Brutal winter weather, Trump Plaza, pandemic job losses: 5 things you need to know Wednesday Editors, USA TODAY
Brutal winter weather continuing across the country
An unrelenting winter weather pattern – one of the most merciless in years – showed no signs of letting up Wednesday as it left a trail of destruction, power outages and subzero temperatures across dozens of states. And more foul weather is on the way. Another winter storm with snow and ice was forecast to pummel portions of the South and Midwest on Wednesday. In all, 115 million Americans were in the path of the next storm, all the way from Texas to Massachusetts as of late Tuesday. At least 20 people have died as a result of the storms, including three killed in a tornado that tore through a North Carolina town. In Texas, nearly 3 million customers remained without power as of 5 a.m., according to poweroutage.us. Oregon reported 165,000 without power and Kentucky just under 100,000.
Black, Latino workers hurt most
Across the economy, Gusto estimates that employment in big cities rose by about 400,000 fewer jobs than it would have from March through December if not for the pandemic, based on an analysis of its own and Labor Department figures. About 175,000 of those jobs have shifted to the suburbs – through companies moving or stepping up hiring in those areas – while 225,000 have been permanently lost, the firm reckons.
It’s no secret what’s driving the trend. Cities have suffered more COVID-19 cases than suburbs because of their higher population densities. As a result, city governments have imposed tougher social distancing restrictions and Americans have voluntarily avoided crowded urban areas, hurting economic activity. In recent months, people in cities have spent about 5% less time outside the home than those in suburbs, according to Gusto’s analysis of Google Mobility data.
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