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In October 2019, the Ensor Learning Resource Center at Georgetown College lost one staff position. While this reduction in force was not a major surprise, what happened over the next three budget years was. With each new year, the library lost positions as part of budget cuts at the institution. To manage these cuts, the library and its staff underwent a major realignment of duties and services to continue to meet patron needs. The article below offers some context and advice for those who may find themselves in similar situations. Recent history in library staffing has seen a reduction in the numbers of qualified librarians and paraprofessionals. According to the IPEDS data, academic libraries have seen an approximately 14% drop in the number of staff and librarians in their ranks. Given this reality, it is incumbent on library leaders to adjust to these new realities, rewriting job descriptions, dropping job duties—including those that are vitally important—and working to ensure building operations continue. This retrenchment in library staffing leads to impacts—both negative and positive—that have far-reaching effects beyond the library walls. As library director at Georgetown College, a small liberal arts campus of approximately 1200 students and a faculty of 75, I faced the situation described above four times in four straight budget years as a staff of seven dwindled to a staff of three. While one staff position was added in October 2022, for three months, a 65,000 square foot building that had to deliver services and spaces for over twelve hundred students ran with a skeleton crew. In this article I offer background to this situation, how it was addressed, and some (hopefully) helpful tips to those in a similar situation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Far from simply being a 'bookend' of the industrial age, deindustrialization is an integral part of capitalist development and thus has a long history. In the North American context, the early scholarship on deindustrialization emerged from the efforts to resist plant closures as they were happening. More recently, the field of deindustrialization studies has been reinvigorated by authors who have shifted the centre of gravity from the US Rust Belt to Europe and increasingly to other parts of the world. This introduction traces the emergence and recent transformations in the field of deindustrialization studies. It also introduces this themed issue on the politics of deindustrialization, which tells the stories of shuttered mines, mills, and factories within the wider restructuring of the international division of labour in the late twentieth century. The articles, written from a range of disciplinary perspectives, extend outward to how workers, their unions, state actors, and the general public responded to the challenge of deindustrialization. The authors are all affiliated with the 'Deindustrialization and the Politics of Our Time' (DePOT) research project (deindustrialization.org), which brings together many of the world's leading deindustrialization scholars to put the field in transnational perspective. By extending the range of comparisons and scales of analysis, this special-themed issue invites us to broaden our understanding of deindustrialization, both thematically and methodologically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Job security has always been a paramount concern for the trade union movement. This article explores the ways that unions used collective bargaining to gain a measure of job security for their members in the face of deindustrialization as unionized factories in North America began to close in large numbers after the 1970s. These new measures included advance notice, severance pay, plant closing moratoria, restrictions placed on plant movements, transfer rights, and expanding the scope of collective 'social' bargaining to cover training and adjustment. In some sectors, such as automotive, collective bargaining has also been extended into areas normally left to management. The price was often high. Eventually some unions, notably the Canadian Auto Workers (established 1985; part of Unifor after 2013), prioritized winning new capital investments and product lines for unionized plants in their negotiations, though often at the cost of jobs, wage freezes or reductions, and other concessions. By focusing upon auto sector deindustrialization in Canada since the 1980s, we draw lessons from more recent union bargaining strategies, and how they constitute an important element of worker responses to industrial job loss and manufacturing closure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite ample evidence on the labor productivity impact of heat shocks, little is known about how heat shocks affect labor adjustment over time. This paper uses administrative employer–employee linked data from Brazil to examine margins of labor market adjustment to extreme heat. Tracking workers over time and across job spells, I find that quarterly heat shocks increase the probability of formal manufacturing layoffs. In the medium run, there is limited intersectoral and interregional reallocation, as well as a significant failure rate to reallocate back to formal sectors, indicating job transitional costs. Finally, the employment impact of heat shocks is larger for workers in more routine manual task intensive, less abstract occupations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the 1970s, a defining feature of advanced economies has been industrial plant closures, stemming from the broader process of economic restructuring. Plant closures have been extensively covered by the media due to their adverse effects on localities. However, no media analysis of closures has been conducted in the plant closure literature. In addition to providing a wealth of information, such an analysis can provide insight into media narratives of closures. Media profoundly affects economies by disseminating narratives that influence society, institutions, and politics. To bridge the plant closure and media literature, this paper conducts a media analysis of closures in Ontario, Canada, from 2000 to 2019. Like other advanced economies, the province has experienced many plant closures over the past several decades. The paper found that the overarching narrative presented by the media was that 'no one is responsible' for plant closures and therefore 'no one can or should act'. Also, it was found that differences in media narratives of closures were