If so, that would undercut a glimmer of hope
in the brutal April jobs report the government
issued Friday, in which a record-shattering
20.5 million people lost jobs: A sizable majority
of the jobless — nearly 80% — characterized
their loss as only temporary.
That could still turn out to be the case for s
ome. The federal government may end up
allocating significantly more financial aid for
people and small businesses. And more
testing for the coronavirus, not to mention an
eventual vaccine or an effective drug therapy,
would make more Americans comfortable
returning to the restaurants, shops, airports
and movie theaters they used to frequent.
That, in turn, would lead companies to recall
more laid-off workers.
Yet Congress remains sharply divided about
additional aid, with some Republicans
expressing concern about escalating federal
debt. President Donald Trump’s top economic
adviser, Larry Kudlow, said Sunday on ABC’s
“This Week” that “many people would like
to just pause for a moment” to evaluate the
impact of the government’s $2 trillion relief
package approved in late March.
If most layoffs become permanent, the severe
recession the economy has slid into would
likely last longer, the recovery would be
slower and the toll on laid-off workers would
be harsher, economists say. Unemployment
soared to 14.7% in April — the highest rate
since the Great Depression — and analysts
predict it will rise still further in May. It could
remain in double-digits into next year.