September 2020

San Francisco Bay Region: LMI News & Updates

The San Francisco Bay Center of Excellence (COE) for Labor Market Research strives to provide useful labor market data and information to the 28 community colleges we serve. We know it is paramount that colleges stay informed as they adapt programs and prepare students to transition to a post-pandemic labor market. This newsletter provides a brief snapshot of the labor market in the San Francisco Bay Region for August 2020.

In keeping with how the California Employment Development Department (EDD) provides the data, data in this newsletter on unemployment and industry employment are presented by metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs). Table 1 below provides a crosswalk of how these metropolitan areas align with counties and the sub-regions established by the California Community College Chancellor’s Office (CCCCO).

Unemployment

Unemployment across the Bay Region continued a slight decline into August 2020. Most of the region saw unemployment rates dip into single digits except for Solano, which reported a 10.3% unemployment rate for the month. Unemployment also hovered just below 10% in the East Bay, 9.8%, and Monterey, 9.4%. Overall, unemployment continues to be significantly higher than last year, as shown in the figure below, with rates ranging 4.6% to 6.6% higher than last year at this time. Read more here for understanding the unemployment rate especially during Covid-19.

Data source: Labor Market Information Division of the California Employment Development Department (EDD). Data collection was conducted during the 2nd week of August 2020.

Employer Activity: Layoffs and Business Closures

Delving further into unemployment, the figure below shows the numbers of workers who were affected by layoffs or business closures across the Bay Region between May-August 2020. The numbers of workers impacted by layoffs or closures, both temporary or permanent, dropped off considerably in May throughout the Bay Region, compared to the early months of stay at home orders in March and April. However, in most cases, permanent layoffs or closures increased during May through July compared to previous months, especially in the East Bay, Mid-Peninsula and Silicon Valley sub-regions. This upward trend of permanent layoffs and closures began to reverse once again starting in July and continuing into August, as shown in the charts below.

* San Benito did not have any layoff or business closure notices submitted for May-August. Data source: Labor Market Information Division of the California Employment Development Department (EDD); Worker Adjustment and Retaining Notification (WARN) Information for Employers. Data posted on 3rd and 19th of each month.

Note regarding WARN notices: Federal and State laws (known as the WARN Act) require certain employers to give notice prior to a business closure or mass layoff, referred to as Worker Adjustment Retraining Notifications (WARN). WARN notices are only required for full-time employees, those working 20 or more hours per week, and not part-time employees. For this reason, the broader economic impact on employment is likely underrepresented when examining WARN notices alone. Similarly, reasons for a layoff or closure are not included in publicly available data regarding WARN notices, and we are unable to confirm if employees were let go during this time due to the COVID-19 pandemic or for other reasons. For more information on the WARN Act, read more here. Please also note an executive order issued on March 17, 2020 that temporarily suspended the 60-day advance notice requirement for an employer to submit a WARN notice of a mass layoff, relocation, or termination at a covered establishment. This has likely impacted the timeliness of reporting by the state, which is dependent on employers' submission of WARN notices. For more information, read more here.

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Industry Employment

Examining job losses by industry, the table below presents percentages of jobs lost between March 2020-August 2020 across industry groups and sectors. Job losses have continued to slow down since the initial spike in March, with a handful of sectors even reaching March employment levels or greater, such as in Construction and Financial Activities. Leisure and Hospitality continues to suffer the greatest job losses among all industry groups, ranging from 12% to 33% fewer jobs reported in August compared to March. Reflecting the unique economic impact specific to the current pandemic, Food & Beverage Stores have begun to see greater employment levels than other food-related establishments, such as food service and drinking places. In total, the Bay Region reported 400,600 fewer non-farm jobs and a gain of 5,800 farm jobs in August compared to March, likely also reflecting seasonal employment trends for this time of year. The vast majority of sectors shown in the table represent "non-farm" sectors, with each of their employment totals contributing to the overall "non-farm" total. Read more about the NAICS classification and definitions of Industry Groups and Sectors.

Data source: Labor Market Information Division of the California Employment Development Department (EDD). Data collection was conducted during the 2nd week of August 2020.

