Faced with rising inflation and a workforce unable to join due to the raging pandemic, Americans continue to feel the need for a 4th stimulus check. Capital One Insights Center researchers have revealed that an immobilized supply chain and a sluggish job sector have made the need for an immediate stimulus check vital for a large section of citizens.
The analysts say that the 3 stimulus checks in the past year and a half had been critical for most Americans. But it has proved to be inadequate as the economy and the job market had failed to recover as expected.
The study was initiated in mid-2020. The authors surveyed an illustrative group of citizens every 4 to 8 months to study the impact of the virus, how they had spent the stimulus check, and how it has affected their opinion of the recovery of the economy.
The respondents were divided into 3 groups based on income. The first group is composed of Americans earning below $25,000, the second between $25,000 and $100,000, and the third, more than $100,000.
Stimulus Check Vital To Balance Out Disproportionate Recovery
Researchers found that the poorest of the nation had failed to recover due to several factors. While the loss in jobs and source of income was at its peak during the first wave in 2020, the recovery has been uneven after that due to several factors.
Between 32% and 36% of citizens continue to face loss of income. This figure hasn’t changed for Americans in the lower-earning bracket. Unemployment was the highest among Hispanics and Blacks. Debt levels also continued to be highest among the lowest-earning group. Around 20 reported high levels of debt in mid-2021.
The vicious cycle of mortgage, utility bills, credit cards has turned into a regular cause for anxiety. 46% of people in the low-income group said that they would find it difficult to meet their expenses without the support of the stimulus money.
The loss of federal unemployment benefits in September has also hit 9 million families. The median income of households was down by 2.9% in 2021 while full-time workers have gone down by 13.7M.
