A new report revealed on CNBC Friday that 3.1 million people have been unable to work due to their employer closing or losing business as inflation and government regulations continue to cripple the job market.
The information was discussed during a “CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer” report on Friday morning.
“3.1 million people reported they’ve been unable to work because their employer closed or lost business,” Cramer said.
CNBC: "3.1 million people reported they've been UNABLE TO WORK because their employer closed or lost business." pic.twitter.com/vkKREXflEf
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) January 7, 2022
“This is what I’m hearing from a lot of CEOs is that basically, look, we can’t staff, or we’re looking for people, or a lot of our customers are going under,” he added.
The report also comes as CNBC reported the nation’s economy added just 199,000 jobs in December, falling far short of expectations.
BREAKING: The U.S. economy added 199,000 jobs in December, falling far short of expectations. https://t.co/lize4vONr5 pic.twitter.com/7EewsHHRCc
— CNBC (@CNBC) January 7, 2022
The December drop was largely blamed on the large surge of COVID-19 cases in December.
“The new year is off to a rocky start,” wrote Nick Bunker, economic research director at job placement site Indeed told CNBC. “These less than stellar numbers were recorded before the omicron variant started to spread significantly in the United States. Hopefully the current wave of the pandemic will lead to limited labor market damage. The labor market is still recovering, but a more sustainable comeback is only possible in a post-pandemic environment.”
Rising inflation was another issue cited in the report.
“Average hourly earnings rose more than expected as the U.S. sees its fastest inflation pace in nearly 40 years. Wages climbed 0.6% for the month and were up 4.7% year over year. That compares with respective estimates of 0.4% and 4.2%,” CNBC said.
Related to the lower than expected job numbers in December was the growing number of vaccine mandates and COVID-19 restrictions in American workplaces. Some companies reinstated mask mandates in December in response to the surge in cases related to the Omicron variant, a factor that may have lowered customer traffic and impacted jobs.
Other businesses closed storefronts temporarily or limited services during December. One notable example was Apple. It temporarily shuttered some locations, including ending in-store shopping in its New York City locations in December.
As The Daily Wire reported at the time:
The tech company will only permit pick-up orders at its stores across the Big Apple, according to local store websites. Apple will also discontinue its tech services during the in-store shopping ban.
“Please note we are offering online order pick up and limited walk in services for shopping and Genius Bar support at this location,” Apple’s Fifth Avenue location stated.
The in-store shopping ban follows the closures of eight other Apple stores nationwide and in Canada last week. The locations included stores in Florida, Georgia, New Hampshire, Ohio, Texas, and one location in Montreal.
“We regularly monitor conditions, and we will adjust our health measures to support the well-being of customers and employees,” Apple said in a statement. “We remain committed to a comprehensive approach for our teams that combines regular testing with daily health checks, employee and customer masking, deep cleaning and paid sick leave.”