How the Pandemic Could Shape the Economy In the Future – TheStreet

What will the United States look like after the coronavirus pandemic?

We've been told by experts and politicians that it will be hard--if not impossible--to go back to the way things were.

So, how could things change?

Sallie Krawcheck, CEO of Ellevest, weighs in on what this could mean for the U.S. economy in the future.

Watch the video above for more.

And watch the full interview with Krawcheck here: How to Handle Market Volatility, Manage Personal Finances During the Coronavirus Pandemic

KATHERINE ROSS:President Trump has said that the economy will come back better than ever. And I'm wondering if you see this as a big opportunity or is it more of a problem?

SALLIE KRAWCHEK:Well, I have no idea what he means by that, but I think we're in a really important moment for, who are we? What do we as a society and in economy value? And it's one thing to have these discussions in a vacuum and it's another to be faced with this. We're a country where people don't have all the healthcare that they need. And while we think, "Ah, it's them, it hurts them. I don't want to pay for their heart attack," when you hit a situation like this where it's not them, it affects all of us, that if someone cannot afford to have the coronavirus test, if they can afford to have the test, but they can't afford the treatment, if they're not able to make ends meet and so go into the workforce and infect others, we're a society, we're not a group of individuals. And same with the safety net.

SALLIE KRAWCHEK:There's been talk of universal basic income and there's a lot of debate to be had but essentially that's just what we did by sending these checks to people. So what is that safety net that we value as the greatest country, the most powerful country, the richest country in the history of the world? Who are we? I think about this often. Historically, despite all of that, we had been a country that is mean enough that we don't have mandated paid maternity leave. How can we be the only developed country, the only country besides Papua, New Guinea, that doesn't have the kindness of its heart to allow mothers who are producing and bringing up the next generation, which is vital to our economy and society, we don't guarantee them paid time off to get their child off on the right foot. How is that right?

SALLIE KRAWCHEK:

P.S., let me add, the paid parental leave pays for itself in a year. It's hard to think of that because we think of it as an expense when in fact it's an investment that if a mother and a father has time with a child early on in life, they're much more likely to come back in the workforce, so they're much less likely to end up on welfare. And so I think there's one thing about let's come out of it stronger than ever. Yeah, I think we will. Will we come out of it kinder than ever and kinder in a way that has a positive ripple effect to the economy? Again, with the mandated paid leave. That will grow our economy. And so I'm hopeful that we'll have some kind of reckoning of, now that we've looked this in the face, we've had this existential risk, who are we as people and what do we really value as a society when we step back from the easy infighting that can occur when you've frankly got too much?

The rest is here:

How the Pandemic Could Shape the Economy In the Future - TheStreet