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Employment and Unemployment

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An individual's education, age, and health status may present barriers or opportunities to employability, just as a region's economy, tax base, and number of immigrants and emigrants may affect job availability. RAND research examines the impact of a range of policies and forces—personal, regional, and global—on employment and unemployment.

Report

COVID-19 and the Changing Nature of Work

Jun 18, 2020

Between February and May, one in six U.S. workers lost their jobs. Most were either laid off or unable to work because of coronavirus restrictions. The ability to telecommute protected against job loss. But of course not all jobs are conducive to telecommuting.
Commentary

For Leisure and Hospitality, Weak Recovery Still Looks Like Recession

Sep 4, 2020

By most measures, the workers hardest hit by pandemic shutdowns were those in the leisure and hospitality sector, which includes arts, entertainment, recreation, accommodation, and food services. These jobs, which are still affected by government social distancing regulations, are not all likely to come back before the pandemic truly ends.

Explore Employment and Unemployment

Blog

Election Interference on Twitter, Insulin Prices, Remote Learning: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on evidence of interference in the 2020 election on Twitter, U.S. insulin prices compared to those of other countries, how parents can help their kids' education stay on track during the pandemic, and more.

Oct 9, 2020
Commentary

'Holes Just Big Enough': Unemployment's History with Black Workers

There's a longstanding accusation leveled at the U.S. unemployment insurance system that has been revived lately: that it's structurally racist, deliberately discriminatory from the outset, and remains so today. That claim has been met with doubt. But underlying the debate is a legitimate question: Why doesn't unemployment insurance treat all workers and all earnings the same?

Oct 5, 2020
Blog

How Russia Targets U.S. Elections, Black Workers and COVID-19, TikTok: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on how Russia targets U.S. elections, Americans' increased alcohol consumption during the pandemic, Black workers and COVID-19, and more.

Oct 2, 2020
Journal Article

A Policy Review of Employers' Open Access to Conviction Records

In this review, we find that (a) US employers' use of conviction information is not clearly aligned with the risk of future criminal behavior or employer costs, and (b) using such information leads to hiring errors that pose costs to society.

Sep 30, 2020
Commentary

Laid Off More, Hired Less: Black Workers in the COVID-19 Recession

As the U.S. economy tries to rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic, companies are adding workers to their teams, yet one group is being picked last: Black workers. Getting back into a job later could do lasting harm to millions of Black Americans' incomes and wealth accumulation for years.

Sep 29, 2020
Journal Article

Journal Article

The Effects of Job Characteristics on Retirement

We present results from a survey fielded in the RAND American Life Panel. The survey queried older workers about their current,desired, and expected job characteristics, and about how certain characteristics would affect their retirement decisions.

Sep 29, 2020
Multimedia

Unemployment Insurance: Why Does It Vary Across States?

RAND economist Kathryn Edwards discusses the variance of unemployment insurance across states and its effect on how workers are financially supported.

Sep 28, 2020
Commentary

It May Be Time to Rethink the Design of Jobs to Deliver Good Health for Workers

Even before the COVID-19 crisis, the impact of poorly designed jobs on the health of workers was drawing attention. Now may be the time to fundamentally rethink the design of jobs so that they promote good health and lessen poor health and its costs.

Sep 25, 2020
Multimedia

Tracking the Effects of COVID-19 on Lives and Livelihoods

RAND's Shanthi Nataraj draws on key findings from the RAND American Life Panel to explore how the pandemic is affecting Americans' physical and mental health, their daily lives, and their financial well-being.

Sep 17, 2020
Journal Article

Moonlighting to the Side Hustle: The Effect of Working an Extra Job on Household Poverty for Households With Less Formal Education

To understand who works multiple jobs and its effect on economic well-being, we used the Survey of Income and Program Participation to estimate the effect of secondary earnings on household poverty.

Sep 17, 2020
Journal Article

Journal Article

Parents with an Unemployed Adult Child: Consumption, Income, and Savings Effects

In this paper, we directly approach the potential costs, inefficiencies, and inequities of aiding family members.

Sep 17, 2020
Journal Article

Journal Article

Who Helps the Unemployed? Workers' Receipt of Public and Private Transfers

Unemployment increases the probability a worker receives financial assistance from their family, inclusive of all demographic subgroups.

Sep 17, 2020
Blog

America's Declining Global Influence, COVID-19 and Schools, Pardoning Snowden: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on America's declining status on the world stage, why schools need long-term plans to address COVID-19, what Shinzo Abe's resignation means for the U.S.-Japan alliance, and more.

Sep 11, 2020
Commentary

Can Workers' Compensation Help Businesses Reopen More Safely?

Workers' compensation typically does not cover common infectious diseases like COVID-19. But in the fight against the pandemic, state policymakers might take a fresh look at aspects of labor and business regulation that usually fade into the background and ask if modest changes hold any potential to reduce disease transmission.

Sep 9, 2020
Periodical

Periodical

RAND Review: September-October 2020

Feature stories explore how Pardee RAND is helping to shape the future of public policy through its Faculty Leaders Program; the safety and sustainability of the U.S. blood supply; and how telemedicine is changing the delivery of health care.

Sep 8, 2020
Commentary

Should COVID-19 Be Covered by Workers' Compensation?

Expanding workers' compensation coverage for COVID-19 could be part of a broader response to ensuring an efficient economic recovery from the pandemic. What are the potential benefits and drawbacks?

Aug 31, 2020
Commentary

Industry Mix in L.A. Area Helps Explain Recent Record Unemployment Rates

The Los Angeles Combined Statistical Area reported more than 270,000 job cuts between March and early August. Considering which industries have cut jobs may provide a window into the area's unique labor market and help explain how the area currently has among the highest unemployment in the nation.

Aug 25, 2020
Blog

Radicalization, the Gender Pay Gap, Israel-UAE Deal: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on the potential for a new era of radicalization, insights into the gender pay gap, why the Israel-UAE deal doesn't merit the hype, and more.

Aug 21, 2020
Commentary

What Unemployment Statistics Obscure About Temporary Layoffs

As the broadest COVID-19 shutdowns were underway this spring, a historic number of American workers entered temporary layoff. Those temporary layoffs represent an economy put on pause. What has happened to them since then tells us if the economy can hit play again.

Aug 17, 2020

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