Department Stores Have Cut Nearly 100,000 Jobs Since October

Coal miners and factory workers aren't the only workers who have lost their jobs.

Since October, department stores have shed nearly 100,000 jobs as e-commerce platforms such as Amazon continue to gain ground, as The Atlantic reports. Department stores have lost 18 times more workers than the coal mining industry over the last 16 years.

Retail employment skews mostly toward women, and 40 percent of workers are minorities.

As retail has moved online, some economists argue that e-commerce has created more work. Since the Great Recession began, the e-commerce sector has created 355,000 new jobs, compared to about 50,000 total jobs lost in physical retail stores. Much of that growth has come from large fulfillment centers in warehouses.

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