Indications From The Conference Board

We react to the June jobs report and then address the impact of COVID-19 on US workers and households. For many, their economic situation has done a complete 180 since the emergence of the virus. In a previously tight labor market, unemployment rates were at record lows, wages were accelerating, and job satisfaction was rising. The improvement in labor market conditions, especially for blacks, Hispanics, and workers with lower earnings and education, had led to a reduction in poverty rates and wage inequality. But the COVID-19 crisis is hitting vulnerable populations especially hard and will likely lead to a reversal of these trends. Our panel of Conference Board experts, Gad Levanon, Head of the Labor Markets Institute, Elizabeth Crofoot, Senior Economist, and Frank Steemers, Economist discuss the following topics: • The industries and occupations that have been most impacted by COVID-19 • The characteristics of US workers that have suffered the most job losses, by age, gender, race, average wage, and edu