The pandemic has had a devastating impact on jobs, especially in the U.S. A total of 22.7 million Americans claiming unemployment benefits as of Oct. 10, according to CNN.
First, a bit about who those respondents are: The majority said they work in either design, PR, editorial, marketing or retail. About 43% said they live in New York, 12% in California and 21% outside the U.S. Eighty-seven percent identified as female. About 70% of respondents identified as white, 11% Black, 10% Asian and 8% Latinx.
Thirty-four percent of people who experienced salary reductions also said they had no idea when their salary would go back to normal. Some people said their salary reductions fluctuated. Meanwhile, while some people said they had their work hours reduced commensurate with their salary reductions, many reported not having their hours reduced at all.
From our survey, when these hardships are looked at as a percentage of each gender identity, the numbers are a little more even. For example, of all the female respondents, 13.64% said they were laid off, while of all the male respondents, 14.74% said they were laid off. A slightly higher percentage of women said their salaries weren't impacted, compared to male respondents.