American workers fuel the world's most innovative economy, yet an understanding of how they are doing is obscured by a fog of conflicting narratives and misconceptions.
What's the reality? Contrary to the doom and gloom often portrayed, our research shows that American workers are better off than ever before across an array of important measures:
• The median worker is better paid and better educated.
• Employers have never offered better or more diverse benefits.
• Long-running surveys show that Americans today are broadly satisfied with their work at levels comparable to prior peak periods.
• Moreover, nearly 90 percent are satisfied with their job security—a near-record share.
Despite these gains, progress has slowed since 1980, especially compared to the booming post-war years. This dynamic is a key focus of our new American Worker Project.
The project aims to forge a new consensus about the condition of American workers. Along the way, we will present new analyses, guest essays from leading experts, survey data on worker sentiment, and practical ideas for how policymakers can accelerate progress where it has fallen short.
Tomorrow, economists Paul Krugman and Michael R. Strain respond to our findings in the first two guest essays. Look out for contributions from Steven Davis, Jason Furman, Marianne Wanamaker, Skanda Amarnath, and more in the coming weeks.
Explore the project here: eig.org/american-worker