Barriers to quality, empowered jobs for working people in the Bay Area endanger the future of our economy.

While employment rates fail to show the quality of jobs workers have, the racial disparities in this simple measure can still be an important indicator of workforce equity. In Napa County, 4 out of 5 working-age adults are employed across most groups, with the lowest rate among multiracial adults.

Good job creation also requires pathways to those jobs

Napa County has shown balanced job growth over the past 20 years, with very strong middle-wage job growth (97 percent from 1990-2021) accompanied by moderately strong growth in low- and high-wage jobs.

Economic growth should benefit all workers and communities.

Bay Area decision-makers have implemented economic policies that created unprecedented wealth in our region for those in the highest wage jobs, at the expense of those in low and middle wage jobs.

Pay for the highest-earning workers in Napa County has increased by 33 percent since 1990, while earned income has declined by 7 percent over the same period for those in the lowest-paid jobs.

Worker power is the only time tested, scalable strategy to create family-sustaining jobs.

Strengthening unions and other forms of organizing that build collective power among working people is essential to improving job quality, and can increase the availability of a skilled workforce. In the Bay Area, Native American and Black workers in the Bay Area are most likely to belong to unions. But overall, more than five out of six workers in the region are not protected by union membership.

Eliminating barriers to employment and closing racial wage gaps could boost Napa County’s economy by about 25 percent.

The Bay Area is at a crossroads. We can either double down on the inequitable economic and employment trends of the past 40 years, or reimagine an economy that is powered by the full collective potential of our region.

In 2020 alone, employment and wage inequities cost Napa County’s economy an estimated $3 billion in unrealized GDP, nearly one quarter of its total GDP.

The Bay Area becomes more diverse every year. Economic opportunity does not.

Half of Napa County residents are people of color. This diversity can be a cornerstone of a thriving Bay Area economy, if children, families, and working people of color are allowed to reach their full potential.

Educational attainment is an important contributor to economic freedom. Persistent racial inequities in education must be eliminated.

Region-wide, 51 percent of adults have a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to just 36 percent of those in Napa County. More than half of white, Asian American or multiracial adults in the County have at least an associate’s degree, compared to about one in five Latinx adults.

The Bay Area economy is controlled by those who benefit the most from the status quo; inequities preserve political power for the few.

White workers in Napa County are paid about 27 percent more than the County’s median wage, while US-born Latinx are paid 14 percent less than the median. At $16/hour, Latinx immigrants are paid the lowest median wages in the County — 27 percent below the overall median.

How much you get paid determines how much you can afford; only 61 percent of working people in Napa County can afford basic family living expenses.

Fewer than four of every ten Latinx full-time working people in the County are paid enough to cover the cost of living for a family of four with two full-time working adults, along with slightly more than half of their Asian American counterparts.

Working people of color continue to be concentrated in lower-wage jobs.

In Napa County, Latinx workers make up 35 percent of the overall workforce, but 77 percent of those in building and grounds cleaning and maintenance jobs. White workers in comparison make up 50 percent of the workforce but 70 percent of those in management jobs.

Quality, empowered jobs are critical, but everyone must be able to compete for them.

Across all racial groups, labor force participation is highest for male-identifying people. Among female-identifying people, the gap is largest between Latinx and Asian American adults (75 and 82 percent labor force participation, respectively). Among male-identifying people, the largest gap is also between Asian American adults and Latinx adults, though in the opposite direction (83 and 91 percent respectively). To ensure all people have access to quality jobs, systemic and structural changes are needed that address bias in hiring and the inequitable availability of child care, transportation, and housing.

The lack of Bay Area housing affordability is both a driver and a result of inequities in the Bay Area economy.

People of color, and especially women of color, shoulder the greatest burden of the lack of affordable housing in the Bay Area. Outrageous housing costs and unlivable wages force too many families to choose between paying rent, paying for other essential needs, or moving out of their communities. In Napa County, 57 percent of renter households headed by Latino men and 62 percent of households headed by Latina women are rent-burdened.

Many Bay Area working people face extremely long and expensive commutes resulting in less take-home pay, higher child care costs, and lower quality of life.

High housing costs in areas where jobs are most concentrated mean that low-income workers who rely on public transit have the longest average commutes in the Bay Area. About 7 percent of Black and Native American workers spend 90 minutes or more traveling to work, one way. All workers deserve access to safe and affordable transportation with a reasonable commute time. Not only are shorter commutes better for workers, they are also better for communities and the environment.

Health care access continues to look very different across races and ethnicities.

Safe and healthy working people means healthy families, strong communities and thriving businesses. Yet one in ten Latinx residents in Napa County do not have health insurance — more than double the rate of their white counterparts.

For a diverse, prosperous and equitable future, our political leaders must reflect the Bay Area community.

People of color are not equitably represented in high-level elected offices, contributing to political and economic power imbalances. In Napa County, people of color are 48 percent of the population but hold just 33 percent of high-level elected offices. Increased economic and political power in communities of color can lead to a Bay Area that works for all of us.