The effect Covid has on the economy and how you can get ahead

The Covid-19 pandemic has completely shaken up business and workplace culture. Employees have realized that they can work from home just as well if not better than at the office. At the same time employers must admit that their employees can be effective while outside the workplace. Video calls and email chains have become the norm and as the economy continues to return to normality it is important to know how you can take advantage of this major shift.  

The pandemic has changed the way that we view work and where we want to spend our time. Service employees and essential workers don’t want to put themselves at risk while simultaneously being underappreciated for their contributions. Per azcentral “four million Americans left their jobs in April, the most since the statistic has been tracked.”. Simply put workers aren’t happy with what they’re being offered from businesses and these individuals believe they are worth more. Because the pandemic has caused shortages of workers nearly across the board this means companies are more desperate to hire. Many places are offering higher wages along with a starting bonus. This is the perfect time to move up the ranks as an employee and establish trust with a company in a day in age where loyalty is fleeting.

CNN Business reports that the economy in the United States is operating at 94% of where it was in early March 2020. This means that the economy is rebounding and almost back to normal. The work and demand for workers is there but many still refuse to rejoin the work force. Brookings reports that in the second quarter of 2021, GDP returned to its pre-pandemic level. The economy has rebounded, and people are spending money at the same rate they used to. The article goes on to state that the number of job openings and the number of workers quitting their jobs is higher now than in the past 20 years. On top of that lower income workers are seeing increases in wages.  The time is now and those who don’t realize the unique position the job market is in will be at a severe disadvantage down the line. Potential applicants should be aiming higher than ever have before and asking for much more than have ever felt they were worth. It is a worker’s market and good employees are hard to come by.

Sara Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA states within a Bloomberg piece that “the power that people are talking about that workers have right now is really unchanneled, unfocused—and will be fleeting if we don’t organize”. Workers cannot wait for someone to come along and keep this wage hike a float. There needs to be organization and collective bargaining as well as full transparency and communication between laborers regarding salaries and duties within the occupation. The only way to keep making change is through organized action and it begins with you.

Aside from sticking up for yourself and your wages in the workplace as well as having strength in numbers, it is important to take advantage of the positive things that covid has brought about for consumers. The housing market has gone bonkers the past six months to a year as prices of existing homes soar. This is due to the scarcity of materials such as lumber and steel thus causing prices of these materials to skyrocket. As a result, nobody wants to build new houses. What does this mean for you the consumer? If you currently own a home, consider refinancing or even selling for the right price. Loan rates are at astronomical lows on mortgages, but they won’t stay that way forever. Acting now is imperative to achieving the financial success and freedom we all strive for.

By sticking to this plan, you can move up the ladder faster than any time in recent years. It is time to make the most of the situation we have been placed in. Be willing to make sacrifices when it comes to the workplace because those sacrifices will pay dividends in the long run.