Despite wildly different approaches, the US and UK are seeing identical declines in hours worked

The US and the UK have taken different approaches to helping workers through the Covid-19 pandemic. While the US government increased support to those without work through enhanced unemployment benefits, the UK subsidized job retention schemes that paid companies to keep their workers on staff (many other European countries did the same).

But in one way, the outcomes have been nearly identical. The number of total hours worked in the two countries has decreased by almost exactly the same amount. At their nadir in April, total hours worked were 16%...