Economist Mark Zandi Debunks Myth That Obamacare Is Hurting Full-Time Work

Written by Andrew Lawrence

Published

Economist Mark Zandi debunked the myth that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has been responsible for a shift away from full-time jobs to part-time work. Zandi's analysis flies in the face of the popular right-wing talking point that the ACA has been responsible for a rise in part-time employment at the expense of full-time jobs.

Fox has consistently ignored data to make the false claim that the ACA has caused a shift from full-time work toward part-time work, often using dishonest anecdotes and analysis from the likes of Karl Rove to make its point.

On CNBC's Squawk Box, Zandi, the chief economist at Moody's Analytics, pushed back on the panel's speculation that the ACA has been responsible for a rise in part-time employment. When asked if Rove was correct in claiming that ACA has led to a rise in part-time employment, Zandi responded with a “no.” Zandi later said of the part-time work claim: “I don't see it in the data.”

Zandi, who in July suggested that the ACA may fuel part-time job growth, also debunked the myth in recent comments to USA Today after analyzing the data:

As more data come in, the law's impact can't be seen in hiring statistics, says Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody's Analytics.

“I was expecting to see it. I was looking for it, and it's not there,'' says Zandi, whose firm manages ADP's surveys of overall private-sector job creation. If the Affordable Care Act ”were causing a drop, you would see meaningful slowing.

Zandi is joined by other economists in his analysis. Economists Jared Bernstein and Paul Van de Water of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities noted that the share of involuntary part-time workers “is down about one percentage point off of its peak.” Helene Jorgensen and Dean Baker of the Center for Economic and Policy Research found that the number of workers working below the 30 hour cutoff in the range of 26-29 hours per week is actually lower in 2013 than in 2012, and concluded: “This suggests that employers do not appear to be changing hours in large numbers in response to the sanctions in the ACA.”

The evidence is overwhelming that the Affordable Care Act has had little to no impact on full-time versus part-time job growth, and as Fox News personalities continue to push the myth, they find themselves in direct contradiction with analysis put forth by actual economists.