How Quarantine has Impacted Jobs

The world wide quarantine caused by the COVID-19 epidemic has had numerous severe effects on society. One major area of effect has been the job sector. Countless people across the Globe have suffered job loss, without any hope in sight for new job opportunities. With COVID spreading through contact with people, many close-contact businesses had to shut down or change how business was handled in order to meet safety standards.

Only people who were deemed “essential employees” were allowed to continue working at first. This included food services, hardware stores, and grocery stores. However, not every employee at an essential business was kept on. Some people were laid off, while others were put on furlough.

I interviewed one recent high school graduate who was laid off because of the pandemic. “When quarantine started, Mount Snow shut down in order to keep travelers away. So obviously, I lost my job," he said. He then went into detail about what he did in order to keep having a sustainable income, which included working on a farm for several months. “Had to do what I could to make ends meet. Whatever puts food on the table."

I then interviewed a man from Greenfield named James Gamlin. He works at Village Pizza, and kept his job throughout quarantine. “Business got way busier. Other pizza places were closing, so more people were consistently coming to us to meet their needs. It became something to look forward to."

Since the beginning of quarantine, things have slowly gotten better. As businesses have started to reopen, more people have been getting hired or rehired. While some people lost jobs and other people remained employed, there is no doubt that COVID-19 will have a lasting effect on the job market.