Episode notes
(Originally aired 5/06/25) What sparks progress? The right political conditions? Social pressure? Economic upheaval? In response to two listeners’ questions, we say… both none of those and all of the above. As an example, we talk through just one bit of the New Deal in the 1930s, which was the law to limit child labor. That movement started decades earlier, and continued decades afterward. For those keeping score at home, this a sneaky third installment of Kathryn’s 68-part series on the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. Chapters: 00:01:08 Announcements 00:01:43 Retcon 00:03:58 Terms &…
Optimist Economy
by Kathryn Anne Edwards and Robin Rauzi · English · News
Optimist Economy is the anti-doomscroll economics podcast. Work rules, tax fairness, healthcare, housing costs, retirement security — the economic forces shaping American life have real problems. But also real solutions. Each week, economist Kathryn Anne Edwards and editor Robin Rauzi break down one
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S2 · E15 · 5 May 2026 · 58 min
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S2 · E13 · 21 Apr 2026 · 47 min
The Great Wage Stagnation
Average U.S. wages have barely budged since the early '80s — and if you account for today's labor force being older and more college-educated, wage growth basically disappears. Economists have cycled through explanations: workers lacked technical skills, then couldn't compete with global labor, then lost the policies that once lifted paychecks, like strong unions and a meaningful minimum wage. The latest chapter is monopsony — the idea that as employers consolidate, people have fewer choices of where to work, and fewer places to land if they lose a job. Fix the market, and the paychecks…
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S2 · E12 · 14 Apr 2026 · 46 min
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S2 · E11 · 7 Apr 2026 · 46 min
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S2 · E27 · 28 Jul 2026 · 48 min
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