Employers are suffering from ‘pandemic paranoia’ and they’re scared to let go of workers, according to a global staffing firm

Port Washington, N.Y.: A Help Wanted sign seeking workers is on a window at Gino's Pizzeria and Restaurant on Main Street in Port Washington, New York, on January 5, 2022. (Credit: Howard Schnapp—Newsday RM/Getty Images)

The U.S. economy added 517,000 jobs in January, blowing economists’ estimates out of the water and pushing the unemployment rate to a 53-year low of 3.4%.

Despite rising interest rates, high inflation, and consistent announcements of tech sector layoffs, the labor market as a whole has remained incredibly resilient—and Becky Frankiewicz, president of ManpowerGroup, the third largest staffing firm in the world, thinks she knows why.