Where Did All the Workers Go?

Bidenomics has led to a labor shortage that is hurting the economy 

WSJ editorial. Excerpts:

"the number of Americans unable to work because their employer closed or lost business due to the pandemic dropped 600,000 from August. Covid cases declined by a third in September, and many industries unaffected by the virus also failed to add workers.

Employers are crying for workers but they can’t find them even when they pay more. According to the National Federation of Independent Business, 67% of small businesses reported hiring or trying to hire in September, and 42% raised compensation. But a record 51% still have openings they couldn’t fill.

So what’s causing the worker shortage? One possible culprit is government and employer vaccine mandates that set ultimatums for workers. President Biden’s vaccine order first applied to nursing homes, which lost jobs in the month. Many states and school districts have also imposed mandates, and state and local education employment fell 161,000. The White House claims its vaccine mandates will boost job growth, but not if unvaccinated workers quit.

Democrats have also made quitting an easier economic option. Pandemic enhanced unemployment benefits ended in early September, but that was only one week before Labor’s monthly jobless survey ended. Next month might provide better data on that score. But there are still many other federal financial payments that don’t require work, including a $300 monthly allowance per child, food stamps and rental assistance. Many people have saved some of their transfer payments, and now Democrats are promising more.

Inflation may also be tilting the scale to leisure instead of work. Average hourly earnings are rising fast—up 4.6% from a year ago and 7.4% at an annualized rate. But wage growth after inflation has been declining for many lower-income Americans, who spend more of their incomes on food and energy."