Top Obama economist says: ‘Many jobs aren’t as good in 2019 either’: Job hunters have a big advantage in pandemic times

That has put employers in a bidding war against each other to find new talent, where the “prize” goes to employers willing to offer not only higher salaries but also working conditions. and better benefits.

Some job seekers took advantage of the labor shortage, and deliberately not applying for jobs often low-paying and can be highly demanding – such as jobs in food service.

But that story doesn’t explain why labor shortages continue to linger in the US, according to Jason Furman, former chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under the Obama administration.

“Many jobs are also not good in 2019. Furman, a Harvard economics professor, said Wednesday during a discussion organized by the Aspen Institute Economic Strategy Group, an arm of the Aspen Nonpartisan Research Institute. .

Today, not working is more attractive than before the pandemic “in part because people have more money, and in part, because job openings are so high,” Furman said.

For much of the pandemic, Americans spent money on record rate. In many cases, the money they saved came from a stimulus check and a ramped up unemployment benefit that ran through September.

Additionally, with much of the economy shuttered to limit the spread of COVID-19, Americans have fewer opportunities to spend money.

But as of March 2021, Americans have started saving.

In October, Americans’ personal savings rate, as a percentage of disposable income, fell to 7.3% from 8.2% in September, according to data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. .

This is slightly lower than the pre-pandemic savings rate of 8.3%. Put those numbers in context: At the height of the pandemic, the savings rate was above 30%.

The fact that more and more Americans are running out of savings could be a good sign for employers and bad news for workers looking for better pay and conditions.

“By then, they’re going to need to take on jobs they might not like,” said Karen Dynan, a Harvard University economist who served as chief economist at the Treasury Department during the Obama administration. told MarketWatch.