On April 22, 2020, Workforce WindsorEssex, in partnership with six other workforce planning boards that are part of Workforce Planning West, released their COVID-19 Worker Impact Survey Results to help inform the ongoing development of responsive employment-related initiatives. The survey collected 2,568 responses across 16 counties in Southwestern Ontario, including 567 responses in Windsor-Essex.
Key findings from the survey include:
- Among those who were employed on March 2, 34% are temporarily not working and 4% are permanently laid off as a result of COVID-19
- Among those who were employed on March 2, 32% are working about the same amount now, 14% are working more, 19% are working less, and 35% are no longer working
- 50% of those employed in the manufacturing sector on March 2 are no longer working
- Over 50% of those employed on March 2 and between the ages of 18-24 had temporarily or permanently lost work as a result of COVID-19, higher than any other age group
- 63% of respondents are confident in their ability to continue to work or to find work after the crisis, while 20% are not confident
- The majority of respondents in Windsor-Essex are worried about being able to pay their rent or mortgage (52%), being able to pay monthly bills (57%), and having enough food for themselves and/or their families (54%)
- The Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) was deemed the most valuable program or policy put in place by the government to address the crisis with 70% of respondents deeming it very or extremely important
- 52% of respondents agree that our communities will be stronger after the COVID-19 crisis, while 25% disagree
Two dashboards are available to help people view and interpret the survey results online:
COVID-19 Worker Impact Survey Results Dashboard: Filter and view aggregated survey responses in all of Southwestern Ontario to create a customized report.
Comparing Local vs. Regional Data from the COVID-19 Worker Impact Results Survey Dashboard: This dashboard easily allows users to view how Windsor-Essex responses differed from Southwestern Ontario responses.