primarily due to the political slant of news outlets, not city size or scale of news outlets or whether news outlets were independently owned or part of a media conglomerate. Lastly, the paper found that the dissemination of media coverage on plant closures throughout the province was primarily based on the number of job losses, resulting in media coverage of smaller closures remaining localised, while media coverage of larger closures spreading throughout the province. The paper found that the overarching narrative presented by the media was that 'no one is responsible' for plant closures and therefore 'no one can or should act'. Also, it was found that differences in media narratives of closures were primarily due to the political slant of news outlets. Lastly, the paper found that the dissemination of media coverage on plant closures throughout the province was primarily based on the number of job losses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the wretch effects of the COVID-19 pandemic was the laying off of millions of employees in the hotel industry due to travel restrictions and lockdowns. Such a scenario prompted star hotels to implement crisis-induced HR practices (CHRP) to run their hotels effectively. Our article exploits and investigates a model that recommends that psychological well-being (PWB) indirectly influences the CHRP-employee resilience (ER) relationship, the conditional indirect effect of servant leadership (SEL). Data were collected from 265 star-rated hotel employees in Accra and Kumasi, Ghana, who are the full-time frontline. The hypothesized linkages were assessed through PROCESS analysis. We find a significant indirect effect of CHRP on ER via PWB. Moreover, the conditional indirect effect of CHRP on ER via PWB is high at higher and mediums levels of SEL. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed further. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies of job loss and deindustrialisation have tended to reproduce findings of long-term disadvantage for people and places. Far from purely reflecting matters of historical interest, recent studies have found that deindustrialisation exhibits a 'half-life' in which effects linger for generations after major closures. But these literatures are yet to fully consider job loss in contemporary societies where workers' lives have been transformed by assetisation. Historical studies of deindustrialisation have tended to focus on times and places where assets were marginal to working-class peoples' lives. Combining insights from parallel literatures on deindustrialisation, job loss and assetisation, this article addresses the questions: How important is asset ownership for workers during mass closure events? And to what extent does asset ownership generate new fault-lines of inequality between workers when confronted with job loss and its aftermath? These questions are addressed by quantifying financial outcomes, home ownership, and retirement arrangements for a group of nearly 900 older workers whose long careers were extinguished by major plant closures in 2017. While findings demonstrate that workers with greater asset ownership were relatively protected from the negative impacts of unemployment and precarious work, they also contribute to recent debate about the role of labour in the asset economy by pointing to the dynamic interaction of assets and employment over the working life course; that outcomes from job loss are shaped by the interaction of assets and employment, not assets or employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Do beliefs about fairness interact with past experiences of labor market shocks to condition redistributive preferences? In a large-scale survey experiment, we investigate the effect of informing individuals that growth in automation could disrupt labor markets in ways that are (possibly) viewed as unfair. We then exploit the COVID-19-induced labor market shock to test for an interaction between treatments and shock exposure. We find that beliefs interact with shock exposure to increase redistributive preferences and commitments to donate potential prize winnings. Our findings suggest this may be motivated by respondents' concerns about their vulnerability to future labor market shocks. • Fairness and inequality concerns increase demand for redistribution. • Lived experience of job loss amplifies informational treatment effects. • Information about luck resonates with experiences of labor shocks. • Personal shock history informs future economic anxiety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the impact of delivery platforms on the food service industry, particularly in New York City. It discusses how the rise of food delivery has changed the division of labor between cooking and eating. The article also explores the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the industry and the expansion of delivery models. It highlights the emergence of platform kitchens, which primarily serve delivery orders and rely on data extracted from workers' actions. The article acknowledges the challenges faced by platform kitchens but also suggests that they offer opportunities for solidarity and political alignment among workers in the food industry. [Extracted from the article]

Robotization has caused widespread concern about job losses, but few scholars have paid attention to changes in employment quality. This study provides supplementary evidences on the impact of robotization on youth employment quality and compares the effectiveness of various measures. Using data about individual employment and robot usage in China, this study finds that robotization reduces youth employment quality, especially for males and the middle-educated, aged 26 to 35, and in regions with insufficient workers. The substitution effect, skill preparation effect, and productivity effect play important roles in this process. Besides the common strategy of education, the mitigating capabilities of skill training has been demonstrated, but self-entrepreneurship has not. This study suggests that the exploration of various youth self-development measures, such as skill training, is warranted to improve employment quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To estimate the baseline to measure one of the three indicators of the World Health Organization (WHO) End TB strategy (2015–2035), measure the costs incurred by patients affected by tuberculosis (TB) during a treatment episode and estimate the proportion of households facing catastrophic costs (CC) and associated