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Oct 7, 2022 - Economy

COVID-impact questions dropped from jobs report

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U.S. workers who did not look for a job in the previous month because of COVID-19
Data: BLS; Chart: Kavya Beheraj/Axios

The Bureau of Labor Statistics is retiring certain questions related to the pandemic used in its monthly jobs report.

Why it matters: The questions were added to its household survey in May 2020, to examine the effects of the pandemic on the labor market. They have now become "less relevant," the agency noted on Friday.

Details: The agency will no longer track whether COVID prevented people from looking for work, whether they were paid for that missed work, and whether the pandemic caused their company to close its doors.

  • New supplemental questions starting with the October jobs report will now focus on telework trends.

Our thought bubble, via Axios’ Courtenay Brown: The pandemic is not holding as many people back from looking for work as before, but it’s still a factor… and we just won’t know how big of a factor from here on out.

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