Monday, October 12, 2020

24% Expect to Lose Employment Income in Next Four Weeks

In the final week of September, nearly one in four Americans aged 18 or older expected that they or someone in their household would lose employment income in the next four weeks—before the November 3 presidential election. Nearly half (46 percent) had already experienced a loss of employment income in their household since March 13, 2020. These results are from the Census Bureau's Household Pulse Survey, which is tracking the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the American public. The latest survey was fielded during the week of September 16-28. Here are the percentages who expected to lose income by age group...

Percent who expect a loss of employment income in household in next four weeks
Total 18-plus: 24.0%
Aged 18 to 24: 21.7%
Aged 25 to 39: 27.2%
Aged 40 to 54: 27.9%
Aged 55 to 64: 25.3%
Aged 65-plus: 15.1%

A substantial share of the population is expecting the axe to fall regardless of demographic characteristic. By education, the percentage of adults who say their household's employment income will decline in the next four weeks ranges from a high of 36 percent among those without a high school diploma to a still substantial 18 percent among people with a bachelor's degree. By household income, the figure ranges from a high of 35 percent among those with incomes below $25,000 to a significant 16 percent of those with household incomes of $100,000 or more. 

Such widespread financial distress is likely to be a big factor on election day. 

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