Economists warned California not to raise the minimum wage to $20. They were wrong in almost every way so far, according to a new study from CWED researchers Michael Reich and @dsosinskiy.bsky.social. Read more: fortune.com/2026/04/15/u...

Study: California’s $20 minimum wage barely raised prices—and proved economists wrong about job loss | Fortune

“The results are nowhere as dire as predicted,” Berkeley’s Michael Reich told Fortune.

fortune.com

Effects of a $20 Minimum Wage: The latest from Michael Reich and @dsosinskiy.bsky.social on California’s landmark $20 fast food minimum wage provides some of the strongest evidence yet that substantial wage increases can improve worker earnings without reducing employment. #EconSky

Can economic policy make life more affordable? Join us next Wednesday for a special seminar with @jaredb-econ.bsky.social, @lauradtyson.bsky.social, @jrothst.bsky.social and Michael Reich. Event details: irle.berkeley.edu/event/can-ec...

Miranda Dietz @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social explains why it's a problem that 1 in 3 new Covered California enrollees chose the cheapest, highest deductible health plans in the the latest from @ab-ibarra.bsky.social @calmatters.org Read the article: calmatters.org/health/2026/...

Check out our monthly newsletter for upcoming events, job and research funding opportunities, and the latest research from our centers. 🗞️ Read this month's edition: us17.campaign-archive.com?u=1af5855024... 🔗 Subscribe: irle.berkeley.edu/newsletter-s...

Lisa Kresge: “There is a concerted effort among many tech leaders to create mystification around AI as a tactic...to disempower workers, policymakers & anyone who might be critical of the growing concentration of funding & resources.” @theguardian.com www.theguardian.com/technology/n...

How the anxiety over AI could fuel a new workers’ movement

New technology has workers spooked, but experts say it’s creating an opening for a resurgence in worker power

theguardian.com

Students, if you... 🔹 believe all workers in deserve to work and live in dignity 🔹 want to learn how to build worker and community power ...then @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social's paid Labor Summer internship is for you! Learn more and apply by Feb 21: laborcenter.berkeley.edu/labor-summer...

Labor Summer Internship

Labor Summer is a full-time, PAID, intensive eight-week educational internship program. Students learn from and work with labor and community organizations in Northern and Central California, applying...

laborcenter.berkeley.edu

The @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social is hiring a health care policy researcher. Join a high-impact team at the forefront of research on the most pressing economic challenges affecting working families in California and across the country. Learn more and apply: aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF05275

Policy Researcher/Senior Policy Researcher, Health Care Program (Associate/Full Specialist) - UC Berkeley Labor Center

University of California, Berkeley is hiring. Apply now!

aprecruit.berkeley.edu

Danielle Mahones @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social breaks down why educators across California are striking for fully funded classrooms, appropriate staffing, access to quality healthcare, and more in the latest from @kqednews.kqed.org Listen and read: www.kqed.org/news/1207316...

Tomorrow at 4pm! irle.berkeley.edu/events/econo...

UC Berkeley Institute for Research on Labor & Employment (IRLE)@ucberkeleyirle.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Join us on Feb 11: @drodrik.bsky.social, Michael Reich, Jennifer Harris, & Paul Pierson @besiberkeley.bsky.social discuss the unraveling of neoliberal economic policy, emerging agendas to address Americans’ unmet needs, and the politics that could make them real. irle.berkeley.edu/events/econo...

Great job alert! @capolicylab.bsky.social is hiring a labor economics researcher for a remote or hybrid (LA) role. Design and conduct policy-relevant research in partnership with state and local agencies in California. Learn more and please share widely: capolicylab.org/careers/rese... #Econsky

Join us on Feb 11: @drodrik.bsky.social, Michael Reich, Jennifer Harris, & Paul Pierson @besiberkeley.bsky.social discuss the unraveling of neoliberal economic policy, emerging agendas to address Americans’ unmet needs, and the politics that could make them real. irle.berkeley.edu/events/econo...

Check out our January newsletter for the latest IRLE events, research, and student opportunities. Read more: us17.campaign-archive.com?u=1af5855024... Subscribe: irle.berkeley.edu/newsletter-s...

IRLE’s 2025 Impact Report Amid rapid social, political, and economic change, IRLE's mission remains constant: connecting world-class research with policy to improve workers’ lives and communities. Learn more: irle.berkeley.edu/about/impact...

Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society invites submissions to a special issue examining reasons for gender wage gaps around the world and policy responses to them. Extended abstracts due April 3. Learn more: irle.berkeley.edu/wp-content/u...

