United States:
New American Economy Report Shows Continued Need For High-Skilled Foreign Workers In U.S. Economy
15 July 2021
Envoy Global, Inc.
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Commissioned and co-authored by Envoy Global, the report uses
data on the demand for foreign labor, unemployment and job openings
to illustrate how various sectors of the economy and the labor
market respond differently to crises
Since early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected daily life
for people around the world. Beyond altering life at the individual
level, the pandemic has also had broad-reaching impacts on U.S.
businesses. To better understand the pandemic’s impact on the
nation’s economy and the subsequent need for talented foreign
workers to fill critical job roles, Envoy Global partnered with
New American Economy, a bipartisan
think tank based in New York City, to learn more about the extent of this impact and the
increasingly vital role of foreign talent in helping the U.S.
economy recover.
Insights from Envoy Global’s report with New American
Economy
Foreign talent can help mitigate Covid-19’s impact on the
economy
Virtually all sectors of the U.S. economy and labor market were
affected by COVID-19. However, our report found that the impact was
not evenly distributed across all sectors. Certain industries,
namely food, hospitality and entertainment, were particularly hard
hit. At the same time, demand for goods and services in other
industries increased, including transportation, logistics,
healthcare and jobs where remote work is feasible.
Ultimately, the report shows that while high unemployment rates
and layoffs negatively impacted many sectors, industries that rely
on skilled foreign workers fared much better. Now more than ever,
businesses are relying on a steady supply of talented workers to
fill specialized and technical roles in order to continue growing,
expanding and recovering in the wake of the pandemic.
Catch our webinar with NAE’s Director of
Quantitative Research for a closer look at our co-authored
report!
Key Findings
Our report sheds light on some key findings across the economy
and certain sectors:
- Despite the economic upheaval caused by COVID-19, there
is a persistent shortage of high-skilled workers to meet employer
demands. - While unemployment rates are rising in some sectors,
demand for computer-related workers is holding steady and even
increasing. Even during the COVID-19 pandemic,
computer-related jobs increased. In FY2020, computer-related jobs
comprised 69.6% of foreign worker Labor Condition Application (LCA)
requests. - Demand for computer-related occupations is growing and
outpacing supply. In 2019, the unemployment rate for
math-related and computer-related occupations was 2.3%. That number
increased to 3.0% at the end of 2020, but it was 1.9% lower in
March 2021 than before the pandemic began. In FY2020,
computer-related workers topped the list of fastest-growing
occupations in FY2020.
Most critically, our report reinforces the fact that
employers’ ability to fill in-demand roles is essential to the
country’s long-term economic recovery. Without a solid
workforce of skilled technical and specialized workers needed for
continued innovation and growth, businesses may face limited
operational capacity and lack the capability to expand.
Furthermore, our findings support the Biden administration’s
goal to make the U.S. a welcoming destination for
talented foreign workers in critical professions.
While the U.S. has traditionally had a
“one-size-fits-all” immigration system, immigration
reform is increasingly essential to help the country recover faster
from the pandemic and weather future economic crises.
Download the report to learn more
about the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the U.S. labor force
and why our findings support the sentiment for broad national
immigration reform.
Originally published 13 July 2021
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