End-of-year surge in tech jobs buoys county employment

Haveman said an annualized 22.4 percent jump in the county tech sector’s job growth in the last month slowed its steady decline over the last year to 1.3 percent, signaling what could be a brighter future for other industries, such as hospitality and retail, that have historically been sensitive to changes in the tech sector.

“It’s kind of staggering how big the employment gains were,” he said. “This is really an abrupt about-face.”

Though November’s numbers show levels of unemployment that remind Haveman of the dot-com boom — when he said the region’s unemployment rate clocked in just under 2 percent — he acknowledged the changes only show growth over one month, noting he would continue to monitor the numbers for statistical anomalies.

Based on his analysis of county data through October, Haveman said he wouldn’t be surprised if the tech sector continued to grow more slowly through 2018 as initial exuberance about startups wanes and constraints such as the rising cost of housing and lengthy commutes take their toll on the region’s workforce. He said his research shows the number of employees in the county with a one-way commute exceeding 90 minutes has been on a steady march up since 2011.

“It’s just simply getting harder and harder to hire into the Bay Area and harder and harder to stay in the Bay Area once you’re here,” he said.

Though Rayna Lehman, director of community services for the San Mateo County Central Labor Council, acknowledged the county’s low unemployment rate, she wasn’t convinced it told a complete story of the county’s economic situation. Noting that pockets of the county are facing higher unemployment rates than others, she said a growing group of workers in low-wage sectors such as the service industry are bearing the burden of the region’s burgeoning economy as wages fail to keep pace with the rising cost of living.

“It’s all part of the bigger picture,” she said. “You can’t have a vibrant community if you have some people who are struggling so badly and have the prosperity on their backs.”

Lehman said efforts to explore minimum wage increases in cities like Redwood City, Daly City and Brisbane are a step in the right direction, but acknowledged even those initiatives are likely to leave a gap between the pay workers take home and what they need to support their families. She said she hoped more recent efforts on the part of shuttle drivers to organize and advocate for better pay and benefits will catch on and spread to other industries so employers continue to take note of their needs.

Rosanne Foust, president of the San Mateo County Economic Development Association, said county employers are noticing the gap between the positions they’re posting on job boards and the number of applicants they are receiving, especially for lower-wage roles. Though she hasn’t been encouraged to see wages stay close to stagnant nationwide, she said she does expect wages to rise in 2018 as more and more companies see the effects the rising cost of living is having on the region’s economic diversity.

“I think there’s a growing discussion at companies large and small that wages have to rise,” she said. “I think companies are really recognizing that you have got to pay people to be able to live in this area.”

Kathleen Velasquez, programs services coordinator at the NOVA Job Center at Skyline College, said center staff have worked with several individuals who are underemployed or looking to switch careers to help them understand what kinds of compensation they can expect with their next career move. Because many are seeking higher paying jobs to be able to continue living in the area, Velasquez said salary research on sites like Glassdoor has become part of the protocol staff use to work with clients to ensure the jobs they are most interested in pay them enough to make ends meet.

“We really want them to be looking forward and not be surprised when they get the offer,” she said.

Though Haveman acknowledged the tech sector’s rousing comeback in November was reassuring after a streak of slow growth, he was reticent to say whether the trend would continue in 2018.

“I really want to see next month’s data before I say we’re out of the woods,” he said. “But it’s reason for optimism for sure.”

anna@smdailyjournal.com

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