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Income and Work

Minnesota has one of the highest rates of labor force participation in the country, but that doesn’t mean that all Minnesotans are able to make ends meet. We research economic trends to understand who’s faring well in today’s economy, and who is left behind. We advocate for economic policies, particularly those that improve wages and job quality standards, so that more Minnesotans can thrive.

Research

November 2001

Poverty rates reach record lows in 2000

August 2001

The state of working Minnesota 2001

September 2000

Making a living? The state of working Minnesota 2000

January 2000

Income inequality in Minnesota, 1970s through the 1990s

 

Income and Work Blog Posts

January 25, 2024

Proposed federal Child Tax Credit expansion would boost the incomes of millions of families

Congress is considering passing an important expansion of the federal Child Tax Credit that would benefit about 16 million children in low-income families across the US. But it's not a sure thing yet. We've included a link in the blog to email your representatives today, urging them to pass an expanded CTC and reduce poverty among the nation's children.

May 12, 2023

2023 tax conference committee weighs similarities, differences in House, Senate, Walz tax plans

This year, policymakers are considering transformational changes and long-overdue investments to make Minnesota a state...

January 25, 2023

Child poverty declines sharply thanks to federal Child Tax Credit expansion

Thanks in part to improvements policymakers made to the federal Child Tax Credit (CTC), recent U.S. Census data show that from 2019 to 2021, child poverty fell a remarkable 59 percent. Minnesota policymakers should build on that success and create a state Child Tax Credit.

November 09, 2022

Minnesota college students increasingly facing basic economic, mental health challenges

Minnesota should prioritize funding basic needs programs and mental health services so that every college student can succeed regardless of their income or where they live.

Highlighted Research

workers

State of Working Minnesota: Barriers Keep Many from Making Ends Meet

Despite Minnesota's economic recovery from the Great Recession, many Minnesotans have not seen the wage growth we would expect nearly a decade later. And many people still face barriers to finding good jobs and supporting themselves and their families, according to analysis from the Economic Policy Institute. Our State of Working Minnesota report digs deeper into the data.

Issues