Nearly 7.4 million workers in the United States will be affected by state government actions taken over the past two days by 12 states and the District of Columbia to try to stem the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). The total increased by seven states and the District of Columbia compared with Monday.
Actual reported jobs lost remain relatively minor compared to the job that may be affected by restrictions on leisure and hospitality businesses like restaurants and bars. According to Challenger, U.S. companies have announced 634 job cuts specifically tied to the 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak.
According to Challenger tracking, in addition to state-mandated closings of bars and restaurants, 99 companies and organizations had publicly announced action Monday due to the COVID-19 outbreak, up from 28 on Friday.
The following chart shows the state and the total number of job losses in that state’s leisure and hospitality industry.
| State | Industry Jobs | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 2,055,100 | ||
| New York | 967,800 | ||
| Illinois | 625,000 | ||
| Pennsylvania | 581,800 | ||
| Ohio | 537,700 | ||
| North Carolina | 532,200 | ||
| Michigan | 434,500 | ||
| New Jersey | 401,400 | ||
| Massachusetts | 380,600 | ||
| Washington | 356,400 | ||
| Maryland | 287,700 | ||
| Connecticut | 156,000 | ||
| District of Columbia | 77,900 | ||
| Total | 7,394,100 |
Another 313,000 leisure and hospitality workers in Missouri could be told to stay home if that state imposes restrictions on large gatherings.
Andrew Challenger, the firm’s senior vice-president, commented:
It remains to be seen for how long the outbreak and response will last. Many establishments would like for their teams to return to work as soon as possible or otherwise keep them employed. Indeed, some bars and restaurants with delivery services may be able to keep some staff.
However, with no income, many of these workers will likely seek, and hopefully, find other employment in the interim, which could make them unavailable to come back. If the shutdowns continue even longer, many of these jobs may not exist immediately when the crisis ends.
The first U.S. airline to shut down will be halting operations on April 1. Trans States Airlines, which operates as a regional carrier for United Airlines Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: UAL), had been planning to close at the end of the year. CEO Richard Leach told employees in an internal memo viewed by The Points Guy that the “unforeseen impact of the coronavirus” has forced the closure months earlier than expected. There was no report on the number of jobs that would be lost. Trans States operated 43 Embraer regional jets at the end of December and flew routes out of Denver and Chicago.
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