brief, published jointly with the Rapid Response Virtual Home Visiting collaborative provides an overview of home visiting programs, shares their successes in pivoting to virtual service models, and explains their need for increased federal funding.
by Chris Geary, Vincent Palacios and Laura Tatum | Jul 20, 2020 | Brief
Throughout the COVID-19 crisis, essential workers have supported the well-being of our communities and the economy, but inconsistencies in federal, state, and local essential worker policies have limited some workers’ access to paid sick days, greater compensation, and other benefits. This brief, published jointly with the Workers’ Rights Institute, provides an inclusive definition of essential workers, and finds that women, people of color, and immigrants are over-represented in the essential workforce and face increased risks related to COVID-19.
