High rates of remote work among highly educated Biden-county residents hit in-person consumption, stunting local economies and slowing job growth. The exodus from big cities hurt too
Save time by listening to our audio articles as you multitaskWhen covid-19 arrived, that employment disparity disappeared. Both sets of counties saw steep employment drops, but those that Mr Biden won were hit harder. In May 2020 employment levels were 11% lower in Biden counties than they had been in January, while Trump counties fell by 9%. Biden counties’ employment to population ratio, a measure of the share of people over the age of 16 working, fell below that of Trump counties .
What accounts for this difference? Demography, industry composition, local policies and attitudes towards covid all played a part. Biden counties were far more likely to be urban, where retaining a job often required using public transportation or huddling with colleagues. They also had a larger concentration of service work—dry cleaners and baristas were more likely to be out of a job during lockdowns.
Republicans tend to judge the economy unfavourably when Democrats are in office and vice versa—attitudes flip when administrations change over. But for all the blame Republicans have pinned on Mr Biden for today’s food and petrol prices, the familiar story about left-behind America needs an update.
United Kingdom Latest News, United Kingdom Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Derbyshire Wildlife Trust marks first anniversary of beaver returnThe trust says the reintroduction has been good news for the county.
Read more »
Derbyshire Wildlife Trust marks first anniversary of beaver returnThe trust says the reintroduction has been good news for the county.
Read more »
Soft Cell, Boomtown Rats and T'Pau announced for Let’s Rock Shrewsbury 2023Soft Cell, The Boomtown Rats and Shrewsbury's own T'Pau are among the acts set to hit the county town's Quarry Park for 2023's Let's Rock 80s festival.
Read more »
Hertfordshire libraries children's mascot drawn into trans 'pronouns' rowHertfordshire County Council has been attacked by campaigners for introducing a children’s bear mascot without specifying its gender.
Read more »