California Economic Policy, Report Day Labor in the Golden State By Arturo Gonzalez Jul 25, 2007 Situated on busy street corners and in front of home improvement stores, day labor markets are highly visible. Yet little is known about day laborers themselves—their demographic characteristics, economic outcomes, or working conditions. Using data from the National Day Labor Survey, this report examines the day labor population and looks at the ways local governments are responding to the presence of day labor markets in their communities.
California Counts, Report Can California Import Enough College Graduates to Meet Workforce Needs? By Deborah Reed, Hans Johnson May 23, 2007 Economic projections for California indicate a continuation of the trend toward a more highly skilled economy. But projections of educational attainment for the future population tend to predict a wide gap between the levels of skills the population is likely to possess and the level of skills the economy is likely to need. This issue of California Counts assesses whether California will be able to attract enough college graduates from other states and other countries to close that gap. The authors conclude that because of the sheer numbers of migrants required and other factors, it is unlikely that migration alone will solve the problem.
California Counts, Report How Immigrants Affect California Employment and Wages By Giovanni Peri Feb 27, 2007 This issue of California Counts examines the effects of the arrival of immigrants between 1960 and 2004 on the employment, population, and wages of U.S. natives in California. Among the study’s principal findings: 1) There is no evidence that the influx of immigrants over the past four decades has worsened the employment opportunities of natives with similar education and experience, 2) There is no association between the influx of immigrants and the out-migration of natives within the same education and age group, 3) Immigration induced a 4 percent real wage increase for the average native worker between 1990 and 2004, 4) Recent immigrants did lower the wages of previous immigrants.
Occasional Paper, Report Are California’s Companies Shifting Their Employment to Other States? By David Neumark, Jed Kolko Feb 15, 2007 In this paper we examine the dynamics of businesses headquartered in California. In particular, we ask whether California companies are shifting their operations to other states—in terms of either the number of business establishments or the level of employment—through expansions and contractions of existing establishments, as well as births and deaths of establishments. These types of changes could be informative about the business climate in California—perhaps most importantly changes in births of new establishments, which may be most responsive to economic, regulatory, and other conditions that create variability in profitability across states.
Occasional Paper, Report Blueprint Planning in California: Forging Consensus on Metropolitan Growth and Development By Michael B. Teitz, Elisa Barbour Jun 21, 2006 A background report for the Blueprint Learning Network, an ongoing working group convened by the California Department of Transportation. A presentation based on this report was given to the group on May 12, 2006.
Occasional Paper, Report Interstate Business Relocation: An Industry-Level Analysis By David Neumark, Junfu Zhang, Jed Kolko Jun 19, 2006 In this report, using data covering all establishments ever located in California during 1992-2003, we study interstate business relocation and other establishment and employment dynamics in different industries.
Occasional Paper, Report California and the Global Economy: Recent Facts and Figures, 2006 Edition By Jon D. Haveman, Howard J. Shatz, Ethan Jennings Mar 23, 2006 Prepared for the California Trade Education Center for presentation at the California Council for International Trade’s 8th Annual California Trade Policy Forum, in San Diego, California, on March 23, 2006.
California Economic Policy, Report Trade with Mexico and California Jobs By Howard J. Shatz Jan 12, 2006 The increasing globalization of the U.S. economy has sparked a persistent debate over the effects of trade on labor markets, and this debate has been most heated when it involves trade between the United States and low-wage countries. This edition of California Economic Policy analyzes the effect of trade with Mexico on job loss in California. The author finds that in some sectors of the economy --- particularly manufacturing --- trade with Mexico has had a small but visible effect, but not the large-scale level of job destruction some had feared.
California Economic Policy, Report Are Businesses Fleeing the State? Interstate Business Relocation and Employment Change in California By David Neumark, Junfu Zhang, Brandon Wall Oct 26, 2005 A commonly heard theme in recent public debates about California's economic problems is that the state's economy is hostile to the needs of business. As evidence, it is asserted that businesses are leaving the state in droves, taking Californians' jobs. In reality, little is actually known about the trend of out-of-state business relocation. In this issue of California Economic Policy, the authors examine the phenomenon in a more complete context. They find that California does in fact lose businesses and jobs because of relocation, but the effect on employment is negligible.
