By Rachel Goldfarb, originally published on Next New Deal
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What Happens When Fast Food Actually Pays (The Daily Beast)
Daniel Gross examines burger chains that pay their brand-new employees a living wage. Unsurprisingly, high wages can lead to more prosperous companies, and those companies aren't getting the bad press about wage-related strikes.
The Uneven Geography of America's Fast Food Jobs (Atlantic Cities)
Richard Florida breaks down data on the wages and growth of fast food jobs by city. The fast food workers who are striking aren't making the worst wages in their industry; if their wages aren't livable, what does that say for those making even less?
Why Do the People Raising Our Children Earn Poverty Wages? (The Nation)
E. Tammy Kim looks at childcare workers who accept public subsidies, which often results in poverty wages. When subsidies assume only 30 hours of care a week, these care providers don't have many options if they want to keep their clients.
How Vast Error-Prone Databases Are Trashing Our Economic Lives (TAP)
Amy Traub reports on how major databases are keeping people from opening bank accounts and preventing them from accessing credit at the right rates. These mistakes affect too many people, and on too broad a scale, to be ignored.
Wall Street Decimates Black America (Salon)
Laura Gottesdiener explains how the foreclosure crisis has disproportionately hit black neighborhoods, which were targeted by banks for predatory loans. Now, these houses remain empty, and the banks take no responsibility for the effect on the neighborhood.
Sex, Money and Gravitas (NYT)
Paul Krugman argues that the sexist campaigns against Janet Yellen for Fed Chair are also full of bad economic analysis. The Fed hasn't been causing runaway inflation, and Yellen has proven to be far better at economic forecasting then her hawkish peers.
Obama Finally has a Good Economic Idea – too Bad No One's Listening (The Guardian)
Heidi Moore thinks that Obama's grand bargain is a sign that he's ready to make allies instead of enemies in the GOP. Unfortunately, the Republicans don't seem to care either way, so they're still ignoring his ideas.
New on Next New Deal
Delaying Abortions: A Harmful Consequence of the Pro-Life Agenda
Roosevelt Institute Fellow Andrea Flynn and Director of Research Susan Holmberg point out that the results of laws restricting reproductive health and abortion services don't follow their proponents' intentions. These laws increase unwanted pregnancies, abortions, and abortions later in pregnancy.