risk factors, in Colombia, 2021. Material and methods: A nationally representative cross-sectional survey was conducted among participants on TB treatment in Colombia, using telephone interviews due to the exceptional context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey collected household costs (direct [medical and non-medical out-of-pocket expenses] and indirect) over an episode of TB, loss of time, coping measures, self-reported income, and asset ownership. Total costs were expressed as a proportion of annual household income and analyzed for risk factors of CC (defined as costs above 20% annual household income). Results: The proportion of TB-affected households incurring in costs above 20% annual household income (CC) was 51.7% (95%CI: 45.4–58.0) overall, 51.3% (95%CI: 44.9–57.7) among patients with drug-sensitive (DS) TB, and 65.0% (95%CI: 48.0–82.0) among drug-resistant (DR). The average patient cost of a TB case in Colombia was $1,218 (95%CI 1,106–1,330) including $860.9 (95%CI 776.1–945.7) for non-medical costs, $339 (95%CI 257–421) for the indirect costs, and $18.1 (95%CI 11.9–24.4) for the medical costs. The factors that influenced the probability of facing CC were income quintile, job loss, DR-TB patient, and TB type. Conclusion: Main cost drivers for CC were non-medical out-of-pocket expenses and income loss (indirect costs). Current social protection programs ought to be expanded to mitigate the proportion of TB-affected households facing CC in Colombia, especially those with lower income levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impact of COVID-19, both in quality and quantity, on the field of early childhood education, ECE is immeasurable. However, as research shows, its impact on family child care (FCC), has been worse than other sectors of ECE. FCC providers worldwide have always perceived their work as a service to families and children, yet FCC homes have not received much attention and recognition from researchers and policymakers compared to center-based ECE programs. This phenomenological inquiry with 20 FCC providers in a large urban county in California highlights the financial challenges that FCC providers faced during the early part of the pandemic before they received financial support from the state in the spring of 2021. The cost of running the program was quite high because of reduced enrollment and the regular purchase of sanitary materials. To keep their programs afloat, some participants had to lay off their staff, others kept them without salary, others had to exhaust their savings, and most incurred credit card debt. Most of them also experienced psychosocial stress. Their financial hardships during the pandemic would have been far worse without the emergency funding received from the state. However, as experts warn, the field of ECE needs a permanent solution and the situation could be even worse after the emergency funds run out in 2024. The nation has witnessed the dedicated service of FCC providers during the pandemic, especially to families of essential workers. Much work is needed at empirical and policy levels to support and celebrate the service of FCC providers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Apart from the morbidity and mortality, the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has increased the predisposition of households in Nigeria to forgone care, thereby increasing their vulnerability to adverse health consequences. Since there is no previous study in Nigeria on the evolution of pandemic-related forgone care and its drivers, our study assess the evolution of the problem using descriptive and nationally representative panel data analyses. We found about a 30% prevalence of forgone care during the lockdown, which declined progressively afterwards, dropping by 69.50 percentage points between April 2020 and April 2022. This decline produced a surge in households needing care from about 35.00% in the early pandemic to greater than 50%, beginning in early 2021. The forgone care was primarily due to financial hindrances, movement restrictions, and supply-side disruptions. Household socioeconomic factors such as income loss had 2.74 [95%CI: 1.45–5.17] times higher odds of forgone care, job loss, food insecurity, and poverty were 87% (OR: 1.87 [95%CI: 1.25–2.79]), 60% (OR: 1.60 [95%CI: 1.12–2.31]) and 76% (OR: 1.76 [95%CI: 1.12–2.75]) more likely to predispose households to forgone care, respectively. Also, geographical location, such as the South-South zone, induced 1.98 [95%CI: 1.09–3.58] times higher odds of forgone care than North-Central. A married female household head increased the odds by 6.07 [95%CI: 1.72–21.47] times compared with an unmarried female head. However, having a married household head, social assistance, and North-East or North-West zone compared with North-Central increased the chance of accessing care by 69% (OR 0.31 [95%CI: 0.16–0.59]), 59%,(OR 0.41 [95%CI: 0.21–0.77]), 72% (OR 0.28 [95%CI: 0.15–0.53]) and 64% (OR 0.36 [95%CI: 0.20–0.65]), respectively. Non-communicable diseases, disability, old age, large household size and rural-urban location did not affect the forgone care. Our study highlights the need to strengthen Nigeria's health system, create policies to promote healthcare accessibility and prepare the country for future pandemic challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Local newspapers are increasingly subject to predatory corporate acquisition —corporate takeovers in which media conglomerates purchase publications in financially precarious states, drastically cut staff, and in certain cases consolidate newsroom operations. We investigate how this practice alters the information environment of 31 corporate-owned local newspapers across over 130,000 articles. Formalizing local information across three dimensions, we find (a) that corporate acquisition is associated with a reduction in the volume of local content produced, (b) that the coverage of local places following acquisition is significantly more concentrated than prior to acquisition, and (c) that articles produced to be shared across regional hubs of corporate-owned publications are significantly less local—and discursively more national—than articles produced for a single local market. Our findings identify reductions in newsroom resources and regional hubs of publications as detrimental to the information environment of local communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine the effects of violent crime on corporate investment and financing decisions of Brazilian