If sectors have been severely affected the most by the COVID-19 pandemic, they have to be education and employment. At the height of the pandemic, people weren’t even allowed to leave their homes. This ensured that no school would continue, and work had to be stopped. When normalcy or some of it was resumed, there have been several changes that came to effect. For example, most workplaces are today set up to enable social distancing. But those are just the minor problems; you will find the major ones below.
Work Problems
When the pandemic hit, several people lost their jobs as most companies closed down operations due to a lack of customers. Some companies required their employees to provide a sick leave certificate. Around 32% of the global workforce had their work affected in one way or the other by covid-19. Another 25% lost their jobs as a result of the pandemic too. These are just rough estimates around the impact on work that covid has had. There’s a deeper picture, though; the statistics don’t see that. For example, a few have resumed work a year after it hit the people who lost their jobs due to COVID-19.
In the US, for example, the unemployment rate remains at highs of 42% due to the pandemic. This is one of the highest unemployment cases due to the covid-19 pandemic. China has the lowest with only 17%. Most of the people whose jobs were affected by covid have, in most cases, changed employment. Only a few have returned to the same positions after the pandemic affected their jobs. Some have even gone back to the same job but with reduced wages. Overall, work has severely been affected by covid-19. The other problem that COVID has caused in the workplace is that more men are returning to work than women. The loss of jobs cuts across all genders, but 9% of men have returned to work than women.
Impact on School
School is another sector that suffered immensely due to covid. Students had to leave the school year, and catching up hasn’t been easy. In most countries., the school calendar year has to be entirely postponed, which hasn’t done the students any favors. This prompted most parents to try out different homeschooling ideas for their kids. Around 84% of parents took it upon themselves to home school for about six months. Its impact can be felt, though, as many parents aren’t trained teachers to handle the rigorous academic needs. There have also been some major social issues that children have developed due to staying at home. The social impact, both negative and positive, has been at highs of around 31%. About 32% of parents then feel that their children have fallen back academically due to their time out of school.
You can: find more on the stats above here.
COVID Created Change
There have been significant changes due to COVID both at the workplace and in educational facilities. These are some of the problems that have come from; COVID in these two sectors.