Last month, U.S. employers might have shed
jobs for the first time in about a year, potentially
raising alarms about the economy’s trajectory.
Yet even if the January employment report
coming Friday were to show a deep loss of jobs,
there would be little mystery about the likely
culprit: A wave of omicron infections last month
that led millions of workers to stay home sick,
discouraged consumers from venturing out to
spend and likely froze hiring at many companies
— even those that want to fill jobs.
Reported omicron infections peaked at above
800,000 a day during the second week of
January — precisely the period when the
government measured employment for
the month. A dismal jobs report would be a
stark reminder that nearly two years after it