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Pandemic Resilient Jobs & Skills During Covid-19

Shifting focus to job postings, the tables below expand on the Bay Region's 'pandemic-resilient' jobs introduced last month and present data on pandemic-resilient jobs at the sub-regional level. More specifically, the 20 jobs listed below for each sub-region appeared among the top jobs posted for each sub-region every month between March 2020 - August 2020. Each job is listed below with their average monthly postings over the 6-month period. A number of jobs that made the list for the Bay Region overall appear on several sub-regional lists, confirming the high demand for these jobs across the region. A handful of jobs appear only on a single sub-regional list, for example, Attorney in the Mid-Peninsula or Computer Systems Engineer in Silicon Valley.

In addition to the pandemic resilient jobs presented above, specialized or occupation-specific skills that have consistently been requested by employers during the pandemic are reported below. More specifically, the chart presents the most in-demand skills listed in job postings each month between March 2020 - August 2020 for the Bay Region. Each skill is listed with the average number of times it has appeared per month over the 6-month period.

Data source: Burning Glass Technologies. burning-glass.com. 2020.

Industry Spotlight: Global Trade

LaSonja Hill Bay Area Regional Director Global Trade 916-250-1334 (business) 312-375-1689 (cell)   lasonja@baccc.net consultedllc125@gmail.com (business) lasonja.hill@gmail.com   https://cainternationaltrade.org Online Resources for Global Trade

