The coronavirus pandemic caused hundreds of thousands of Americans to be out of work or lose their job. Now, things are picking back up, slowly but surely.
What We Know:
- On Friday, Dec. 4th, the US Labor reported a slowing in hiring, giving evidence that the current job market and the economy are once again being affected due to the spike in virus numbers. According to PBS, employers scaled back their hiring last month, adding only 245,000 jobs, the lowest number since April. At the same time, the unemployment rate fell to a still-high 6.7%, from 6.9% in October as many people stopped looking for work and were no longer counted as unemployed, the Labor Department said. November’s job gain was down from 610,000 in October.
- Most experts say the economy and job market won’t fully recover until the virus can be controlled with an effective and widely used vaccine. The picture could worsen before it improves. “The recovery is not insulated from the effects of the pandemic,” said Daniel Zhao, senior economist at employment website Glassdoor. “This is the calm before the storm. We face a long and difficult winter ahead.”
- The report also displayed how the pandemic is weakening the job market. The unemployment rate fell due to people giving up the job search and were no longer counted as unemployed. The proportion of Americans working or looking for work has fallen to 61.5%, the lowest since 1976.
- On the other hand, Friday’s jobs report also reflects how the coronavirus has transformed the holiday shopping season. Transportation and warehousing firms added 145,000 jobs in November, more than half the total job gain for the month. Shipping and logistics companies are benefiting due to the surge in online shopping.
- Two federal unemployment programs will expire at the end of December unless Congress releases another rescue aid package. More than 9 million unemployed people will be left without any state or federal aid starting just after Christmas.
Employment rates will rise, and so will unemployment rates as well. In the midst of the coronavirus, the numbers will continue to change.
