We’re about to learn more about how devastating the pandemic has been for American workers. Even by the standards of the coronavirus pandemic, Friday’s report on employment in the United States will be staggering. It will also be far more illuminating than data that has been released so far, offering details on who has lost work, and who hasn’t. Those specifics could reveal how quickly the economy might rebound once pandemic-related shutdowns are lifted. The monthly report will undoubtedly show that job losses in April were the worst ever : Economists expect the unemployment rate to reach 16 percent, by far the worst since the Great Depression, with as many as 22 million jobs lost. It’s no surprise that employers have cut millions of jobs; weekly data on filings for unemployment benefits have tracked the destruction. Those reports have consistently shown that millions of workers have sought unemployment benefits […]

Posted in: USA