A Historic Unemployment Crisis

<p>To contain the pandemic, the U.S. government has brought the economy to a halt. Today, we explore one result of their containment efforts: one of the worst unemployment crises in American history. Guest: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/jim-tankersley?smid=pc-thedaily" target="_blank">Jim Tankersley</a>, a reporter covering economic and tax policy for The New York Times. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. </p><p>Background reading: </p><ul><li>The national unemployment rate is probably<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/03/upshot/coronavirus-jobless-rate-great-depression.html?smid=pc-thedaily" target="_blank"> around 13 percent, The Times estimated</a>. “Scary things are going on in our life right now,”<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/04/nyregion/coronavirus-ny-unemployment-benefits.html?smid=pc-thedaily" target="_blank"> one idled Lyft driver said</a>.</li><li>Whole sectors of the U.S. economy have gone dark to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus.<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/22/us/politics/coronavirus-economy-shutdown.html?smid=pc-thedaily" target="_blank"> Here’s what comes next</a>.</li></ul>