firms. Exploring city variation in homicides, we find that an increase in the growth rate of homicides is associated with significantly lower corporate investments, with lower labour investments, and with a higher likelihood of layoffs. Spikes in violent crime are also associated with more conservative financing policies, reflected in higher cash holdings, in lower R&D (research and development) expenditures, and in lower dividend payments. Homicides further affect investment efficiency and financing choices, decoupling investment from debt finance and profitability. Moreover, the negative association between homicides and investment is significantly stronger in smaller firms, which highlights the uneven costs of violent crime in reducing firm growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objectives: We aim to characterize the sociodemographic and clinical factors associated with loss of jobs, income, and work hours in people with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) in the United States. Methods: A REDCap‐based survey was administered to working‐age NMOSD patients (18–70 years old) querying demographic information, symptoms, immunosuppression, work hours, income, and caregiver work (11/2022–07/2023). Regression models were developed using MATLAB. Results: Of 127 participants (97 female; 55% AQP4‐antibody, 19% MOG antibody; 69% Caucasian, 7% Hispanic), with an average diagnosis age of 38.7 years, average disease duration of 6.4 years, mean 3.1 attacks, and 94% of whom were treated with immune system‐directed therapy (53% rituximab, 8% satralizumab, 7% eculizumab, 6% mycophenolate mofetil, 4% inebilizumab, 2% azathioprine, 10% IVIg, 10% other), 56% lost a job due to NMOSD. Employment decreased 12% (80% pre‐ to 68% post‐diagnosis). Thirty‐six percent of participants said they no longer worked outside the home. Significant predictors for post‐NMOSD diagnosis employment status included younger age, lower pain level, no walking aids, and having a job prediagnosis. Sixty‐eight percent of those employed prediagnosis reduced their work hours, dropping an average of 18.4 h per month since being diagnosed (±10.1 h). Average annual income grew slowly at $1998 during the average 6.4 years of disease duration (14% of the value predicted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). Sixty percent of participants had a regular unpaid caregiver; 34% of caregivers changed their work hours or job to help manage NMOSD. Discussion: We provide a structured analysis of the impact of NMOSD on employment, work hours, and income in the United States, demonstrating its major effect on the livelihoods of patients and their caregivers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article features an interview with Serhii Sydorenko, a researcher studying forest fires in Ukraine. Sydorenko's research focuses on the ecological impact of war on landscape fires and developing tools to assess this impact. He also examines the direct and indirect effects of war on fire management, including social consequences, fuel management, and the collapse of fire suppression and prevention. Using data from the past 20-30 years, including satellite data and open-source information, Sydorenko analyzes fire patterns and the changing frontline in Ukraine. The article discusses the indirect impact of war on the occurrence and intensity of fires in Ukraine, with the movement of people due to war leading to changes in fire risks. The number of fires has significantly increased in areas with intensive combat, and fires are suppressed more quickly on the Ukrainian side compared to occupied territories. The research also highlights the use of fire as a weapon by Russians to support military operations. The consequences of war-related fires can have long-lasting effects, and the war has damaged the infrastructure for fire and forest research. The researcher faces challenges in obtaining adequate data and implementing fire management plans. The war has had a significant impact on the science community in Ukraine, with many researchers leaving the country. However, Sydorenko remains motivated to continue their work and believes in the temporary nature of the current situation. [Extracted from the article]

Background: The United States (US) continues to experience unprecedented rates of overdose mortality and there is increased need to identify effective harm reduction practices. Research from Canada describes cannabis donation through harm reduction agencies as an adjunctive strategy to mitigate the negative consequences of more harmful drugs. This case study describes the operational logistics, feasibility, and potential benefits of a cannabis donation program that was operated through a harm reduction program in rural Michigan. Case presentation: We applied a community driven research approach to gather information from harm reduction program staff about the implementation and evolution of cannabis donation efforts in Michigan. We also examined 20-months (September 2021 through May 2023) of administrative data from a cannabis company to compare the sale and donation of cannabis products. Ten cannabis-experienced harm reduction clients received cannabis donations, with clinical staff determining client interest and appropriateness, and providing weekly pick-up or delivery. To expand product availability and sustainability, we examined administrative data from a commercialcannabis company that volunteered to provide donations. This administrative data suggests that while flower products constitute most of the adult and medical sales, edible, oil, and topical products predominated donations. Further, cost analysis suggests that donations represent only 1% of total gross sales and account for much less than the expected yearly donation amount. Conclusions: Research suggests there is potential to reduce alcohol and drug use related harms of more dangerous substances through substitution with cannabis. This case study is the first to document cannabis donation as a harm reduction practice in the US and suggests potential for sustainability dependent on state laws. Findings from this case study provide a starting point for inquiry into cannabis donation as a harm reduction strategy in the US; future research is needed to fully understand the individual-level outcomes, public health impacts, necessary legal regulations, and best practices for cannabis donation programs through harm reduction organizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Automating workplaces that results in a loss of jobs has