INTRODUCTION

The Future of Work in California

Report index

  • 1 / California's Polarized Workforce

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  • 2 / The Erosion of California's Middle Class

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  • 3 / Origins: Economic Shifts in California's Regions

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  • 4 / State-Level Wage and Labor Policies and Regulations

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  • 5 / Trends: Social and Technological Pressures on Polarization

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  • 6 / Future Scenarios Related to Economic Mobility, Workforce, and Inequality

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How did we end up with staggering inequality in California?

 
 
 

Residents and policymakers in California often cite an intriguing fact when discussing the state’s economy: California, if ranked as a nation, has the fifth largest economy in the world, perhaps even larger when considering non-GDP metrics such as consumer surplus. What’s more, California’s culture of innovation and productivity places it in a position of economic leadership and influence in the United States.

The state’s ethos of innovation and productivity has drawn top American and international talent to the state for hundreds of years, creating a diverse workforce who facilitate robust cultural and economic production. Knowledge, art, and entertainment created in California can be found globally. Startups in the Bay Area and beyond design and deploy cutting-edge technologies that take hold all around the world.

The state’s agricultural valleys feed the nation by producing over half of the country’s vegetables, fruits, and nuts, and 13 percent of the nation’s cash farm receipts. California’s deepwater ports provide gateways for international trade that have supported the United States’ growth on the global stage. Millions of tourists flock to coastal beaches, awe-inspiring mountain ranges and glacial valleys, and towering redwood forests each year.

 
 
 

The size and stability of these industries places California among the largest contributors to the U.S. economy, teaming with New York and Texas to contribute 40 percent of the nation’s total GDP. California’s workers are the engines of the state’s economic power and the reason 10 percent of Fortune 1000 companies call California home.

The combination of a strong workforce, dynamic organizations, increasing foreign investments, and embrace of new technologies generates an economy that shows few signs of easing its dominance, with productivity growing faster than all but three other states.

The state’s resilience is evident even amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, with the state’s operating budget surplus growing to a record $75 billion, revenue per employee reaching a record $1.5 million, and state GDP increasing 30 percent more than the increases in Texas and New York during 2021. All outward signs point to a continued economic dominance both in the U.S. and internationally.

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