The pandemic that hit the world in 2020 disrupted the world economy. People faced job losses, pay cuts and uncertainty. Startups went bankrupt, and many established businesses were on the verge of being shut down. According to Asia- Pacific Employment and Social Outlook 2020: Navigating the crisis towards a human-centered future of work estimates, the economic backlash of the COVID-19 pandemic wiped out some 81 million jobs in 2020. In terms of employment, 2020 is said to be the worst year.

While there are many reports about job losses in the private sector, the data for job losses in the public sector doesn't get much attention even though it is one of the worst-hit sectors by the pandemic.

Job Losses in the Public Sector Educational Institutions

After the first lockdown, schools and colleges were shut down. It has been a crucial time for students as well as teachers. The education sector has been severely impacted by the pandemic. The old chalk and talk system were suddenly forced to shift to an online mode. Most schools and colleges could not adapt well to this technical shift in the way they now operated.

Like other sectors, the education sector has also seen job losses owing to the pandemic. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment in local government educational institutions or jobs mainly in the K-12 public school systems dropped by 2,31,000. Work in this sector is said to be down by 570,300 compared to this time last year, according to an analysis of BLS data by Elsie Gould, a senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute, a left-leaning thinks- tank.

The employment in state government educational institutions has fallen by 49,000. This includes employment in schools and universities. Overall the employment in the education sector has fallen by 355,000 since February 2020.

Are the Job Losses Real?

According to various sources, the job losses in the public sector educational institutions are not really what they seem to be. The main reason why there is a lack in the number of school staff required from the number of school staff already present lies mainly in the slow rate of hiring. The schools did not hire the required number of staff at the required speed, and hence when the pandemic hit, they started facing struggles in coping up with a whole shift in the way they operated.

To put it simply, the jobs in the education sector weren't 'lost', but were never 'filled'.

There haven't been increased layoffs in schools. A sudden increase in the number of people voluntarily quitting the job is also not seen. The retirement rates are also the same as compared to previous years. So what caused the loss of education sector jobs? The answer is very understandable; the low rate of hiring of staff.

Schools and universities used to employ less staff than their actual requirements. They mainly hired staff through informal sources and did not fill up most of the vacant job roles. They must be having a huge amount of savings to cope up with the changing scenarios due to covid-19. Even after spending some amount of their savings on PPE kits, masks and other necessary items per the government guidelines, they must be left with a large pool of funds to look after their needs.

Way Forward

The only possible solution for schools and universities for coming out of this crisis is to start bulk-hiring. They must fill all the vacant positions with a qualified person so that they can provide quality education to their students.