US may lose US$700 million to solar eclipse

WASHINGTON – As workers put aside work and went out to watch a once-in-a-century solar eclipse on Monday, the lost productivity may cost US companies at least US$694 million.

Workers took at least 20 minutes to watch the solar eclipse on a working day, estimated Andy Challenger, vice president of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, an American outplacement firm.

The rare astronomical event, known as the Great American Eclipse, could be observed throughout the whole country, and a total solar eclipse was seen in 14 states.

“There are very few people who are not going to walk outside when there’s a celestial wonder happening above their heads, to go out and view it,” Challenger said, estimating that 87 million employees were working during the eclipse.

To get the cost for employers, Challenger multiplied the figure of working employees by the estimated watching time, and the average hourly wages estimated by the bureau of labour statistics.

“Compared to some wages being paid to an employee over the course of a year, it is very small,” Challenger said. “It’s not going to show up in any macro-economic data.”

According to data compiled by Reuters and Axios, an American media outlet, the US$700 million cost is eclipsed by other big events like Cyber Monday and Super Bowl. For example, companies lost about US$1,7 billion per hour as workers discussed the game and watched game highlights on the Monday after the game.

– Nampa-Xinhua

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