US employment jumped in January despite Omicron wave - Karen Dynan & Wilson Powell III

February 4, 2022, Opinion: "US payroll employment jumped by 467,000 in January, much more than most analysts had expected. Businesses apparently perceived strong demand for their output and were willing to hire workers or keep workers who were hired for the holiday season on their payrolls. Although many more workers than usual missed some days of work because of illness—presumably driven by omicron—many were paid for at least part of the report's reference period and thereby were counted as employed. " Courtesy of PIIE

HKS Authors - Karen Dynan and Wilson Powell III