Covid-19 was undoubtedly one of the major reasons for the impact on the work
force and has ignited long lasting changes to peoples’ lives and the business world. In 2021, more than 47 million workers in the United States quit their jobs because they were on the lookout for a better work-life balance.
Parents of young children or those with seniors that need to be taken care of at home have been removed from the workforce as they don’t have access to daycare services, which happens to be an industry still recovering from employment issues below pre-pandemic levels. Also, the majority of workers who retired during the pandemic may not return to the workforce. With the labor shortage impacting so many industries, public-school systems across the country have been impacted as well. Schools are missing nearly 360,000 workers, which is particularly disturbing as it directly impacts the younger generations of the country’s population.
Remote work has contributed significantly to a shift in the mind-set of workers, as a large subset of the U.S. workforce is hoping that they can continue to work some of their hours from home, with some of them even wanting to quit if they are recalled to the office. Industries like foodservice and hospitality, that require in-person attendance and also have lower wages, have had a significantly difficult time holding on to their employees.
Not being able to go out and spend money during the lockdown contributed to Americans saving money during the pandemic, and this by itself could also be allowing some people to stay out of the workforce for some time.
Other factors contributing to the shortage may be coming from the stimulus checks offered by the Federal Government and enhanced unemployment benefits from the state governments for workers who were not in the workforce in 2020 and 2021. These initiatives were due to the pandemic and it caused workers to continue to sit out of the workforce. Ending the welfare-without-work programs that encourage idleness could possibly help alleviate the situation, to an extent.
Higher inflation, reduced incomes, and higher taxes are some of the unfavorable outcomes of the labor shortage that the U.S is facing right now. Economists expect this trend to continue for some time unless drastic measures are taken to reduce federal spending, encourage flexible work, and end welfare-without-work.
