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Hiring propped up by start of school year, modest wage gains gobbled up by Trump’s inflation, and no clear signal about where labor market goes from here
Trump’s disastrous economic policy and illegal war in Iran force families to put basics on credit cards, delay medical care, and cut back on discretionary spending
Groundwork data shows Trump’s stubborn inflation wiping out wage gains as corporate profits hit records and AI leaves workers behind.
“The gains that the top is seeing far, far, far outpace the gains — if any — that the bottom is seeing,” said Elizabeth Pancotti, vice-president of policy at the Groundwork Collaborative, a progressive think-tank. “What we’re seeing today is that there are really two separate economies: one for people who make their primary income through investment and passive income . . . and then typical workers who clock in day in and day out.”
“We’re starting to see a greater understanding among Democrats, both progressives and more moderate Democrats, that this is a critical issue if you care about public services,” said Kitty Richards, a senior fellow at Groundwork Collaborative and former Biden Treasury official. “The appetite among voters is really growing for solutions and for bold action, and so we’re going to see these fights play out really dramatically over the next couple years.”
Paychecks fail to cover the basics, and AI investment casts thin veneer over ugly economic reality.
“There are strategic ways to use tariffs to crack down on unfair trade practices,” Liz Pancotti, vice president of policy and advocacy at Groundwork Collaborative, a liberal think tank, told HuffPost. “But going back and forth with Canada, which is a vital partner to our auto supply chain, is really not the way to do that.”
“Vance may try to distance himself from neoclassical economics on his press tours, but I don’t think we’ve ever seen any action from him that’s any different,” said Liz Pancotti, vice president of policy, advocacy and research at the Groundwork Collaborative, a left-leaning think tank. “He talks a big game, but falls to the exact same corporate interests that the party is beholden to.”
"Trump is once again explicitly admitting his broad-based tariffs raise prices for Americans — and it's true from groceries to back-to-school shopping to buying a new home," Alex Jacquez, senior vice president of policy, advocacy and research at Groundwork Collaborative, said in a statement.
A new study by two progressive think tanks — the Groundwork Collaborative and the Century Foundation — estimates that a typical basket of school supplies costs nearly 8% more this year than last year. It’s an increase of roughly $12 per child. The organizations attribute the price hikes to the United States’ war with Iran and President Donald Trump’s tariffs.