Based on the February data, the Commerce Department’s Census Bureau, which compiles the data, projected about 31,153 new business startups with payroll tax liabilities would form within four quarters of application, down 13.2% compared to the estimates for January.Kelly and Rachel Newman attempt to have a family dinner with their six children, including Charlie, 9, center, at their home in Pitman, New Jersey, U.S., September 10, 2020. Picture taken September 10, 2020.
The findings of the Census Bureau’s experimental Household Pulse Survey, conducted from Feb. 3-15, underscore the hardships wrought by the year-long COVID-19 pandemic. They also challenge the argument from some quarters that jobless benefits were too generous and could discourage people from seeking work.
“Approximately one out of three households, 31.2%, that used unemployment insurance in the last seven days to meet spending needs reported still having a very difficult time meeting usual household expenses,” said Abinash Mohanty, a statistician in the Census Bureau’s Social, Economic and Housing Statistics Division. “Those include, but are not limited to, food, rent or mortgage, car payments, medical expenses and student loans.
About 16.0% of households that received jobless benefits and had a mortgage or were renting reported they were not confident they could pay next month’s rent or mortgage. In contrast, only 6.2% of households not on jobless benefits had such worries.