The expert explained the significance of weak data on the US labor market
MOSCOW, May 7 — PRIME. In normal times, when the economy creates as many new jobs in a month as the US did in April, this is seen as positive, but we are living in unusual times.
Biden predicted a long recovery for the American economy
The U.S. Labor Department on Friday reported that U.S. employers added a seasonally adjusted 266,000 jobs last month, and the nation's total jobs are now 8.2 million lower than before the Covid-19 pandemic hit last. year. The unemployment rate rose to 6.1% from 6.0% in March.
With more Americans getting vaccinated against the coronavirus and returning to their normal lifestyles, April should have been a much stronger month for the job market. Economists surveyed by the WSJ expected the data to show 1 million new jobs and a drop in unemployment to 5.8%. What happened?
The problem is that some companies, such as catering establishments, are hiring as coronavirus restrictions ease, but other organizations whose business has benefited from the pandemic are now cutting back on staff. Grocery stores and supermarkets, where sales have surged as Americans cook more at home, laid off 49,000 workers in April. Courier and postal services, which have been busy delivering packages during the pandemic, cut their workforce by 77,000, while staff leasing companies, which businesses turned to instead of hiring permanent workers, laid off 111,000 people.
Analysts predict a sharp decline in the US stock market
The effects of supply chain disruptions, particularly semiconductor shortages, have also emerged. Manufacturers of automobiles and car parts cut the number of jobs by 27,000.
In addition, many companies report difficulties finding workers. Reasons could include unaffordable childcare, which is keeping many women out of the workforce, fears about Covid-19, and increased government benefits that allow people to be more selective about their job choices.
However, April is only one month. Given all the changes going on in the economy, as well as the possible distortion of the Labor Department's seasonally adjusted data due to the pandemic, we probably shouldn't put too much weight on the April report.
At the same time, you should not ignore this data either. There may be no reason to lower your expectations for the labor market for the rest of this year, but if the next report is disappointing again, that could be a real cause for concern.
— Posted by Justin Lahart; translation PRIME,,
Dow Jones Newswires, PRIME
Battle for personnel
Places popular with tourists, like this beach and amusement park near New York, are empty due to quarantine measures and, it seems, for a long time. This means that hotels, restaurants, buses, trains, and planes are empty. The tourism sector is predicted to be one of those with the most job losses. The restaurant industry alone could lose more than 13 million employees. In total, during the first month of quarantine, one in seven able-bodied Americans applied for unemployment benefits. Photo: REUTERS
The McKinsey Global Institute estimates that about 13.4 million jobs in the restaurant industry and about 11 million in sales and customer service jobs at malls and non-grocery stores are at risk. Large losses are expected among hotel service personnel, transport workers (employees of airports and train stations), and social workers.
Paradoxically, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, during the pandemic, the army of unemployed in the United States has already been supplemented by more than 40 thousand medical workers. But we are not talking about hospitals, but about support staff in private offices where therapists, ophthalmologists and dentists practice. They, in fact, are left out of work, since they are not involved in the fight against coronavirus and are subject to a decree banning all planned and non-urgent procedures.
The “crown” hit especially hard on those who have yet to blaze their professional path. According to a College Reaction survey, three-quarters of students who were able to secure jobs or internships before the pandemic are now out of work. Some were immediately turned down, while plans to hire others were postponed indefinitely. Finally, approximately 77 percent of students believe that the shift to distance learning has negatively impacted the quality of their education, making it more difficult to find employment.
In addition, the job market has changed. While hiring for these positions is virtually frozen, demand for some professions has only increased during the pandemic. First of all, we are talking about short-term vacancies in pharmacies, hospitals, delivery, the Internet and grocery stores. According to various estimates, the pandemic will create about 3 million such jobs. According to LinkedIn, the top ten most in-demand professions in the United States now include nurses, salespeople and cashiers, sorters, and couriers. For example, Amazon, the largest online retailer in the United States, hired over 100 thousand people in less than a month to meet the increased demand for delivery of goods. With disinfection required everywhere to combat the coronavirus, the number of vacancies for cleaners has increased by 75 percent. There is an acute shortage of workers in agriculture, where the share of migrant workers is high. Every year, 250 thousand visas are issued to such seasonal workers, but this year we can’t count on aliens yet.
Most of these vacancies involve an increased risk of contracting coronavirus due to constant contact with others. Therefore, it is not surprising that the pandemic has also changed the behavior of job seekers. Labor unions organized protests, and at Amazon, some employees refused to go to work, demanding that employers ensure safety in the workplace. The most common measures taken are measuring temperatures, issuing masks and gloves, and installing protective screens.
