Women over 50 suffer majority of pandemic job losses in Borderland

EL PASO, Texas -- Tens of thousands of EL Pasoans have filed for unemployment since the beginning of the pandemic. According to Workforce Solutions Borderplex, the total number is over 99,000.

Women make up a majority of that number. Of those 99,000 total seeking unemployment aid, 84,000 of them are women over the age of 50.

Alma Aranda, the agency's workforce development director, told ABC-7 it's a domino effect: "It's not only that they're struggling because they don't have incoming wages. How are they going to sustain the family, the rent, household payments, do they have a mortgage payment?"

Some other findings in the data: 87% of those losing their jobs have a high school diploma or less in terms of education. And those living on the eastside of El Paso, in the 79936 and 79938 zip codes, are filing the largest numbers of unemployment claims.

Not only does Workforce Solutions Borderplex track this data, they can also offer help to those impacted by job loss. For more information, click here.