Statistic of the Day

[jpmassar]

There are 9% less jobs in California now than in July 2007, when the absolute number of jobs hit its peak.

The population of California is still going up, from an estimated 36,553,215 in 2007 to 38,292,687 in January, 2009, a more than 4% increase.  So in percentage terms the job losses are even more severe than 9%.

Comments

[schmengie]

you live there...why are jobs leaving California at such a fast rate?

[jpmassar]

They aren't. Not any more. The total number of jobs actually increased this last month in CA, even as the unemployment rate went higher.

You'd think it wouldn't be difficult, but I'm having no luck finding stats on which kinds of jobs were lost in California as the unemployment rate skyrocketed.

If Russ is to be believed, everyone who might have hired anyone moved to Nevada. This seems extremely unlikely, since Nevada has its own, equally or worse, problems. And let's face it, the weather sucks.

If I had to guess, California is extremely susceptible to housing construction ups and downs. The collapse of the housing bubble was probably the single most important major factor, but whether that directly caused 5% of the total job losses or 20% I really have no idea.

[jnala]

"The weather sucks"? Says the guy whose only recent Nevada experience is Vegas in the height of summer. I'd be pretty down on California if my only experience there were San Francisco in January.

It's a no-brainer to take Nevada weather over the weather of at least 80% of the country (by population). Personally I'd take it over Bay Area weather as well.

[jpmassar]

Are you seriously suggesting that the non-summer weather in Las Vegas has significantly changed 'recently' for the better and that I'm not aware of it?

I was going to reply that I've been going to Las Vegas in all different seasons longer than you've been alive, but that's probably not true.

To each his own for weather preferences. But I seriously doubt that if forced to choose, all other things being equal, more than 20% of people would choose Las Vegas weather over Bay Area weather or San Diego weather or Los Angeles weather -- i.e., those places where the large majority of Californians live.

I just compared average temperatures for Oakland vs. Las Vegas. Obviously no surprise that it is way hotter in summer in LV, but it is also significantly colder in the winter.

Note that I was suggesting that one reason not to move from California to Nevada was the weather, not that that was a good reason not to move from, say, Bangor, ME to LV. I was trying to make a relative point, not a national one.

[hgfalling]

Luckily all those unionized teachers can't be fired, and continue to be paid the most while performing among the worst in the country.

[jpmassar]

While likely true, it has nothing to do with the number of jobs that exist. Assuming you want to keep a certain class size you pretty much need a certain number of teachers.

(Teachers do get laid off as policy makers decide to increase class size.)

I have absolutely no problem with making it easier to get rid of bad teachers.

On a similar note, Mayor Newsom in SF just laid off large swatches of the city work force with the intent to hire (almost all of) them back to work 37.5 hrs/wk instead of 40, thereby cutting their salaries.

[jnala]

Paid the most relative to cost of living? Good luck hiring anyone to do *any* job for national mean salary on the Peninsula, most people don't want to spend 75% of their take-home salary on rent.

And when you say performing the worst, are you taking into account factors such as huge class size due to underfunded schools, and particular challenges such as the massive population of illegal immigrants? Tough to get a student population that's like 15% ESL to perform up to national standards.