One of the most destructive effects of the coronavirus pandemic has been on jobs. Nationally, more than 36 million people have applied for unemployment benefits. Hosts Marty Moss-Coane of WHYY in Philadelphia and Mina Kim of KQED in San Francisco dive into the challenges facing those whose jobs may never return to pre-pandemic levels. Among the hardest hit: women and people of color who work in retail, hospitality, healthcare and education. What will the future hold for employees of these sectors? What should people expect of the job market? And what solutions are there for returning to stability? Our guests include: Bill Rodgers, professor of public policy and chief economist at the Heldrich Center for Workforce Development at Rutgers University and former chief economist for the U.S. Labor Department; Shonda Woods, who lives just outside Philadelphia and lost her job as home health care contractor and work as ride-share app driver. She’s a single mother of two with one son with disabilities. She also has two degrees and is unable to find a stable job; and Miguel Velasco, the workforce development program manager for MEDA (Mission Economic Development Agency) in San Francisco.

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