"One reason is that the pandemic brought a sharp shift in household consumption toward goods and away from services. Rural America, the manufacturing heartland, benefited from job growth in 2022 and 2023. That growth slowed by 2024, but legislation like Sen. Todd Young's CHIPS and Science Act offered at least a hint that we might be entering a period of more stable factory employment."
"Unlike most of the world, the U.S. economy boomed after COVID-19. The effects were particularly obvious in labor markets, pushing us down to the longest stretch of sub-4% unemployment since the 1960s. This attracted immigrants - legal and illegal - many of whom came to rural America for economic opportunity. This was a rare advantage for rural places with low quality of life."
Small towns face economic challenges as elected officials reverse pandemic-era policies that had been reviving them. COVID-19 brought jobs and people to declining rural communities, creating unexpected economic opportunity. A shift in household spending toward goods boosted manufacturing employment in 2022 and 2023, and legislation like Sen. Todd Young's CHIPS and Science Act suggested potential for more stable factory jobs. The post-pandemic U.S. boom pushed unemployment below 4%, attracting immigrants who often chose rural areas for good-paying jobs rather than amenities. Remote work and new businesses further expanded rural populations and college-educated labor supply, but growth slowed by 2024, leaving gains fragile.
Read at USA TODAY
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]