become a topic of public debate and study but has paid little attention to differential impacts on age groups. This paper applies OECD data on the risk of jobs being automated to Australian longitudinal survey data following 15 years old students over a ten-year period as they enter the job market. Whilst in the early stages of their working lives, these young Australians often worked in jobs projected to be at high risk of automation, they gradually moved into jobs and occupations projected to be less exposed to automation. Young Australians were also less likely to work in jobs at risk of automation than the average Australian. Besides socio-demographic factors, including educational attainment but also domestic wealth, the incidence and kind of computer use at home were associated with working in jobs at a higher or lower risk of automation, as were young workers' type of employment contract and whether young employees changed employers. Whilst suggestions of large-scale job losses owing to automation may be exaggerated, the socio-economic divide that extends to exposure to at risk occupations ought to be a matter of policy concern. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research background: The global COVID-19 pandemic, which started in the first quarter of 2020, triggered unprecedented economic challenges, prompting governments worldwide to implement intervention measures to mitigate its impacts on business and employment. Without the state's financial help, many companies were forced to lay off their employees. Among these measures was the First Aid intervention program introduced in Slovakia in April 2020, aimed at providing financial support to companies facing operational disruptions and potential layoffs of their employees. Purpose of the article: This study assesses the impact of the First Aid intervention program during the COVID-19 pandemic on unemployment in selected sectors, with an emphasis on the financial aspect, emphasising the international relevance and long-term implications of the state intervention in the crisis period. By analysing its effectiveness in preserving jobs and mitigating unemployment in selected sectors, the research seeks to offer valuable insights that can inform crisis response strategies and labour market policies in the country and beyond national borders. Methods: Employing a counterfactual approach, we quantify the financial consequence of the First Aid+ intervention program on the state budget, comparing unemployment costs against the benefits of maintaining employment in targeted sectors. Through this methodological framework, we aim to provide a replicable model for evaluating the efficacy of intervention programs in different socio-economic contexts. Findings & value added: Our analysis reveals not only the immediate impacts of the First Aid+ program on mitigating unemployment during the pandemic, but also its broader implications for policy and crisis management strategies. By elucidating the cost-benefit analysis of intervention measures, the research contributes to the effective labour market policies in times of crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transition required to remove coal from the global energy mix will have major implications across coal producing regions. There is limited work, however, that explores how this transition is being received by communities with multi-generational connections to the industry. This paper explores understandings and responses to transition in the Australian community of Singleton. Located 145 km north of Sydney in the Upper Hunter Valley, the local area has been a site of coal mining activity since the 1850s – helping foster a strong connection between industry and place. Using an emotional geographies framework, we uncover various local feelings associated with the prospect of a future without coal. While these emotional responses can stem from the anticipated material losses of mines and jobs, they have also been found to stem from the mutually imbricated threats posed by a 'hidden dimension of loss'. This dimension of loss positions mining as much more than an emotionless economic activity. Instead, it is uncovered as an activity – a tradition – that can define understandings of place. Whilst set in Australia, this study holds relevance for mining communities internationally faced with the disruption of existing ways of life, identities, and understandings of place as the energy transition unfolds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The survival rate of colorectal cancer has significantly improved with advances in early screening and treatment strategies. Therefore, the long-term survival status of colorectal cancer survivors is of increasing concern, which can be summarized mainly in three aspects: quality of life, psychological status, and financial stress. In this article, we reviewed the quality of life of long-term survivors in the context of treatment modalities for colorectal cancer patients, including surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and wait-and-watch strategies, and separately summarized sexual functioning with long-term quality of life, which is easily neglected by clinical practice. In addition, we discussed the psychosocial problems and financial pressures faced by long-term survivors, analyzing the underlying factors that contribute to these challenges. In this review, long-term survivors of colorectal cancer often face persistent challenges such as chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy, dry mouth, hair loss, intestinal dysfunction leading to frequent and urgent bowel movements, and incontinence. Additionally, they may struggle with ostomy care, body image dissatisfaction, sexual dysfunction, and a reduced quality of life. Psychosocial issues including distress, depression, and anxiety, as well as economic hardships due to treatment costs and potential job loss, further compound their situation. While these hardships cannot be quickly resolved, the review aims to offer a scientific basis for developing targeted intervention strategies, guiding researchers and practitioners in creating new support measures to address these multifaceted challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Migrant workers are people contributing significantly to their countries' economies. The pandemic caused a loss of jobs and income sources for them. Being the lower strata of the economy it is assumed that migrants are significantly prone towards developing morbid mental conditions. Study aimed at