He recently marked the anniversary of his mother's death from Covid-19, a loss that still feels fresh. He and his wife, D'Anna, 23, who live in Ridgeland, Mississippi, fear for the safety of their 15-month-old daughter, so Wade goes out on errands alone, hoping to reduce the family's exposure. The couple is hesitant to get vaccinated, worried that the shots could bring additional risks.
A roadside banner beckons potential employees outside a Home Depot store in Hattiesburg, Miss., on March 27.But that doesn't capture the full picture of what's happening in households across the country. In interviews over the past week, economic experts, labor advocates and social service providers said that while people are choosing not to take jobs for many reasons, concern about health and safety has been left out of the conversation.
Businesses that want to hire say they can't, leading some to pay more to fill open positions. Last week, McDonald's announced that workers at company-owned restaurants would begin taking home higher wages as it tries to fill thousands of openings. The commitment followed similar moves by restaurants such as Chipotle and Olive Garden, which are also boosting pay.April jobs report, in which the U.S.
"I would say that this is also a reminder, perhaps, that we're not yet out of the woods and that there are people in the labor market who might feel that way," Hunter said. Clatterbuck said she hasn't been vaccinated because her family has a history of severe reactions to vaccinations.She gets $575 a week in unemployment benefits, less than she would make as a physical therapy assistant but more than she would make at some of the jobs she has seen, which"won't even buy groceries if you have two teenagers in the house." In addition to Emma, Clatterbuck has a 15-year-old and a 17-year-old.
With the change, Clatterbuck worries that she'll have to take a job that could put her family's health at risk and might not pay the bills.In Mississippi, worker concerns about Covid-19 safety protocols and the state's low vaccination rate are absent from officials' defense of breaking off from federal unemployment programs.
BS! Most of these people have been put more than anyone else. They just don’t want to go to work! I’ve worked this entire time!!
But they haven’t been afraid of Walmart, Lowe’s or Home Depot this whole time. Let it go.
Yep. The media did a great job of instilling seemingly endless fear in the population.