As unemployment claims soar in Pennsylvania, here’s what’s happening in Centre County
Thousands of Centre County residents have filed unemployment claims during the COVID-19 pandemic, and that may just be the tip of the iceberg, a Penn State associate labor and employment relations professor warned.
Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate jumped to 6% in March, up from 4.7% in February, according to figures released Friday by the state Department of Labor and Industry. The state’s unemployment rate in March 2019 was 4.1%.
There were 662 initial unemployment claims filed in Centre County for the week ending April 11, according to the DLI. There were 2,395 claims the two weeks prior, bringing the three-week total to 3,057.
Centre County had the fewest initial claims among fourth-class counties — those with a population of 145,000 to 209,999 — in Pennsylvania during the three-week period.
“What we know from past recessions is when they start in particular industries, there are reverberations and it can take a while for those reverberations to hit,” Penn State professor Sarah Damaske said. “... The shock waves are likely coming here, we just haven’t felt it as much yet.”
Gov. Tom Wolf ordered all non-life-sustaining businesses to close their physical locations as of March 19.
Some businesses permitted to stay open chose to temporarily close instead, while others, such a Elk Creek Cafe + Aleworks, continued with drastically reduced staffs.
At least one Centre County business — Mike’s Wood Grill and Bar in College Township — turned a temporary closure into a permanent one, with majority owner Bill McFadden saying the pandemic was the “proverbial nail in the coffin.” About 25 people were employed at the restaurant.
Which workers will be hardest hit?
During the Great Recession of 2007 to 2009, workers in the natural resources, construction and manufacturing industries were among the most adversely affected — it was even dubbed a “Mancession” since men predominate those sectors.
The inverse has been reported during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Workers in the trade, transportation and utilities, education and health service, and leisure and hospitality industries filed about 55% of unemployment claims statewide for the week ending April 11, according to the DLI.
A compounding factor, Damaske said, is women often provide more child care than men. And with schools and day cares closed, women may leave their jobs or not search for a new occupation.
“What I would expect is that we’ll see something similar to what we saw in the Great Recession,” Damaske said. “Men’s unemployment rates were higher at first, but as we saw those ripple effects, women’s unemployment levels rose. I would expect we see something similar here, except in reverse.”
Some of the most affected industries have been forced to navigated the state’s unemployment system for the first time, further complicating an “already confusing atmosphere,” state Chambers of Business and Commerce Government Affairs Director Alex Halper said.
“It’s an unprecedented impact on the economy and our unemployment numbers,” Halper said. “The dramatic swing in such a short period of time has created significant challenges for both employers and public sector programs intended to support individuals who are let go from their jobs.”
Pandemic brings uncharted territory for Centre County
Penn State, which has committed to paying all of its employees through April but has not ruled out furloughs or layoffs, has conducted remote learning for its students since March. Last week, the suspension of in-person classes were extended through the summer.
“Even during the Great Recession, we still had the students and the staff on campus being able to work,” Centre County Commissioner Mike Pipe said. “I am in the camp saying it was a great decision, ... but this is gonna be a different experience.”
Though there has only be “a little bit of an uptick,” Pipe said the county is expecting to see an increase in residents requesting assistance from its mental health and adult services offices.
“We want to be able to appreciate a little bit about what we’d be seeing when there would be an increased need in those services,” Pipe said. “When we see that, we’re gonna know that individuals do not have the money to buy food and are worried about how they’re going to pay their bills.”
The county has also not been immune to financial challenges from the coronavirus, voting Tuesday to furlough 63 employees, reduce 20 staff members’ hours and keep 17 positions vacant unless a critical need arises.
All affected employees were encouraged to file unemployment claims.
State Health Secretary Rachel Levine on Tuesday said the coronavirus curve — meaning the daily rise in reported cases — in Pennsylvania “has been flattened significantly.”
The mitigation efforts are working as intended, Levine said, and “have to continue.”
The state plans to take a data-driven, regional approach when it comes to repealing its statewide closures, Wolf said Friday. Some standards that will be required for reopening are:
- Adequate personal protective equipment and testing must be available
- A monitoring and surveillance program that can be swiftly deployed for containment and mitigation efforts must be available
- Limitations on visitors to congregate care facilities and prisons, along with large gatherings not related to occupations, must remain in place
The plan did not include a timetable or details about what metrics are expected to be used, though Wolf said that information is forthcoming.
State Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman, R-Benner Township, said in a statement that Wolf’s plan was “disappointing” and called on the two-term governor to be more transparent and seek input from all branches of government.
The Republican-controlled state legislature last week passed a bill that would have allowed some businesses to reopen throughout the state, though Wolf’s spokesperson already said he plans to veto the bill.
Pennsylvania is No. 5 in the amount of COVID-19 cases, but No. 1 in the amount of unemployment claims filed, Corman said.
The system has “slowed to a crawl and our families are suffering as a result,” Corman said.
“It is imperative that Gov. Wolf prioritizes working with the legislature, as well as with local leaders within our counties, above working with select governors from other northeastern states,” Corman said. “We are tired of hearing his rhetoric that he wants to work with us, while at the same time making unilateral decisions. It is far past time for him to abandon his go-it-alone approach and come to the table to work with the general assembly on real solutions.”