Welcome to the Studio.
Over the last few years, many thought leaders have written about “authenticity” and “bringing your whole self to work.” At first, most people argued for “bringing your whole self to work,” but now many criticize the idea. Should you bring your authentic self to work? Who is that person anyway? For example, Marc Effron from […]
The employment situation
You could argue that employment numbers look better this month, meaning the economy is headed toward recovery. New government numbers showed payrolls added 4.8 million jobs in June. The unemployment rate lowered to 11.1% from 13.3% last month. Similarly, ADP’s latest employment report shows an additional 2.3 million jobs. The markets responded positively to the […]
The new quarantine: H1B visas
Last week Donald Trump suspended H1B visa applications for foreign workers, freeing up around 525,000 jobs for American workers, according to Reuters. This created some fierce opposition from tech companies. Why? Because they’re the largest employers of H1B visa holders. Here’s a breakdown from Revelio Labs in their latest newsletter. What kinds of jobs do […]
Mapping job losses and gains over time
A new interactive map from TIP Strategies shows net job losses and gains over the last two decades, with red indicating losses and blue indicating gains. You may notice a rather sudden flash of red around 2008 and another in 2020. Wonder what happened there.
Jobs, jobs, jobs
The US surprisingly added 2.5 million jobs in May, beating expectations of shedding 8 million, which raised the unemployment rate to 13.3% from 14.7% in April. The market is pleased, with the S&P 500 trading around 2% above open, according to The New York Times.
Another 2.1M unemployment claims, totaling ~41M since March
Over 2 million people filed for unemployment last week, according to fresh data from the Department of Labor this morning as reported by The New York Times. That brings the total number since March to nearly 41 million, or just over 26% of the total labor force. It’s not a tight labor market anymore, folks.
Back in business
The Wall Street Journal’s newsletter Real Time Economics reported that business activity is slowly stabilizing, with many leading indicators showing that the worst is over. Here’s what they wrote this morning: The worst may be over. Truck loads are growing again. Air travel and hotel bookings are up slightly. Mortgage applications are rising. And more […]
The straw that broke the camel’s tuition
Many schools have canceled classes for the rest of the year, right? Students are going online, they’re requesting returns for their room and board money, tuition is at astronomical prices—you get the point. Okay, so what happens when the entire economy of college towns collapses because there aren’t college students there, which can contribute to […]
Remote work: Temporary or forever?
Debate: Is the massive switch to remote work going to stick around after COVID-19 passes, or is it just a (required) fad? SHRM says nah, Twitter says yeah, and Barclay’s CEO says, “I guess we don’t need that giant office building anymore.” Of course, the conversation is more nuanced than that: It’s not about full […]
3.2M more jobless, totaling 33M (+20% of labor)
Another 3.2 million filed for first-time unemployment this week, according to government data. That brings the seven-week total to more than 33 million, or 20% of the US labor force. The New York Times has more on the story here.
New Data: The Weekly Economic Index
FRED at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis has a new measure of the economy called the Weekly Economic Index. The index, developed by Fed economists and a Harvard professor, measures ten major indicators to get a rough estimate of how the economy is doing. You may notice a giant dip over the last […]
Opportunities in Education, Just Not for Schools
Education institutions are in a bad way, and the pandemic has made it worse. A new story in The New York Times describes how state funding for colleges has changed in recent years, with the above graphic summarizing the news. In short, colleges are in a pinch. So, what happens when the pandemic slows state […]
3.8M more file for unemployment, totaling +30M
Another 3.8 million file for unemployment, bringing the total to over 30 million since the crisis began. With 157 million workers in the US, 30 million represents just under 20% of the workforce. However, some studies suggest this could be vastly under representing the real unemployment figures. Read more on The New York Times.
Remote learning is too hard.
A new article in The Wall Street Journal reports that some school districts in DC, Georgia, and Texas are ending the school year. Remote learning, they say, is too difficult to manage. Food for thought: Is remote corporate learning too difficult to manage?
CFOs’ Uneasy Street
Both Gartner and PwC ran CFO surveys recently, and both had similar things to say: CFOs are feeling uneasy (to put it mildly). Many financial leaders plan to cancel or pause planned investments, 74% (Gartner) or 49% (PwC) will permanently shift some workers to remote work arrangements, and many will reduce their corporate real estate […]
4.4 million more unemployed, totaling 26 million in five weeks
Unemployment numbers continue to climb, with the Labor Department counting 4.42 million more unemployment claims this morning. That erases the jobs boom we’ve seen over the last ten years—with 26 million jobs evaporating in a little more than a month.
Returning to work: Employers are “making it up as they go.”
Businesses must get going again, but people must be safe. It’s a delicate balance. Government officials and employers are trying to figure out what that looks like, hoping to set proper expectations about the inevitable return to the job. However, as a new article in The Wall Street Journal explains, no one really knows what […]
Internet go zoom, zoom.
Since we’re all home, many web platforms are seeing incredible traffic. The New York Times explains the details, but one thing to think about: With all this traffic and streaming, what’s happening to our internet infrastructure? Several writers have commented on this recently. One interesting finding from KASPR Datahaus, however, shows where the strain is […]
5 million more unemployed
The department of labor data from this morning confirmed that 5.2 million more workers filed for unemployment last week, bringing the four-week grand total to 22 million. If you couldn’t tell by the chart above, that’s a lot. Here’s how The New York Times reported the figures: Even as political leaders wrangle over how and […]
IMF: Worst economic slump since Great Depression
Everyone is wondering what the economy will look like on the other side of this whole thing. As time goes on, the picture is becoming a little clearer, and many economists are offering their forecasts. Starkest of all perhaps is the IMF’s latest projection. Here’s what the New York Times reported this morning: In its […]
