The remote work trend that was turbocharged by the pandemic is now getting a boost from programs offering incentives to remote workers to move into less expensive cities and towns. A recent article in the Wall Street Journal explains that 71 cities and towns are offering incentives for workers to move there. These incentives often involve cash payments to the workers. Indianapolis-based MakeMyMove is contracted by cities and towns to set up these programs.

These programs make a lot of sense. Remote workers no longer have to locate in areas with a high cost of living. They can move anywhere. Meanwhile, these workers are very attractive to smaller cities and towns, adding to the tax base and purchasing power of the population, without adding congestion to local traffic. Paying incentives is a great way to make a particular city or town more attractive to a worker considering a move.

Expect this trend to continue barring a significant economic downturn.

The trend towards hybrid work is controversial with some companies while others are embracing it.

Amazon has paused work on new office space in Bellevue, Washington and Nashville, Tennessee as it grapples with the desire for employees to have hybrid work options. Amazon stressed with this was not an indication that planned hiring would slow down, but rather that hybrid work will impact plans for office space in both locations.

“The pandemic has significantly changed the way people work … Our offices are long-term investments and we want to make sure that we design them in a way that meets our employees’ needs in the future,” said John Schoettler, vice president of Global Real Estate and Facilities at Amazon.

Amazon and Meta also pulled back on office expansion plans in New York City.

How companies handle trends around hybrid work and remote work will be one of the more important strategic decisions companies will make over the next decade, and approaches will vary widely. Many workers are expecting hybrid or remote work options, while some companies are insisting that employees return to the office.

The economic slowdown will impact these decisions as well. Some classes of employees will be losing leverage if layoffs accelerate. Meanwhile, some companies are realizing the opportunity for significant cost savings by switching to remote and/or hybrid models.

As we try to get back to “normal” following the Covid pandemic, it’s apparent that some things have changed for good.

One industry facing a reckoning involves business travel. Ask consultants and they will explain that business and margins boomed in 2020 as they were able to dramatically reduce travel, which lowered those expenses for clients, who plowed those savings back into billable hours for the consultants. The clients got more value for their money, while consultants made more. So there’s no incentive on either side to get back to “normal.”

That’s just one industry. Of course, there will be an appetite to get back to in-person contact. Conferences in particular should see lots of interest as networking doesn’t translate as well to Zoom calls and virtual conferences.

But, as explained in this post, businesses are starting to rethink what qualifies as “necessary travel.” This could have a huge impact on the travel and hotel industries and related jobs.

This video is another example of the student debt crisis we face in this country.

One fundamental issue is that we’ve created an incentive structure to push students into borrowing money in order to get an education. The rational decision would be to pick an affordable school, but those options are limited. The college experience is so ingrained in our culture that many families want that for their children.

Also, we have young people making bad financial decisions, and too many parents aren’t helping. You shouldn’t take out a big student loan to go to a small, private college if you can pay much less at a state school. Also, if you’re going into a field with little earning power, this decision is even more important.

This video also discusses the Debt Collective, which was born out of the Occupy Wall Street movement and helps people dispute debts with a goal of cancelling their loans. It currently has over 700 people who are planning to never repay their loans.

This article gets into which jobs have been lost due to the Coronavirus by sector, and not surprisingly the Leisure and Hospitality sector leads the way. It’s hard to imagine these types of jobs coming back soon as many people will be afraid to travel and congregate until a vaccine is available.

The other challenge will be slower economic activity in general. Jobs tied to consumer spending will have trouble rebounding if the overall economy is still in recession.