Arkansas’s economy is gaining speed. However, low-income groups, minorities, and less-educated workers are being left behind. The new jobs and pay raises mostly benefit people who are already well-off. And recent policy changes have made unemployment insurance less accessible....
People who earn wages at the poverty line can’t afford essentials like safe housing, food, child care, transportation, taxes and healthcare. The cost of living varies across our state, but one thing remains the same: poverty line wages don’t...
Recent articles that claim minimum wage increases hurt low-wage workers all have something in common; they look at small areas over short periods of time instead of the big picture. If they took into account changes across the country...
Arkansans are spending more than they were last year, and that could mean enough extra tax revenue to fund fantastic programs for kids. For four months straight, sales and use taxes have had annual growth of four percent or more....
Low-income workers, especially women, are more likely to work jobs with unpredictable schedules. The percent of Arkansas kids whose parents do not have full-time, year-round employment has gone down overall since 2011, but it is still above pre-recession levels. This...
The 2015 KIDS COUNT® Data Book from the Annie E. Casey Foundation points out that more than 200,000 children are living in poverty in Arkansas. That’s almost 30 percent – close to one third – of all children in...
This legislative session was filled with missed opportunities. Lawmakers passed bills that weren’t good for families of color. As Arkansas becomes a more diverse state, it is important for Arkansas’s economic and social future that all people have a...
May Day started in 1886 as a fight for an 8 hour work-day, but what if you work 8 hours and only get paid for 7? Some hard working families in Arkansas are victim to employers who violate a variety...
Arkansas has the nation’s weakest laws on tenants’ rights and in some cases even criminalizes renters. State law puts those who pay rent – most often the lower income residents in Arkansas – at a disadvantage in dealing with...
Children from lower-income families have fewer resources, and this directly impacts a child’s brain development. A new study published by Nature Neuroscience adds to a growing body of evidence that “pulling yourself up by your bootstraps” isn’t as simple as...