The coronavirus pandemic has reshaped the American economy, with uneven setbacks and recoveries in various sectors likely to outlast the health crisis, The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.
As the U.S. economy has recouped some 12 million of the 22 million jobs lost this year, there has been a reordering of the labor force nationwide.
Courier and messenger jobs have gone up every month since February, boosting the sector by more than 20% as of November, even as overall employment across industries was down 6.5% during the same time period.
Warehouse jobs were hurt early, but then started growing to surpass pre-pandemic levels.
The real-estate sector has for the most part recovered from losses in the spring due to a recent housing boom, but leasing offices have lost more than 20% of their jobs and have been adding them back at a slow pace.
Airline employment also plunged in the spring when the pandemic started to severely disrupt travel. It regained somewhat over the summer but then declined again in October after the expiration of federal support.
Professional and technical jobs have experienced a smaller decline, as many employees were able to work from home.
However, administrative and support staff — such as secretaries, janitors, and security guards — suffered a more severe decline and have experienced less of a recovery.
Jobs have also declined at retail stores, restaurants, and bars.
New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, which were hit hard early in the pandemic, had some of the highest unemployment rates in November.
Other states — such as Nebraska, South Dakota, and Iowa — that didn’t implement as severe restrictions have suffered recent surges in coronavirus but have among the lowest unemployment rates.
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
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