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- Survey finds that a large share of small businesses have stopped accepting cash and transitioned to contactless payments during the COVID-19 pandemic
- Younger customers are more likely to accept cashless transactions and favor companies that require no direct interaction for payment
- Two-thirds of businesses try a new approach during the pandemic, primarily involving a pivot to digital
- Jessica Moser visits the Small Business Radio Show to discuss the latest results of a Met Life/U.S. Chamber of Commerce poll on COVID-19 impact
- Most small businesses said they had fully or partially reopened at the time of the survey
- Small businesses show more optimism about future revenues and ability to rehire employees
- Employees at small businesses may be eligible to seek leave if schools offer virtual classes for all or part of the fall semester
- Parents may struggle with child care options if they have already used up available FFCRA leave
- In Connecticut, reopening decisions are being left up to individual districts
- Connecticut DECD eases some restrictions on reopening restaurants
- Additional guidelines presented for offices, retail, and other venues
- Phase 3 of Connecticut reopening remains on hold
- Job recovery at small- and medium-sized businesses has slowed or reversed in states that have seen a recent surge in COVID-19 cases
- Employment at these companies is down 23 percent on an annual basis
- Effect largely concentrated in Sun Belt states, where shutdown orders have been reinstated
- More than 1.3 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week
- Resurgence in COVID-19 cases forces reversal or pause of reopening plans in several states
- Companies warn of potential need for further layoffs as economy regains only about one-third of jobs lost in March and April
- LendingTree analyzed survey data from the U.S. Census Bureau to see which cities have felt the least impact on their businesses due to COVID-19
- Cities in Kentucky, Virginia, and Arizona top the list
- Recent reopening and local grants help ease the burden
- A group of 153 economists calls for additional direct cash payments to Americans to help stimulate the economy
- Payments under the CARES Act helped boost spending among lower income households, mostly for essentials
- Supplemental unemployment funds set to expire at end of July
- Junior’s Cheesecake owner Alan Rosen told CNBC that restaurants forced to shut down a second time may not be able to reopen
- Restaurants take huge financial hit when they purchase food and are unable to sell it
- Some states roll back eat-in service as COVID-19 counts rise