Here's a preview of our last edition of the year. Eight papers ranging from the impact of occupational licensing on retirement through to trust in the workplace. Check it out. @ucberkeleyirle.bsky.social @sriucl.bsky.social

Are you a union negotiator, researcher, policymaker, or journalist tracking how digital tech is used at work--and how unions are responding? Explore @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social's inventory of collective bargaining provisions related to workplace tech: laborcenter.berkeley.edu/negotiating-...

Negotiating tech

A searchable inventory of contract provisions from over 175 union agreements showing how collective bargaining has been used to address workplace technologies, protect worker rights, and shape technol...

laborcenter.berkeley.edu

#EconSky: @capolicylab.bsky.social is hiring a labor-focused data analyst. Apply today: capolicylab.org/careers/data...

📬 Our July newsletter is out now! Meet our research awardees and learn about upcoming student opportunities, fall events, and the latest research highlights from our centers. 🗞️ Read the newsletter: us17.campaign-archive.com?u=1af5855024... 🔗 Subscribe to stay connected: mailchi.mp/berkeley/irl...

🏆 We’re thrilled to announce the recipients of our annual research awards. This year, we received an unprecedented number of applications. The 21 selected projects stood out for their potential for meaningful research insights. Join us in congratulating these exceptional Berkeley scholars.

Good to see that in the new Clarivate Journal Citation Report the IR Berkeley Impact Factor (JIF) rose from 2.4 in 2023 to 2.6 in 2024, with a move up the rankings in Industrial Relations and Labor from 19/51 to 14/52 @ucberkeleyirle.bsky.social

#EconSky: Last chance to register for virtual attendance at Friday's Minimum Wages and Monopsony Conference, featuring an all-star line of labor economists. Learn more and register: irle.berkeley.edu/events/minim...

We're one week out from the "Minimum Wages & Monopsony Power"! Virtual registration is still open for this one-day event. Register today: irle.berkeley.edu/minimum-wage...

UC Berkeley Institute for Research on Labor & Employment (IRLE)@ucberkeleyirle.bsky.social · last yr.

Virtual registration is still open for the "Minimum Wages & Monopsony Power" conference! Featuring an all-star lineup of labor economists, this one-day event also honors career of Dr. Michael Reich. 📅 June 6, 2025 | 8am - 5pm 🔗 Register today: irle.berkeley.edu/events/minim...

Virtual registration is still open for the "Minimum Wages & Monopsony Power" conference! Featuring an all-star lineup of labor economists, this one-day event also honors career of Dr. Michael Reich. 📅 June 6, 2025 | 8am - 5pm 🔗 Register today: irle.berkeley.edu/events/minim...

Starting soon, don't miss the Climate and Society Center's Clair Brown in this important discussion about the Climate Superfund.

The Climate Center@theclimatecenter.bsky.social · last yr.

✨ This Thursday, May 22, join us for a webinar about how the #MakePollutersPay Climate Superfund would ensure corporate polluters pay their fair share for climate disasters, taking the burden off California taxpayers. Register now 👉 loom.ly/oNdUkwY

Americans favor labor unions over big business now more than ever, analysis of new data @epi.org from me & Adam Reich of Columbia Labor Lab. In data back 60 years, Americans' sentiments are both warmer toward unions & cooler towards big business than ever before. www.epi.org/blog/america...

Starting soon! Join @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social, @techequity.us, and Warehouse Workers Resource Center for a three-part webinar series that will cut through the AI hype to help better understand digital technologies in the workplace and how to respond through collective bargaining and public policy.

TechEquity@techequity.bsky.social · last yr.

What’s the hype around AI? Join our SVP of Labor @tnewmsblues.bsky.social @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social, and WWRC on May 7 for the first of a webinar series to demystify AI and empower workers. Register for Part 1 to understand digital technologies in the workplace and why they matter bit.ly/laborAI

Today @ 5:30 pm! @jazbrisack.bsky.social @sbworkersunited.org in conversation with @rbreich.bsky.social.

UC Berkeley Labor Center@ucblaborcenter.bsky.social · last yr.

Wed 5/7 at UCB—Jaz Brisack in conversation w/Robert Reich. Brisak cofounded Starbucks Workers United & will discuss their new book about organizing at companies from Nissan to Starbucks to Tesla to Ben & Jerry’s. @rbreich.bsky.social @jazbrisack.bsky.social laborcenter.berkeley.edu/event/book-t...

New research from @laurellucia.bsky.social @ucblaborcenter.bsky.social estimates that California could lose up to 217,000 jobs if Congress cuts Medicaid. 🔗 Read the brief: laborcenter.berkeley.edu/wp-content/u...

Register now for the Minimum Wages & Monopsony Power Conference at UC Berkeley on June 6. Join leading scholars for this one-day conference, which also honors Michael Reich’s influential career. Space is limited. Register: irle.berkeley.edu/minimum-wage... #EconSky #MinimumWage #LaborEconomics