David Swenson, associate scientist, talked to Grant Gerlock, Iowa Public Radio; and Robert Connelly, Quad City Times, about April 2nd unemployment insurance filings at the national level and in Iowa, and which industries are likely to see further job losses in the coming weeks.
He also spoke with Katie Piekes, Iowa Public Radio, about how the coronavirus economic slump will affect rural communities.
Swenson also spoke with Linh Ta, Iowa Capital Dispatch about how recessions affect high school students entering the workforce or college and the consequences for college students who may find it difficult to start work in their chosen fields.
Swenson was interviewed by Robert Connelly, Muscatine Journal for an April 2 story, "Unemployment filings continue surge, detailing economic ripples from COVID-19."
"You’re going to see incremental closings as this drags on because firms that were trying to stay open to just simply limp along are going to find out that they can’t,” Swenson said. “There’s legislation out there with the CARES Act to try to limit the amount of closures we’re going to have, but there were a lot of small businesses that were operating on already thin margins that not even the CARES Act is going to be able to save. So some of those will go out” of business, Swenson said.
He was also interviewed for an April 6 story in The Neighbor.
“We don’t know yet,” he said, stressing that earnings are reported on a quarterly basis so the effect on businesses won’t be known until at least the second quarter. “We don’t have enough solid information. And we really won’t have good, solid information for several months.”
Swenson was interviewed for an April 9 Des Moines Register story, "Unemployment claims in Iowa: Another week, another record."
"The recovery will likely look different among various industries," Swenson said. "Businesses such as bars and restaurants, where large groups of people pack tightly together, may not reopen immediately, either because of a government order or fear among customers."
Swenson also warned not to expect a fast bounce-back in shopping. He said laid-off workers may find work relatively soon when businesses open up again, but they will need to pay overdue rent and utility bills and won't have much spare money for several months.
Swenson spoke with:
Art Cullen, Storm Lake Times, about the elimination of 55 area Iowa Workforce Development Offices in 2011 and how that affects laid off workers who are now struggling to sign up for unemployment benefits.
George Ford, Cedar Rapids Gazette, about the likely type of recovery to expect and whether Iowa’s economy would decline and recover similar to the nation.