Where is everyone working at?
In: 6379
Those mean the same thing… unemployment rate being low means that there aren’t people to hire, thus a shortage of labor looking for jobs.
So where are all the needed workers?
COVID has killed over 1m people… assuming even 1/3 of those were working prior to dying, that’s 300k workers no longer available to hire.
In addition, there are millions more who are suffering debilitating long COVID effects that prevent them from working or working full time.
And then there are those who are immunocompromised, who have left the workforce for fear of their health.
There may also be people who now lack childcare, either because daycares have had to cut number of kids due to COVID safety levels, due to staff shortages, or parents have lost access to family member caregivers (grandparents who died of COVID or have long COVID, differences in opinions over vaccinations).
Then there are all the people who moved into new job categories when COVID hit and have stayed… those who got laid off from restaurants or movie theaters, etc. and took jobs in warehouses, as delivery drivers. Those jobs may be better, pay better, and so there was no desire to go back to old jobs.
And another factor is how labor shortages have boosted pay. If somebody who used to make $12/hr at two part time fast food jobs is now making $18/hr and can get as many hours as they want at just one of those jobs, they no longer need to deal with the hassle of having two jobs and quit one.
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