Total nonfarm employment for the state of Kansas increased by almost 8,000 workers in 2019, growing 0.5 percent. For 2020, the Kansas economy is projected to contract substantially due to the impact of the novel coronavirus, with the effects of the virus on the economy expected to linger on beyond the end of the state鈥檚 stay-at-home order as social distancing continues. US gross domestic product declined 4.8 percent in the first quarter of 2020 as the first effects of the novel coronavirus were felt in March, and the effects are expected to be much larger through the remainder of the year.
In 2020, Kansas employment is forecast to decline 10.2 percent, contracting at an annual rate of more than 140,000 jobs compared to 2019. The job losses are expected to be concentrated in the second quarter, following by an employment recovery in the third and fourth quarters of the year. These projections are based on the assumptions that the novel coronavirus infections peaks in the second quarter of 2020 at a level manageable for the local health care system, and that additional stay-at-home orders are not required to combat the virus after the initial stay-at-home orders expire in May. Additional outbreaks and stay-at-home orders would further reduce the employment outlook beyond what is presented here.
Read the entire Kansas, Wichita, Kansas City and Topeka forecasts here: