Jobless report shows service industry takes huge hit

The U.S. lost 701,000 jobs, including 417,400 jobs at bars and restaurants, in March as the economic toll from the coronavirus crisis continues to mount.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate rose nearly a full percentage point in March, to 4.4%.

Other heavy job losses were seen in retail trade, construction, and manufacturing, as job sites idled to respect social distancing requirements.

Data for the state of Florida will be released April 17. But the local picture is expected to be grim; over the past two weeks, more than 300,000 Floridians have filed claims for unemployment. Those figures are likely low, as the state’s unemployment claims website has serious problems and many have been unable to file.

In a statement, the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau (GMCVB) said the impact on local industry has been enormous.

“The GMCVB understands the necessary steps required to stop the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic have had a massive impact on the travel and hospitality industry, the top economic engine for the Miami-Dade County community,” it said.

The March report came in worse than economists’ predictions; many had believed that because the report did not cover all of March, it would not capture the full extent of economic damage that has occurred.

Oren Klachkin, an economist at Oxford Economics, a research group, estimates 20 million jobs will be lost due to the crisis.

“The March jobs report won’t fully reflect the magnitude of the job losses given the timing of the survey, but it is likely to show early signs of labor market distress,” he said in an email in advance of Friday’s report. “The April and May jobs reports will give us better understanding on the extent of the labor market collapse.”