CCIS Spotlight: Employment

The COVID Community Impact Survey (CCIS) Employment Spotlight highlights the relationship between employment and pandemic experiences and resulting impacts on health.

Summary of key findings

• Throughout the pandemic, many essential workers in Massachusetts have had to leave home to do their jobs, putting them at increased risk of exposure to COVID-19. In the CCIS, working outside the home was more common among respondents who were Hispanic/Latinx, spoke a language other than English, were aged 65 years and older, male, asexual, had lower education attainment, had lower household income, and those with cognitive or self-care/independent-living disabilities​.   
• Lack of workplace protections may contribute to COVID-19 disparities in Massachusetts. Occupation groups who are more likely to work outside the home and less likely to report access to key workplace COVID-19 protections or paid sick leave include: building and grounds cleaning and maintenance; food preparation/serving related; transportation and material moving; and personal care and services. Previous non-CCIS data (Hawkins 2021) shows that these four groups all had higher than average age-adjusted death rates from COVID-19 in Massachusetts during March through July 2020. 
• Seven out of ten workers experienced disruptions to their employment due to the pandemic, including 10% who lost their jobs, 14% reporting reduced hours or taking leave, and another 41% who reported changes to the nature of their work. This was especially true for respondents who were American Indian/Alaska Native, were of transgender experience, ​were of non-binary gender, were bisexual/ pansexual, had lower educational attainment, or had lower annual household income. 
• Needing to take care of children was a commonly reported reason for changes in employment status among parents, especially for those who were Hispanic/Latinx or multiracial, spoke a language other than English, were younger, female or non-binary, questioning sexual orientation, bisexual/pansexual, queer​, parents of children with special healthcare needs​, had lower annual household income, or had lower educational attainment. ​Two in five parents who reduced work hours or took leave and a third pf parents who lost their jobs noted needing to take care of children as a reason for this employment status change.  
• One in four workers lost their jobs, had to reduce their hours, or took leave. These workers were more likely to report worrying about expenses like housing, debt, and childcare. They also reported more frequent days of poor mental health.  

Spotlight slides and webinar

Skip this video.

You skipped the video, COVID-19 Community Impact Survey: Employment.

To view this video with ASL interpretation, watch the video in gallery view.

Additional Resources

CCIS Webinar Slides: Employment

CCIS Slides: Mental Health & Potential Stressors Among Workers

CCIS Slides: Mental Health & Potential Stressors Among Workers