Washington study: 900,000 in ‘hazardous and economically precarious’ jobs in pandemic
More than 900,000 workers in the state are in jobs that are “economically precarious” and have a high risk of COVID-19, according to a new study by the Washington State Labor Education and Research Center.
“The study results demonstrate that the COVID risk problem is larger than just the ‘essential’ workforce,” the report said. “We identified 55 occupations with over 900,000 workers that are both hazardous and economically precarious – occupations that combine low wages or inadequate benefits with high SARS-CoV-2 hazard scores.”
They found that two-thirds of those workers are women, and that in 17 of the 55 jobs women make up more than 80 percent of the labor force, which is almost twice their representation in the labor force overall.
About 35 percent of the workers in the 55 jobs are people of color, compared to a representation of 30 percent in the overall workforce, the study found. There were about 52,000 Black workers in the 55 occupations, the report said, and their representation in those jobs is 43 percent higher than their representation in the workforce overall.
The 10 jobs that represent the largest number of the 900,000 workers are: retail salespersons, fast food workers, office clerks, cashiers, home health aides, customer service representatives, restaurant servers, teaching assistants, nursing assistants, and information and records clerks.
“We highlight the areas where public and private sector leaders can act boldly to build safer workplaces and address the precarious economic situation of too many Washington workers,” the report said. “By providing essential and at-risk workers with baseline economic and hazard protections, we are demonstrating to these workers that their contributions to the state’s economy are valued and take steps to better withstand the continuing shock of COVID-19 and prepare for future shocks.”
The report says policymakers should “ensure that all Washington at-risk/precarious workers have affordable access to health insurance, hazard pay, paid leave for quarantine periods, and childcare to reduce stress and ensure prompt care.”
Among other recommendations, it also said they should “support comprehensive notification of positive workplace COVID tests and targeted workplace testing, and prioritize workplace follow-up tracking.”
This story was originally published September 7, 2020 at 5:45 AM with the headline "Washington study: 900,000 in ‘hazardous and economically precarious’ jobs in pandemic."
