The Biden–Harris economy has left many American workers struggling to find more work hours and often taking on second jobs to make ends meet and pay the bills. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the number of Americans taking on two or more jobs ticked up significantly in July. At the same time, the government agency announced that total jobs numbers for the year were being revised down by nearly one million.
From 2010 until 2019, an average of 4.94 percent of workers needed to hold down two or more jobs. During the COVID-19 pandemic—mostly due to government relief programs—that number fell to just 4 percent. However, under the Biden-Harris government, 5.3 percent of workers needed two or more jobs in July, an uptick from 5.2 percent in June.
While these numbers may not seem significant on their face, the jump in two or more job holders represents a nearly 10 percent increase under Joe Biden and Kamala Harris compared to previous presidencies.
Workers are increasingly holding one or more jobs for several reasons. Inflation under the Biden–Harris government has caused a dramatic increase in housing and grocery prices. Additionally, wages have once again stagnated—primarily due to eroding purchasing power—after rising under former President Donald J. Trump.
“One story is that people are short of cash, and they need extra hours and the only way to pick up extra hours is by picking up a short-term job,” explained Christopher Taber, who chairs the economics department at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, in a recent interview.
The National Pulse has previously reported that most of the jobs created in the Biden-Harris economy have been part-time.