measuring the impact of a pandemic on the psychological health of migrant workers in India. The data collection material used in the study was Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS) on a purposively selected sample of 1003 participants. Results suggest that Out of 1003 participants 16.7% were daily wage labors, 18.5% were rickshaw pullers, 21.7% were factory workers, 11.4% were homemakers, 27.1% were vendors and only 4.6% were drivers. The result shows that almost 69%, 66% and 65% participants reported to experience symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress, respectively because of the pandemic condition. The study results can be concluded as necessary to assess the mental health conditions of the migrants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is a prevalent psychiatric condition and the largest contributor to disability worldwide. MDD is highly recurrent, yet little is known about the mechanisms that occur following a Major Depressive Episode (MDE) and underlie recurrence. We explored the concept of fear of depression recurrence (FoDR) and its impact on daily functioning among individuals in remission from MDD. Methods: 30 participants (83% female; 37% White; Mage = 27.7, SD = 8.96) underwent semi-structured qualitative interviews. The interviews explored participants' experiences of FoDR including the frequency, severity, content, triggers, and impact of fears and associated coping strategies. We used content analysis to analyze the transcriptions. Results: Most participants (73%) reported having FoDR, with varying frequency, severity, and duration of fears. The triggers and content of participants' fears often mirrored the symptoms (e.g., low mood, anhedonia) and consequences (e.g., job loss, social withdrawal) endured during past MDEs. Some participants reported a minimal impact of FoDR on daily functioning, whereas others reported a positive (e.g., personal growth) or negative (e.g., increased anxiety) influence. Limitations: Our sample size did not allow for explorations of differences in FoDR across unique MDD subtypes or sociocultural factors. Conclusions: The concept of FoDR may present a window into understanding the unique cognitive and behavioural changes that occur following MDD remission and underlie depression recurrence. Future research should aim to identify underlying individual differences and characteristics of the disorder that may influence the presence and impact of FoDR. Finally, a FoDR measure should be developed so that associations between FoDR and recurrence risk, depressive symptoms, and other indices of functioning can be determined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The resident deaths among Long Term Care Home (LTCH) accounted for more than 65% of total deaths in the province of Ontario, Canada, during March 29 to June 3, 2020, yet not all LTCHs were severely affected. We carried out a retrospective cohort study, with case control for questions for which data allowed, with LTCH COVID-19 databases obtained from Ontario's Ministry of Long Term Care. We performed a combined temporal and spatial data analysis of COVID-19 cases and deaths among LTCH residents, identified trends, contributing factors, and early markers of LTCH outbreak severity. Our analysis shows that for-profit LTCHs had higher death-to-bed ratio, also with an average rate of increase of death-to-bed ratio higher for for-profit homes than other types of management. We find from uni- and multi-variable analyses (linear and nonlinear) that staff infection has the strongest association with death-to-bed ratio from among the descriptor variables considered, reflecting the risk of the disease in the health region/community. We also identify a delay of up to 8 days between the trends in fatalities among individuals outside LTCHs and that of LTCH residents. We did find an association between policy change to single LTCH/staff and reduction in weekly LTCH resident death, albeit with an expected time delay of about 7–10 days. The association between the risk of COVID-19 in the health region and the deaths among LTCH residents, and the delay between fatality among individuals residing outside and inside LTCHs suggests that fatality in a health region could be a predictor of outbreak in LTCHs within the same health region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

China communicates strategic narratives about artificial intelligence (AI) in digital media productions to create a shared meaning about its actions and its image in the global race to develop AI. Building upon the literature in emotions and strategic narratives, this study seeks to clarify which emotions are discursively used in China's international AI narratives, and their function and significance. Specifically, the study investigates emotion discourses in AI-focused videos disseminated on China's international broadcasting (CGTN YouTube channel). The analysis reveals that pride, hope and fear discourses have multiple functions in China's international AI narratives on CGTN. Hope is used to represent China as a key competitor in the global AI race, who is catching up to the US. China uses pride to showcase its advances in AI applications, to highlight its transformation of traditional industries, and to identity itself as equal to the US. Fear is used to frame US's perception of China's AI developments, to suggest their crisis of confidence, but also to refute the "China threat". Additionally, the fear discourse is used to deliberate anticipated risks, particularly on job loss and data privacy. These emotion discourses forge China's identity as a future global AI power. The paper then discusses how these findings contribute to key debates about Chinese discourse and media strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reverse migration was the trending issue in several news articles and channels during the pandemic. The authors attempt to investigate migrants' sensitivity during COVID-19. Reverse migrants are sensitive to crucial aspects that bother them during their reverse migration such as mental stress, social issues, transportation issues, job loss, and income loss. The Government of India launched several initiatives to help the reverse migrants, but it is not reaching the migrant people adequately. Hence, in this article, authors critically analyzed the Indian Government's commitment to the post-return situation and sensitivity toward the rural reverse migrants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: During the COVID-19 pandemic, transitory