The impact will fall disproportionately on low-wage workers, immigrants, and workers of color, who are least able to absorb financial and health shocks.
Critical State and Local Policies to Respond to the COVID-19 Pandemic
Working families across California are already facing dramatically reduced earnings through work reductions and layoffs, loss of employer sponsored health insurance, and risk of housing displacement due to the COVID-19 pandemic—and many more will join them in the months to come. The impact will fall disproportionately on low-wage workers, immigrants, and workers of color, who are least able to absorb financial and health shocks. Immediate state and local government action is required on several fronts to protect the health and livelihood of California’s workers and their families. In this blog post, we first identify the industries most directly at risk of jobs loss and then outline principles for state and local policy responses to this crisis, highlighting immediate policy priorities.