A report released today by Working Partnerships USA finds that Silicon Valley is suffering from a lack of middle-income, family-supporting jobs for blue-collar construction workers.
In Santa Clara County, the majority of job openings over the next 10 years are projected to pay either less than $40,000 per year, or more than $100,000 – with less than one-third being middle-wage, family-supporting jobs.
The construction industry is currently split between two business models: the “high-road” model in which companies compete based on productivity, efficiency, timeliness and quality of work, and the “low-road” model in which companies compete primarily by paying their workforce as little as possible.
The expansion of Silicon Valley’s “low road” contractors has created a construction industry where:
- Over half (54%) of blue-collar construction workers employed in Santa Clara County earn less than $40,000 per year
- 42% live in housing that is not affordable at their level of income
- 41% either depend on public health coverage or are uninsured
- And 12% receive food stamps
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