Whether they’re worried about catching COVID, still suffering the long-term effects of COVID, or haven’t found the right job to go back to, Americans who retired early during the pandemic aren’t returning to the labor force.

Over the past three months, there have been 3.6 million more people who have left the labor force and don’t intend to return, compared to 2019. Ninety percent of those 3.6 million people are ages 55 and older, reports ABC News. That’s 1.5 million more retirees between February 2020 to April 2022 than predicted by 2019 trends, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. 

Growing concerns over inflation have pushed some workers back into the job market, but the labor force participation rate for Americans 55 and older has remained unchanged from a year ago. In November of this year, baby boomers’ labor force participation rate was 38.6% — nearly identical to their participation rate of 38.4% in November 2021.

Scientists have made a breakthrough in re-creating the source of energy that powers the Sun, nuclear fusion. Since the 1950s, scientists have tried to harness the fusion reaction to produce clean, seemingly limitless energy. But until now, the reaction consumed as much energy as it produced, making it unusable as a source of energy gain. 

That changed last week when the federal Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California announced it had successfully produced the world’s first fusion energy gain. The lab used a process called “inertial confinement fusion,” which involves giant lasers blasting a nubbin of frozen hydrogen.

Fusion emits no carbon or radioactive waste, and one glass of fuel could theoretically power a house for more than 800 years. If produced on a large scale, fusion could provide a reliable alternative to fossil fuels and nuclear power plants. Though such large-scale production is at least decades away, a growing number of private companies (35 as of 2022) are hoping to profit off of the technology in the future.

U.S. holiday shoppers are watching their wallets this season as recession fears continue into the new year. Americans are spending less on gifts and donations, according to a survey that shows people are planning to buy an average of nine gifts, compared to 16 gifts last year. 

The University of Michigan’s Consumer Sentiment Index also reflects the economic uncertainty — in the past six months, consumer outlook has been comparable to the Great Recession in 2008 or the double-digit inflation of the 1970s. High prices, which have risen faster than wages, have led 41% of U.S. adults to say they are having difficulty paying for essential household items. More than one-third of U.S. households say they have reduced or skipped buying medicine or food to pay their energy bills.

Despite inflation and consumer worries, the National Retail Federation has forecast that retail sales will grow between 6% and 8%. National retail sales rose to about $5,600 billion in 2021, a 17% increase over 2020.