CRA President and CEO Rachel Michelin was a featured guest on AirTalk with Larry Mantle (KPCC- Southern California Public Radio) along with Kevin Klowden, executive director of the Milken Institute Center for Regional Economics and California Center.
The discussion centered around retail trends as the economy continues to open both in California and nationwide including changes in curbside offerings, apparel purchases, employment numbers and more.
“I think we are seeing a slow re-entry into the retail employment world. Stores are under 50% capacity limits in CA and retail is a very diverse employment sector. We have people coming in where it is their first job, we have seniors who like the social interaction, but are at higher risk so may not be coming back right away. Retail is doing everything they can to make sure their sales associates feel comfortable coming into work.
Alternatively, our essential workers have been working through this pandemic so we are also seeing some changes in being able to have them take some time off and recoup since they have been working very hard.
We are seeing a lot of changes, but continue to see retailers hiring, getting people back into the stores so they are positive trends, but we need to remain cautiously optimistic.”