unemployment insurance (UI) policies substantially increased unemployment benefits (UBs) and the number of eligible groups in Russia. The procedure for registering as unemployed was moved to an online platform. The present paper aims to distinguish the effect of anti-COVID-19 restrictions on unemployment from that of the transitory unemployment insurance policies. Design/methodology/approach: Using 553,627 approved claims for unemployment benefits from the Russian Public Employment Service (PES) administrative records (June 2019–December 2020), monthly data on the number of individuals registered as unemployed are aggregated in a pseudo panel. A double-difference approach is employed to identify the effects of the social interaction intensity and teleworkability (TW) of the latest occupation on unemployment. The first is associated with a direct effect of anti-COVID-19 restrictions and the latter with the simplified application procedure. Findings: The face-to-face (F2F) intensity of the latest occupation did not lead to any increase in the number of unemployed persons as could be expected in response to anti-COVID-19 restrictions. Job TW had two opposite effects on unemployment: it decreased individuals' risk of job loss and increased their likelihood of claiming unemployment benefits. Surprisingly, however, in line with the typical response of the Russian labour market to downturns, the latter dominated. The largest response was found among men and individuals with primary education. Originality/value: This study is the first to attempt to distinguish the effect of anti-COVID-19 restrictions from that of the transitory UI policies on unemployment in Russia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The unprecedented COVID‐19 pandemic resulted in significant negative consequences for employee well‐being across the globe, including job loss leading to significant financial strain. Job loss and financial strain have important implications for the role of human resource management (HRM) in achieving human sustainability beyond the employment relationship given that decreased subjective well‐being was driven by financial strain. The two studies reported here – one quantitative and one qualitative – investigate the impact of financial strain arising from job loss due to COVID‐19 on subjective well‐being of tourism and hospitality employees in Pakistan. The first study used survey data collected from a sample of 284 employees laid off during the early stages of the pandemic to test a model of the relationship between financial strain and subjective well‐being mediated by negative affectivity and moderated by core self‐evaluations. The second study qualitatively investigated the long‐term impact of job loss on financial strain with a sample of 30 respondents who completed the survey in study 1. We found in study 1 a strong negative relationship between financial strain and subjective well‐being that was mediated through negative affectivity. Core self‐evaluations acted as a buffer on the relationship between financial strain and negative affectivity and the overall negative indirect relationship between financial strain and subjective well‐being via negative affectivity. In study 2 we found that financial strain was a long‐term problem arising from job loss due to COVID‐19 and that employees who lost their jobs drew on a wide range of contextual and personal resources to mitigate the impacts of financial strain on long‐term subjective well‐being. We discuss the implications for HRM theory and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper assesses the trends of Sustainable Food System in Ethiopia, and how the various indicators evolved over time in the four food system dimensions: environmental, economic, social, and food and nutrition security. We employed quartile analysis to evaluate the relative performance of Ethiopia vis-à-vis the rest of the world by grouping the latter into lower quartile, median, and upper quartile based on their performance. The result revealed that while some positive strides have been achieved in reducing poverty headcount ratio over the past two decades, a high proportion of stunting and undernourishment, high variability of food supply, the slow-onset of adult obesity, and poor access to basic facilities for food utilization, especially when compared to the countries in the lower, median and upper quartiles, remain to be formidable challenges calling for the attention of policymakers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on ophthalmologists and their practices. Using data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Physician Compare database, the study found that the rate of separation from practices significantly increased during 2019-2020. Factors such as years of practice, practice type, size, and region were associated with practice separation. The study provides valuable insights into the workforce dynamics in ophthalmology during the pandemic. Another study by the American Academy of Ophthalmology found that certain factors, such as years of practice and practice region, influenced the likelihood of separation. The pandemic had a significant impact on the ophthalmology landscape, with increased separation rates and decreased outpatient visits. However, the study acknowledges limitations in the data and the potential influence of other factors. [Extracted from the article]

The article is a collection of book reviews from the journal Agricultural History. The first review discusses a book that focuses on the management of agricultural farms in the French-speaking world from the 18th to the 19th century. The reviewer praises the book for its synthesis of past scholarship and its potential for future research, but criticizes the lack of political actors in the narrative. The second review examines a book that explores the outlook of peasants in northern France, Belgium, and Switzerland during the 18th and 19th centuries. The book analyzes the peasants' farm management records and highlights their concerns for their households, community, and reputation. The reviewer commends the author for his contribution to agricultural history and the understanding of peasant rationality. The third review discusses a book that explores the complex relationships between humans and other species in Australia's Murray-Darling Basin. The book presents various case studies and emphasizes the interconnectedness of human societies and ecosystems. The reviewer notes the book's pluralistic approach and its contribution to the field of environmental history. [Extracted from the article]

