Young people are spreading COVID, and it’s not because of partying

Early on in the pandemic, elderly people were the ones being hit hardest by the coronavirus. As time wore on, that number changed dramatically, and now people under the age of 30 make up the largest portion of new infections in Michigan and across the country.

As of Saturday, there have been 21,596 COVID-19 infections among Michiganders age 20 to 29. That’s higher than any other age group.

With colleges and universities starting back up, some might assume the increase is due to crowded classes and reckless college students. That ignores an important factor: The workplace.

An article in National Geographic shows that Millennials and those in Gen Z are the people most likely to be working service jobs that allow many others the option to stay home and stay safe.

“The recession has been hitting the least advantaged people in society hardest,” said Gray Kimbrough, an economist at American University. “These are people who are earlier in their careers, people who are less educated, people in certain kinds of jobs that can’t be done from home. These people tend to be younger.”

“The pandemic has been emphasizing a uniquely American problem,” he said. “Our social safety net has a lot of holes.”

You can read the full story here.