Five Things You Might Not Know About Low-Wage Workers in California
Who is paid low wages in California? The UC Berkeley Labor Center just updated its Low-Wage Work in California Data Explorer, which provides a wide range of data on the state’s 5.6 million workers who are paid low wages–less than $19.69 per hour in 2022. California’s low-wage workers have enjoyed pay gains in recent years through raises to the state minimum wage and real wage growth coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic. These significant gains notwithstanding, we find that one in three Californians is paid a low wage.
The majority of low-wage workers are adults
The majority of workers paid low wages in the state are adults. Over half of all low-wage workers are over the age of 30. While teens work low-wage jobs at higher rates, they make up a smaller portion of the workforce than adults. Additionally, the low-wage workforce is older than it was a generation ago. The share of the workforce 55 years or older doubled from 2000 to 2022.
Low-wage jobs require skill and low-wage workers have achieved more education than 20 years ago
Many workers who have continued their education beyond high school are paid low wages. Almost one in three workers with an associate degree and one in six with a bachelor’s or advanced degree is paid a low wage. While low-wage workers have less formal education compared to the overall workforce, they have attained higher levels of education over the past two decades.
In addition, low-wage workers are skilled and the work they do creates value. For example, the caring and emotional labor that homecare workers provide allow the elderly and people with disabilities to continue to live at home, improving their quality of life.[1] Similarly, other low-wage workers employed in fast food, leisure and hospitality, or agriculture use their creativity, judgment, leadership, and resourcefulness, among many other skills, on a daily basis, yet the value of these skills is often not reflected in their pay.[2]
Low-wage workers work full time and year round
The majority of workers paid low wages work full time and year round even though they are twice as likely to work part time compared to all workers in California. Despite working full time, low hourly pay translates into low annual earnings. Full-time low-wage workers report about half the median annual earnings as all workers ($30,000 compared to $55,000).
One in three low-wage workers is the sole earner in their household
Many low-wage workers support families–half of low-wage workers are married or have children. One in three low-wage workers is the sole earner in their household and, on average, their paychecks make up half of their families’ total earnings. But low pay makes supporting a family challenging. Low-wage workers are more likely to be at or near poverty and are more likely to be enrolled in public assistance programs like Medi-Cal.
Low-wage jobs are found throughout California’s economy
Low-wage jobs are not specific to any one industry in the state. However, the prevalence of low-wage jobs is higher in some industries. Half of all low-wage workers are employed in four large industry groups: Retail, Accommodation and Food Service, Health Care and Social Assistance, and Educational Services. This does not mean that only large industries pay low wages. Other industries are smaller and thus employ fewer people overall, yet many workers in those industries receive low pay. For example, two out of three Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing, and Hunting industry workers receive low pay, despite making up only about 4% of all low-wage workers.
The California Employment Development Department projects that some of the largest job openings over the next 10 years will be in occupations that currently pay low wages, such as Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Fast Food and Counter Workers, and Cashiers. The prevalence of these jobs highlights the need to continue improving the quality of work, including better pay.
Endnotes
[1] Thomason, Sarah, and Annette Bernhardt. “California’s Homecare Crisis: Raising Wages Is Key to the Solution.” Center for Labor Research and Education, University of California, Berkeley, November 2017. http://laborcenter.berkeley.edu/pdf/2017/Californias-Homecare-Crisis.pdf.
[2] Gatta, Mary, Heather Boushey, and Eileen Appelbaum. “High-Touch and Here-to-Stay: Future Skills Demands in US Low Wage Service Occupations.” Sociology 43, no. 5 (2009): 968–89. ; Hagan, Jacqueline, Ruben Hernandez-Leon, and Jean-Luc Demonsant. Skills of the Unskilled: Work and Mobility among Mexican Migrants. University of California Press, 2015. https://doi.org/10.1525/9780520959507.