The welfare state is essential for keeping the nonworking population out of poverty. But we shouldn’t discount the role of predistributive measures like strong unions and minimum wage laws in reducing inequality.

In response to my article on inequality reduction, Matt Bruenig claims that I am “simply the latest victim” of “the most deceptive paper ever written” on the subject. It is an admittedly odd task to address a critique of one’s argument that solely takes aim at a study used for its hook. For what it’s worth, there are multiple other studies that come to similar conclusions, including one published last month showing that the equality of the Nordic countries’ economies is explained to a greater extent by their two-tier wage bargaining systems than by the breadth and generosity of t

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