The biggest cuts in the US are expected among low-wage workers, who are already struggling to support their families during the pandemic.
However, according to Business Insider, so far large retailers have not had time to adapt to increased demand and are experiencing a labor shortage, and therefore are luring new workers with higher wages. For example, grocery chains have temporarily increased pay for cashiers, sorters and other employees by an average of $2 to $3 per hour. With a 40-hour workweek, the monthly increase would be $320-$480 over four weeks, or about 10-20 percent of the normal level.
The war for personnel on the coronavirus front line is even more acute. In Michigan, hospitals compete intensely for nurses, according to the Detroit Free Press. Instead of the usual $40 per hour, applicants are offered $85. And in New York, which has become the epicenter of the outbreak in the United States, nurses' salaries have soared twice as much. Unfortunately, in the context of decentralized and commercial American medicine, this does not always lead to the common good. Not everyone can afford such wages for nurses. As a result, wealthier chain hospitals are poaching staff from smaller community and community clinics, where the need is often greater.
Introduction
The United States of America is a state in North America. It ranks fourth in the world in terms of territory (9,518,900 km) and third in population (more than 309 million people). The capital is the city of Washington.
Currently, the United States of America has the world's largest economy ($14.2 trillion), powerful armed forces, including the largest navy, has a permanent seat on the UN Security Council, and is a founding state of the North Atlantic Alliance. The United States has the second largest nuclear potential on Earth.
The US has the most powerful economy in the world. This country has a high standard of living, quality education, and economic and political stability. A huge amount of resources, both natural and labor, are concentrated on the territory of the state.
That is why I devoted my course work to the labor economics of this state. Everyone knows that it is the largest exporter of goods and services in the world, and, therefore, a profitable trading and political partner. It is in order to know and understand your partner that you need to study in detail all the economic aspects of the United States, including the labor market of this state, which is the purpose of this course work. [1].
How foreigners find work in the USA
Coming to the United States or remaining in his own country, a foreign applicant has the opportunity to use the most suitable method for him to find a job, for example, via the Internet. There are, perhaps, no other country in the world with such a number of sites providing employment assistance as in the United States. Among the most famous resources:
- monster.com is one of the most popular American job portals;
- seasonalemployment.com with seasonal job offers;
- coolworks.com - work on beaches, resorts, ranches, amusement parks;
- hcareers.com - hotel and restaurant industry;
- aecjobbank.com - vacancies for representatives of construction specialties;
- alaskajobfinder.com - offers for the fishing industry in Alaska;
- freelancer.com - remote work;
- upwork.com - for freelancers;
- staffingtoday.net is a staffing agency.
In addition, you can use the country's labor department portal or government website, which publishes the most current information regarding employment in the United States.
You can look for work in the USA using specialized websites on the Internet.
If you have relatives or good friends who have already been living in the United States for some time, you can turn to them for tips on finding a job: in this case, the information will be the most reliable. Some migrants prefer to post their resumes on the websites of large (and not very large) companies for the purpose of self-presentation - sometimes this turns out to be quite an effective technique. Other employment options include seeking help from a recruiting agency, which will take on the job search and arranging the move, but you should be prepared for additional costs. Perhaps the most traditional way to find your employer in the USA is to study media materials: both printed and all others. Jobs columns are typically published in publications such as USA Today, Washington Post, and The New York Times.
Employment by industry
The share of manufacturing in America in 2021 is 20% of the global total, and this figure is higher than in rapidly developing China.
US industry is represented by the following activities:
- production, providing highly paid positions in the field of top management, accounting;
- construction;
- gas and oil production, energy sector.
The labor market provides highly paid positions in socially oriented areas:
- in medicine - for surgeons, psychiatrists, dentists, anesthesiologists;
- pharmaceutics and pharmacology;
- education – for teaching staff.
High salaries for employees in the market for the following services:
- legal, among representatives of law enforcement agencies, judges;
- public services;
- publishing, media;
- in the brokerage or financial services industry.
The field of science makes it possible to have a highly paid job in positions related to:
- with programming, creation of operating systems (OS);
- with military affairs, space technologies.
Each state has:
- own production facilities;
- own production specialization.
America's employment structure is a hierarchical system in which, as in any other country, waiters, porters, cleaners and people working in similar unskilled positions are low paid.
Usually these are visiting citizens - emigrants who do not speak English well and do not have a diploma from the American education system.