• The proportion of self-harm trauma centre visits was higher after the pandemic onset. • Intra-pandemic self-harm injuries showed indications of greater medical severity. • Intra-pandemic self-harm was associated with job loss and being widowed. The COVID-19 pandemic raised concerns regarding increased suicide-related behaviours. We compared characteristics and counts of Emergency Department (ED) presentations for self-harm, an important suicide-related outcome, during versus prior to the pandemic's first year. We included patients presenting with self-harm to the ED of two trauma centres in Toronto, Canada. Time series models compared intra-pandemic (March 2020-February 2021) presentation counts to predictions from pre-pandemic data. The self-harm proportion of ED presentations was compared between the intra-pandemic period and preceding three years. A retrospective chart review of eligible patients seen from March 2019-February 2021 compared pre- vs. intra-pandemic patient and injury characteristics. While monthly intra-pandemic self-harm counts were largely within expected ranges, the self-harm proportion of total presentations increased. Being widowed (OR=9.46; 95 %CI=1.10–81.08), employment/financial stressors (OR=1.65, 95 %CI=1.06–2.58), job loss (OR=3.83; 95 %CI=1.36–10.76), and chest-stabbing self-harm (OR=2.50; 95 %CI=1.16–5.39) were associated with intra-pandemic presentations. Intra-pandemic self-harm was also associated with Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admission (OR=2.18, 95 %CI=1.41–3.38). In summary, while the number of self-harm presentations to these trauma centres did not increase during the early pandemic, their proportion was increased. The association of intra-pandemic self-harm with variables indicating medically severe injury, economic stressors, and being widowed may inform future suicide and self-harm prevention strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics research and implementation emerged in the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry to positively impact project efficiency and effectiveness concerns such as safety, productivity, and quality. This shift, however, warrants the need for ethical considerations of AI and robotics adoption due to its potential negative impacts on aspects such as job security, safety, and privacy. Nevertheless, this did not receive sufficient attention, particularly within the academic community. This research systematically reviews AI and robotics research through the lens of ethics in the AEC community for the past five years. It identifies nine key ethical issues namely job loss, data privacy, data security, data transparency, decision-making conflict, acceptance and trust, reliability and safety, fear of surveillance, and liability, by summarizing existing literature and filtering it further based on its AEC relevance. Furthermore, thirteen research topics along the process were identified based on existing AEC studies that had direct relevance to the theme of ethics in general and their parallels are further discussed. Finally, the current challenges and knowledge gaps are discussed and seven specific future research directions are recommended. This study not only signifies more stakeholder awareness of this important topic but also provides imminent steps towards safer and more efficient realization. [Display omitted] • Identifying ethical issues of AI and robotics. • Determining nine ethical issues of AI and robotics in the AEC industry. • Conducting a systematic review to discuss the ethics of AI and robotics in AEC. • Suggesting seven future research directions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using data from the Household Pulse Survey collected by the U.S. Census Bureau, we show that COVID-19 vaccination mitigates households' payment difficulty and that there is a positive causal relationship between the vaccination and housing rent/mortgage payment confidence. We attribute these findings to an economic recovery channel. Specifically, the vaccination results in improvement of economic activities and reduction in job losses and households' anxiety, worry, and depression. Moreover, our results identify some racial, occupational, and regional disparities. The positive causal relationship between the vaccination and housing payments is more pronounced for black households, self-employed and non-teleworking households, and Southern households. • COVID-19 vaccination mitigates households' payment difficulty. • Vaccination results in improvement of economic activities and reduction in job losses. • Our results identify some racial, occupational, and regional disparities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transition from the coal-dominated power sector to the renewable energy-dominated new power system will inevitably result in significant social impacts. Taking China as the study case, we employed an integrated methodology combining the energy system optimization model, input‒output and structural path analysis, to explore the employment effects of the new power system, including the energy source, grid, load and storage. The results show that growth in solar power, wind power, energy storage and power transmission and distribution will have positive impacts on employment, while coal power shrinkage will result in negative impacts. Under new power system scenarios, renewable power can create additional 673–730 thousand jobs by 2030 and additional 2,431∼2,706 thousand jobs by 2060 compared with the business-as-usual scenario. However, jobs losses due to coal power shrinkage will reach 665–747 thousand jobs by 2030 and 3,127∼3,398 thousand jobs by 2060 compared with the business-as-usual scenario. In the meantime, power grid and energy storage can create additional 443–604 thousand jobs by 2030 and additional 2,138∼2,764 thousand jobs by 2060. Though the new power system will have positive employment impact in general, social justice should still be considered when there is an employment structure transition alongside the power structure shift. [Display omitted] • Integrated methodology is used to explore new power system impacts on employment. • Renewable energy sources create 700 and 2500 thousand more jobs by 2030 and 2060. • Power grid and energy storage create 500 and 2400 thousand more jobs by 2030 2060. • Coal power shrinkage will lead to 700 and 3200 thousand job loss by 2030 and 2060. • Social justice should still be considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]