The United States economy added 1.4 million jobs in August, continuing the slower-than-hoped-for, but relatively steady expansion that began in May. The job gains since then have now effectively recovered almost half of the jobs that were initially lost at the onset of the coronavirus-related closures in March and April.
This positive trend in employment is encouraging, but the level of unemployment remains high at 8.4 percent (down from the previous month). The plight of workers displaced by Covid-19 closures remains dire, especially as expanded unemployment insurance benefits have expired. The concern about the well-being of unemployed workers is amplified by the fact that low-wage workers were hit hardest by Covid-19 closures and have seen a slower recovery than those with high-wage employment, which has almost fully recovered.
The urgent need for further federal intervention remains high. If the recovery from this downturn looks anything like the previous one, it will be years, not months, before employment will return to pre-crisis levels.
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Beth Akers is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and a former Council of Economic Advisors economist. Follow her on Twitter here.