The federal minimum wage was established in 1938 at 25¢ an hour (about $4.26 in today’s dollars). Since then it’s been adjusted 29 times to keep up with inflation and rising living standards. The most recent change was in 2009,…
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By:
Gene Perry
July 5, 2017 // Updated: May 2, 2019
If you ask a person on the street what Oklahoma’s economy is known for, two industries likely to come to mind are oil and gas drilling and agriculture. Yet when we look at the jobs Oklahomans are working in today,…
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Too many Oklahoma parents face an impossible choice – continue to work full-time and miss precious opportunities to bond with a new child, or leave work and put their finances and career at risk. Oklahomans shouldn’t face this choice. New…
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In 2005, Tashara Persky was working as the lead store clerk at an Oklahoma Dollar General Store. When she informed her supervisor that she was pregnant and that her doctor had told her not to lift more than 15 pounds,…
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By:
Gene Perry
August 17, 2015 // Updated: May 2, 2019
Politicians love to talk about jobs. Promoting job creation is a go-to justification in many of Oklahoma’s policy decisions, whether it’s to extend tax breaks for oil companies or ban local minimum wage and paid sick leave laws.
However, aside…
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By:
Gene Perry
June 26, 2014 // Updated: May 2, 2019
When it comes to the role of taxes and public services in the economy, we too often engage in an ideological debate that changes no one’s mind. One side talks about the importance of investing in schools, roads, and public…
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By:
Guest
December 3, 2013 // Updated: May 2, 2019
Mark Funkhouser, a former Kansas City mayor and auditor, is the director of the Governing Institute, where this post originally appeared. It is reposted with permission.
Inequality of wealth and income in the United States is as high as it…
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By:
Kate Richey
November 29, 2013 // Updated: January 19, 2019
Every holiday season, retailers lure throngs of shoppers with extended hours, blowout sales, and special deals. The frantic sales environment is stressful for some shoppers, but it’s doubly so for most store employees. Oklahomans working retail aren’t likely to see…
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Numbers You Need is a monthly publication from OK Policy that presents key data on the state’s economy, work force, human services, and budget in one concise, easy-to-read fact sheet.
The forecasters may be predicting an economic turnaround ahead, but…
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