As the coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, continues to spread in the U.S. and globally, the number of virus-related job postings have increased in the U.S. over the past week, reports job searching site Glassdoor.
Though some industries, like traveling, have put a temporary halt on hiring, Glassdoor found that between Feb. 29 and March 7, the number of job postings in government, biotech and pharmaceuticals, health care and the nonprofit industry tripled in the U.S. as a direct response to the virus outbreak.
When looking specifically at job listings that included "coronavirus", "2019-nCoV" and "COVID-19", Glassdoor saw that within one week postings with this language increased from 100 to 300 in the U.S. Globally, job postings with this language increased from 254 to 565 over the same one-week period.
While the trajectory of the coronavirus outbreak is still uncertain, Glassdoor senior economist Daniel Zhao tells CNBC Make It that job seekers in health care, government and nonprofit sectors should continue to keep an eye out for new opportunities because "many companies are still looking for talented workers to fill open positions."
The top five roles with the most coronavirus-related openings include registered nurses, communications associates, social workers, project managers and technicians, according to Glassdoor data. These roles offer direct health-care support to employers, as well as public health communication support and data support.
When looking at the locations of these roles, California, Washington, Georgia, Maryland and New York account for 61% of these openings.
Zhao explains that California, New York and Washington account for most of these roles, likely because they have the largest number of confirmed U.S. cases.
Georgia and Maryland are on the list because of their close proximity to major health-care companies like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention based in Atlanta and the National Institutes of Health based in Bethesda, Md.
"While the jobs that organizations are hiring for are all focused on responding to the crisis, it is notable that they represent a wide variety of skills from medical and technical expertise to communication and language skills," Zhao says.
In addition to noticing an increase in coronavirus-related job postings, Glassdoor experts have also noticed an increase in employee reviews, as they relate to how employers are responding to the outbreak.
Out of more than 150 reviews, roughly 85% included employees expressing a level of concern or dissatisfaction with how their employers have responded to the outbreak. Over one-third of the reviews also mentioned work-from-home, remote work or sick/unpaid leave.
While it's logistically impossible for many workers in health care, manufacturing and retail to work from home, Zhao says that now is the time for industries that can offer remote work to act quickly.
"At a time when employees are paying close attention to headlines and to the actions that other organizations are taking, it is critical for employers to keep in close contact with their employees and take quick action," he explains.
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