Massive Unemployment...Then What?

To Top The Massive Debt – Massive Unemployment

Bruce Wilds

Unemployment has several faces. It will be interesting to see how America handles the massive unemployment caused not so much by covid-19 but the government’s effort to hold employers responsible for the cost. When the government passed a law increasing employers’ responsibility for paying workers even when there was no work for them, businesses countered by mass firings. This was both the logical move and the only way most businesses could survive.

The evolution of the covid-19 crisis has disrupted supply chains and is starting to trigger food shortages across the country. It is causing many people to question whether an economic depression is unfolding as over 30 million people are now out of work after only six weeks. A matter of great speculation is just how rapidly the unemployment rate will fall back once this pandemic begins to subside.

The ramifications resulting from this surge in unemployment have not yet been fully internalized, this is a huge deal. In the blink of an eye, the U.S. economy has wiped out all the job gains since the Great Recession and more. There were already 7.1 million unemployed Americans as of March 13, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. When this figure is combined with the newest job losses, we are looking at more than 33 million unemployed, or a real unemployment rate of 20.6%. This would be the highest level since 1934.

History shows that creating good sustainable jobs is no easy task. Considering the cost of massive unemployment is increased tax rates and social decay, it is time we face the great-conundrum of how best to save jobs. This massive unemployment surge poses a huge cultural shock that must not be ignored. During the time ahead we should expect the fabric of society to be tested, it may even  unravel. Do not expect the answers to flow out of Washington but understand, now is the time we level the playing field between small and big business. When all is said and done, Main Street matters more to most Americans than Wall Street.