Biden’s immense economic challenge: getting 10 million people back to work

(Reuters) – President Joe Biden on Friday pushed for more fiscal support to address one of the biggest challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic: how to get millions of unemployed Americans back to work.

According to a report released Friday by the Department of Labor, the labor market regained some lower ground in January when the economy added 49,000 jobs. But the report showed that labor market growth is stagnating, doing little to reduce the huge gap created by the pandemic.

“At this rate, it will take ten years before it reaches full employment,” Biden said Friday morning from the White House.

Approximately half of the 22 million jobs lost at the time of the pandemic have been recovered. But that still leaves a hole of about 10 million jobs, disproportionately occupied by women and minorities with low roles.

Jared Bernstein, a member of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, noted an increase in long-term unemployment and the disproportionate effects of the pandemic on women and workers of color, though he stressed that it is important act soon.

“Today’s (employment) report is one more reminder that our economy continues to rise from a deeper hole than the Great Recession and needs additional relief,” Bernstein said during a briefing on Friday. in the White House.

Here’s a look at people who may need more help as the economy heals:

MINORITIES HAVE LASTED LONGER

When the economy reopened last year due to widespread layoffs, many office workers adapted to working remotely and other industries put people back to work.

But many black, Hispanic, and Asian workers who were overrepresented in low-wage occupations most affected by the pandemic remain unemployed, such as servants, waiters, cooks and housewives.

The overall unemployment rate fell to 6.3% in January. But within this rate there are huge racial disparities: more than 9% of black workers are unemployed, compared to less than 6% of white workers:

Graphs: Racial disparities widen Racial disparities widen –

COMMITTED WOMEN

Before the pandemic, the proportion of women working or looking for work increased, thanks to long-term economic expansion.

The crisis reversed these gains, in part because the closure of schools and child care centers left working mothers with a weaker support system.

According to Department of Labor data, about 2.5 million women left the labor force during the pandemic, compared to 1.8 million men.

Graphics: Women leaving the workforce Women leaving the workforce –

Biden says he wants to help more women get back to work through policies that reopen schools safely and make child care more affordable.

SECTOR BY SECTOR

Businesses that depend on travel or people spending time close to each other inside have bounced back more slowly. Many people who make a living by cooking kitchens, mixing drinks or cleaning hotel rooms still don’t have a job.

Employment in leisure and hospitality fell 23% in January from pre-pandemic levels in February 2020, more than any other industry.

Graphics: Patchwork Recovery: Jobs by Industry –

Economists expect many of these jobs to return after coronavirus vaccines are widely distributed and consumers feel more comfortable spending money on restaurants, bars and other entertainment venues. But it is unclear whether employment will return completely to previous levels.

LONG TERM UNEMPLOYED

Some people have spread out in search of work, including many in the leisure and hospitality industry.

The “long-term unemployed”, or those who have been unemployed for at least six months, now account for about 40% of the total unemployed, or about 4 million people, compared to 20% before the pandemic.

Research shows that people who are long-term unemployed may have more difficulty finding new jobs, putting them at greater risk of suffering wage cuts or leaving the labor market.

Graphs: longer periods of unemployment –

Biden wants to create federally subsidized jobs in health, clean energy and other fields that can help the long-term unemployed move into new roles.

ALL OVER THE MAP

Designing federal policies to help the unemployed can be especially difficult, as job losses vary greatly from state to state.

Occupation in Idaho, Utah and Kansas had fully recovered to pre-pandemic levels in December. But the situation was more serious in New York and in Nevada and Hawaii, dependent on tourism.

This could lead to widespread disagreements among lawmakers over how much more help is needed to fuel the economy and the labor market.

Graphics: Patchwork Recovery: Jobs by State –