Unemployment is rising in certain sectors amid the coronavirus outbreak. At the same time, other industries, such as shipping, home care and grocers, are in need of more employees.
An increase in unemployment insurance weekly claims, specifically in the accommodation and food service industries, was attributed to the COVID-19 virus in a March 19 release from the U.S. Department of Labor. Texas saw an additional 1,663 filings from the week of Feb. 29 to the week of March 7, the department's latest figures show.
“It is an ever-changing-by-the-minute environment that we are in,” said David Setzer, executive director of Workforce Solutions for North Central Texas.
Workforce Solutions is currently in the process of reaching out to employers to better understand their situations after closing its workforce centers to the public March 18, Setzer said. He added that the workforce organization primarily works with smaller companies, which receive benefits, such as free job postings to agency's job site.
Other large employers, such as Amazon, are expecting an increase in home deliveries in the coming months, he said.
“There are two definite players in the Dallas-Fort Worth region that are hiring: Amazon in their fulfillment center and H-E-B in their fulfillment-type center [and] warehouse,” he said.
Domino's Pizza announced March 23 that it is looking to hire about 1,800 new team members across 180 stores throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth area, including delivery drivers, customer service representatives, assistant managers and managers.
“While many local, state, and federal rules are closing dine-in restaurants, the opportunity to feed our neighbors through delivery and carryout continues,” said Don Garman, a DFW-area Domino’s franchise owner. “We want to make sure we’re not only providing food to people but also delivering opportunity to those who are looking for work.”
In the family care business, there has been a substantial spike in people looking for child care positions as well as in families needing childcare, Care.com spokesperson Natasha Gavilanez said. At a national level, that increase has been reported in the double digits, she added.
“As school closures keep happening across the country ..., we expect for this to keep rising because now, as everybody is strongly encouraged to work from home, it's putting daycare, school and work all under one roof,” Gavilanez said.
Care.com offers information for families to consider before bringing in a caretaker during the new coronavirus outbreak. The service also provides free memberships to front-line healthcare workers and those in need of senior care.
“It’s an extremely tricky time,” Gavilanez said.
YMCA of Metropolitan Dallas announced March 19 that it will offer emergency child care services with permission from Dallas County Health and Human Services. To adhere to the state requirements, which limit the size of gatherings to 10, the children will be broken up into groups of 10 or fewer, according to the YMCA. Click here to learn more.
On the warehouse front, Costco's website shows that it is accepting job applications in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Some people posted on social media that Costco was in immediate need of help. The company declined to answer specific questions but released a statement by email.
"As always," the statement read, "our focus is to have merchandise available for our members at low warehouse prices.”
Other grocers, such as Walmart and Tom Thumb, have also opened up additional positions in the area in the last week, according to various job sites.
The Texas Workforce Commission has additional information and resources available for both employers and job seekers in relation to COVID-19.
