KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Nearly 1.5 million more Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week, a decrease of 60,000 from the previous week's revised level, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
Economists in the Kansas City metro warn that while some laid off or furloughed employees have made their way back to work, other jobs may not be coming back.
"People that were hit the hardest are the low-wage workers, so getting back into the workforce is going to be challenging," said Chris Kuehl, managing director of Armada Corporate Intelligence.
Kuehl suggests the double-digit unemployment rate could linger if companies aren't quick to hire their full pre-coronavirus staff back.
"They’re discovering that they don’t need as many people as they used to, and you don’t have the support staff that used to be in place because there’s nothing to support people who are all working at home," Kuehl said.
That isn't good news for unemployed workers like Kansas City resident Earl Carter, who was a dishwasher at a local restaurant.
"With the uprise again of the coronavirus and them doing drive-thru service, I don’t know if that’s going to continue because I don’t have a position to where they need me," Carter said.
With the number of COVID-19 cases rising and unknown restrictions down the road, the service industry could face additional setbacks in the near future, which Kuehl said could make owners reluctant to rehire right now.
"If you have a restaurant that’s doing takeout now instead of in-room dining, you don’t need as many servers, you don’t need hostesses, you don’t need dishwashers, you don’t need a lot of things," Kuehl said. "Your workforce is a third, a quarter of what it used to be."
