Key Insight: Those most impacted need guidance to attain financial success
The COVID-19 crisis has brought with it much change, not least of which is the current economic downturn. Nearly 79 million Americans, or 48 percent of the private workforce, are employed by small businesses that have been severely impacted by the isolation or quarantine of consumer groups.vii Many of these businesses have had to take drastic measures to alleviate short-term cash flow pressure and retain long-term viability. Those severe steps (e.g., layoffs or furloughs) have resulted in economic strain to tens of millions of Americans. Our survey validates this, with 64 percent of respondents suggesting that COVID-19 has had an impact on their finances. On a positive note, these numbers have trended down slightly since we ran this survey in late March, where 71% indicated an impact. We also found that 24 percent are experiencing a major impact, down from 33 percent in March.
The impact on young to middle-age adults remains particularly acute. In March, we found that individuals under the age of 37, particularly those in Generation Z (Gen Z, ages 18-26), were most impacted; in May, Generation X respondents (ages 38-50) were slightly more impacted, at 78 percent, versus Gen Z, at 77 percent.
