THESE days, most businesses are comfortable interviewing and hiring workers without being in the same room. A survey by Robert Half of 2,800 senior managers revealed 75% of employers have conducted remote interviews and on-boarding sessions for new hires, 63% of them implementing this policy since the pandemic started. Sixty-one percent of employers have advertised fully remote jobs and 60% have expanded their search geographically to access a wider candidate pool. The benefit, employers say, is it has shortened the hiring process.

EMPLOYERS are concerned about losing their top talent as employees are stretched to the limit, putting in longer hours and taking on additional responsibilities. To attract new talent, 44% of senior managers said starting salaries for new hires have held steady since the spread of Covid-19 began, and 28% noted an increase in base compensation.

LOWER-INCOME adults have been hit hard by the economic toll of the pandemic. According to a Pew Research Center survey, 25% of U.S. adults say they or someone in their household was laid off or lost their job because of Covid-19. Even if they didn’t lose their job, 32% of adults say they have had to reduce their hours or take a pay cut due to the economic fallout.

ECONOMISTS surveyed by the National Association for Business Economics are very concerned with the near-term economic situation. Among those surveyed, 55% of economists said they regard a second wave of Covid-19 cases as the most serious threat to the economy, and 20% of them thought lack of further government economic aid would pose the biggest risk.

COULD the economy double-dip into a recession? Fifty-one percent of economists estimate the chances are 20% or less that U.S. GDP will shrink again. Only 12% see the likelihood at 50% or more. More than half of economists believe 10% to 20% of jobs that have been lost to the pandemic recession are permanently gone, with many hotels, restaurants, retailers and entertainment venues unable to reopen.