3 ms·

US wages have reached an all-time high, powered by strong growth during the Covid recession[1]. With higher compensation it makes sense that more people would t

US wages have reached an all-time high, powered by strong growth during the Covid recession[1]. With higher compensation it makes sense that more people would trade off leisure to work additional hours at attractive pay. Including getting a second job. [1]https://www.bls.gov/news.release/eci.nr0.htm https://www.bls.gov/news.release/eci.nr0.htm

dragonwriter 6y ago
> US wages have reached an all-time high, powered by strong growth during the Covid recession Translation: employment losses were strong at the bottom and light at the top, leaving the average wages of the remaining employed workers much higher. > With higher compensation it makes sense that more people would trade off leisure to work additional hours at attractive pay. Including getting a second job. I would be very surprised if the distribution of who is getting second jobs is consistent with that “a sinking tide lifts all boats” fairy tale rather than it being concentrated in the same segments where unemployment has gone up the most and representing instead people who would otherwise be underemployed due to limited hours available in the primary job backfilling with a second, possibly lower-paying-per-hour job.
- dcolkitt 6y ago
  Although labor market recomposition plays a role. There's a major shortage of semi-skilled blue collar labor, leading to some of the strongest wage increases of any sectors in 2020. This includes construction[1], manufacturing[2], and logistics[3]. These workforces tend to skew older, and hence were more affected by workers dropping out due to Covid fears. Unlike traditional white collar professions, these are industries where workers are likely to take a second job. Particularly during boom periods when pay is attractive. It's very likely that at least some of the increase in second jobs is driven by rising secular wages in semi-skilled blue collar jobs. [1]https://www.tradesmeninternational.com/news-events/the-construction-labor-shortage-where-did-all-the-skilled-labor-go/ https://www.tradesmeninternational.com/news-events/the-const... [2]https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2020/11/manufacturing-faces-labor-shortage-as-workforce-ages.html https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2020/11/manufacturing... [3]https://www.joc.com/port-news/us-ports/warehouse-worker-scarcity-crimping-us-transloading-capacity_20200813.html https://www.joc.com/port-news/us-ports/warehouse-worker-scar...
alacombe 6y ago
Given the sheer unemployment numbers and the amount of forced closures, this doesn't make any sense...

dragonwriter 6y ago

> US wages have reached an all-time high, powered by strong growth during the Covid recession Translation: employment losses were strong at the bottom and light at the top, leaving the average wages of the remaining employed workers much higher. > With higher compensation it makes sense that more people would trade off leisure to work additional hours at attractive pay. Including getting a second job. I would be very surprised if the distribution of who is getting second jobs is consistent with that “a sinking tide lifts all boats” fairy tale rather than it being concentrated in the same segments where unemployment has gone up the most and representing instead people who would otherwise be underemployed due to limited hours available in the primary job backfilling with a second, possibly lower-paying-per-hour job.

dcolkitt 6y ago
Although labor market recomposition plays a role. There's a major shortage of semi-skilled blue collar labor, leading to some of the strongest wage increases of any sectors in 2020. This includes construction[1], manufacturing[2], and logistics[3]. These workforces tend to skew older, and hence were more affected by workers dropping out due to Covid fears. Unlike traditional white collar professions, these are industries where workers are likely to take a second job. Particularly during boom periods when pay is attractive. It's very likely that at least some of the increase in second jobs is driven by rising secular wages in semi-skilled blue collar jobs. [1]https://www.tradesmeninternational.com/news-events/the-construction-labor-shortage-where-did-all-the-skilled-labor-go/ https://www.tradesmeninternational.com/news-events/the-const... [2]https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2020/11/manufacturing-faces-labor-shortage-as-workforce-ages.html https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2020/11/manufacturing... [3]https://www.joc.com/port-news/us-ports/warehouse-worker-scarcity-crimping-us-transloading-capacity_20200813.html https://www.joc.com/port-news/us-ports/warehouse-worker-scar...

alacombe 6y ago

Given the sheer unemployment numbers and the amount of forced closures, this doesn't make any sense...