Hourly workers suffered the brunt of the economic challenges of COVID-19 and beyond. They were often the first to be laid off or furloughed because so many hourly jobs were incompatible with many of the lockdown restrictions (i.e., they require working in the physical world and interacting with real people face to face). Or worse, they were told they were "essential workers" and made to face the stressful situation of being exposed to illness and an irate public.

Nico Simko is CEO at Clair, a financial services company that provides on-demand pay access to hourly and gig workers at no cost. Nico previously worked in payments at J.P. Morgan and as an analyst at Goldman Sachs before co-founding Clair in 2019.

Now, however, the tables have turned and there are too many job openings chasing too few candidates. Employees have the upper hand and, if the Bureau of Labor Statistics data is anything to go by, they know it. Since July of 2021, the quit rate in the U.S. has hovered at or near a historic high of 3%. If that wasn't bad enough for employers, industries like leisure and hospitality (where hourly employees make up the bulk of the workforce) are leading the charge for the exits.