What’s Keeping Adults Up At Night?

Three in four U.S. adults are worried about the rising price of groceries (75%) and the increasing cost of living (74%). They see that continuing over the next year as the nation navigates the pandemic’s impact on the economy and daily life, according to the latest American Staffing Association Workforce Monitor online survey conducted by The Harris Poll.

Top 5 Reasons U.S. Adults Are Worried

• The rising price of groceries (75%)
• The overall cost of living rising (74%)
• Stock market ups and downs (65%)
• Retirement funds losing money (65%)
• Stay-at-home orders in the event of Covid-19 resurgence (63%)

Nearly two-thirds are also concerned about stock market ups and downs (65%), their retirement funds losing money (65%), or reinstatement of stay-at-home orders in the event of a Covid-19 resurgence (63%) in the next year.

Those who have been laid off, furloughed, or given zero-hour schedules have even more significant economic worries over the next year than their peers who were not. Among the starkest differences in apprehension between these two groups are paying for childcare (63% vs. 28%), paying for student loans (64% vs. 34%), and permanently losing their jobs (65% vs. 34%).

While all generations are worried on some level about the rising price of groceries and an increase in the overall cost of living, younger generations are more likely to have concerns about finding a job or needing new skills to land a job.