Yuma Lost 8th Most Workers Nationwide at the Start of the Pandemic

That was more than major cities like Chicago and Philadelphia

A recent national study using census data showed that during the 2nd quarter of 2020, at the onset of the pandemic, Yuma lost the 8th most workers nationwide.

A total of over 1500 workers left Yuma to find work elsewhere. That was more than cities like Chicago, Philadelphia, and Sacramento.

The writer of the study, Christian Worstell, said Yuma losing similar amounts of workers to bigger cities likely was due to the size and scale of the agriculture industry.

"If you look at the rest, they're all big markets, New York City, Los Angeles, San Diego, so it was pretty telling that Yuma landed themselves in that same company," Worstell said. "I think what it speaks to is the size and the impact of the farming and agriculture business in Yuma, that alone accounted for 80% of the total net job loss in Yuma."

Worstell also said when calculated for total population size, only Midland, Texas lost more workers than Yuma