Closing out the newsletter, this month our industry spotlight focuses on the Global Trade sector. Thank you, to LaSonja Hill, the San Francisco Bay Regional Director for Global Trade, who shared a few thoughts on her view of how the sector has been impacted during this time.   Q - What comprises the Global Trade sector?   Global Trade involves the import and export of goods and services across international borders/boundaries and markets. California is a trading partner with close to 30 countries worldwide and supports 15-20 U.S. states domestically.    The sector is not limited to Logistics & Transportation, and also includes: Global Sales, Global Marketing, Compliance & International Policy, E-Commerce including Digital Media platforms, and so much more. Trade occurs in Retail, Agriculture, Healthcare, Information Technology, Business & Finance, Manufacturing, among others. Demand in the global market is growing even more especially in a post-pandemic world.   2 - What is the status of the Global Trade sector in the Bay Region right now?    The Bay Area is second only to the Los Angeles/Inland Empire region in Global Trade because it is one of California's most active and largest port regions, and always has a very high need for qualified candidates to enter the Global market landscape. In fact, the Bay Area's top 40 companies are in high demand globally. The job market indicates there are more job opportunities available in the global market than in the domestic market because the demand is greater – plus the salaries are higher.    The problem for many, is there is apprehension and anxiety about the prospect of working overseas or across the border. There's a great misconception about this and an even greater misunderstanding about the nuances of the Global Trade sector. Our courses are offered at most community colleges in the region, however, they're often embedded in other more visible programs. For example, Merritt College has an International Computer Science (CIS) program that falls under the Global sector, however, it is marketed in their Business Department program. I would encourage faculty, administrators, and others to review any courses that are global or international studies courses to consider possible options students can pursue.  3 - What employers (or types of employers) are hiring right now? What occupations are in demand?  Companies that consistently have a high need include: Workday, Salesforce, Box, Inc., Dropbox, Accor, Bain Capital, Stryker, Cisco, Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, B-Trax Marketing, Cooley, LLP, Atlassian, Perkins Coie LLP, Intuit, HP, Brown & Brown, Inc., Adobe, Facebook, Keysight Technologies, Nugget Market Inc, Orrick, Splunk, Rosendin Electric, Twilio, Ellie Mae, Pure Storage, Arista Networks, Inc., First American Financial, Ernst & Young. This list alone comprises a variety of industries from Construction to Healthcare; Information Technology to Corporate Law; Retail, Hospitality, Travel to Financial & Business; Mortgage Lending to Advertising/Marketing.   There are also opportunities in Entrepreneurship as well as Cryptocurrency, with occupations like cryptocurrency traders and miners in the European and Asian markets in steady demand. Plus, Africa is now the new global hotspot for in-demand job opportunities. Many countries in Africa have become very attractive to the global marketplace especially due to software development, medical professionals (including doctors, dentists, and paramedics) lawyers, foresters, and electricians.   The most in-demand occupations in the Global sector right now are located across multiple industries, including, Information Technology and Finance & Business: ·        Software Development  ·        IT Administrators and Support/Helpdesk ·        Data Analyst ·        Financial Analyst ·        Project Managers ·        Graphic Designers ·        Digital Marketers ·        Global Sales Representatives ·        Customer Service Specialist   4 - What are some strategies the Global Trade sector is taking to help train students or re-train workers in your sector?    The Global Trade sector in California has one of the state's top 100 internship programs with our Virtual Internship Program (VIP). Our VIP program offers industry-expert training in virtual Digital Media and virtual Global Marketing. To learn more or apply, visit here.   Students in the program work in project-based internships with e-Commerce companies looking to expand their efforts into the Global and Domestic marketplaces. They receive support, leadership and guidance by industry certified digital marketing experts. Our sector internship program is aimed to train and support both new students as well as people looking to expand and upgrade their skills to reflect current needs relevant in the Global marketplace.   5 - Can you tell us about some projects you are working on with schools/colleges?    I am currently working on two projects. One is in collaboration with the Business and Entrepreneurship sector, Merritt College, and the City of Oakland. This is a grassroots, community-based project centered on identifying, training, and supporting aspiring local residents and Merritt students in need of applicable skills-based training to establish and/or grow their small businesses. We will also have industry collaboration to help ensure skills and content align with marketplace demands and driving a successful small business. The project is focused primarily on East Oakland. We are also working with Castlemont High School and Skyline High School to develop a pilot program for young aspiring entrepreneurs to bridge to Merritt's Business program and International Business courses.   Merritt College and Mills College are currently working to provide an outline of course offerings they will provide, and Merritt College's faculty will also provide their expertise to teach and train. The Global Trade sector will offer the VIP program and resources from the California International Trade Center in San Francisco for cohorts and individuals interested in Digital Media and Global Marketing expansion for their business on digital platforms. Here is the link to the project website: ESO Ventures.  The second project is an Equity in STEM teaching professional development pedagogy project in partnership with Stanford University and Merritt College, which will also include a work-based virtual internship program for Merritt's International CIS program. The partnership is in the early stages right now, focused on identifying gaps in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) regarding how instructors, academic advisors, and counselors engage minority students pursuing STEM-related pathways.     The project’s aim is to guide instructors on how to teach minority students in STEM-related programs and provide guided academic and career pathways for minority students. The project will also focus on how to use Smartphone technology to provide teaching and learning strategies that are inclusive for minority student access.    Merritt College’s International Computer Science (CIS) program is also looking to align pathways and curriculum to reflect Global Science, Technology, Engineering, Architecture and Mathematics (STEAM) guidelines in Global Software Design linked to Artificial Intelligence. The aim is to determine what the guidance and instruction is to build and drive software development teams in the global market. I am working with the Global Trade state director and the California International Trade Center to support Merritt in this effort. The Global Trade VIP Program also offers tools and resources to support this module which will be presented to faculty at Merritt.   The Equity in STEM project builds on the work of Dr. Bryan Brown at Stanford University, who has worked to develop and implement programs with schools throughout the Bay Area to engage minority students in K-12 in STEM. Merritt will be the first community college in the East Bay to embark on expanding this project. To learn more about Dr. Brown’s work in bringing science to young people in urban contexts, visit: Science in the City

Additional Resources

For additional labor market information for California and the Bay Region, visit: Statewide Centers of Excellence (COE) for Labor Market Research San Francisco Bay COE / BACCC Bay Region Sectors Communities of Practice California Industry Employment Changes Calculator California Policy Lab - California Unemployment During the Covid-19 Pandemic San Francisco Chronicle Layoff Tracker Federal Reserve Opportunity Occupations Monitor

Questions? Comments?

This newsletter is intended to provide useful labor market data and information relevant to the San Francisco Bay Region. Please contact us if you have any questions, or suggestions for additional data and information you would like to see in future newsletters.   John Carrese, Director jcarrese@ccsf.edu   Chris Lee, Assistant Director culee@ccsf.edu