5 Important Statistics about California’s Future Labor Force

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A recent report by the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) projected employment opportunities through 2030 and discovered a significant gap in supply and demand for workers with college degrees.

Here are five statistics about the workforce skills gap and the PPIC report you should know:

1. Projections show that though California employment opportunities will likely increase for folks from all levels of education, job-seekers with at least a bachelor’s degree will be most in demand.

2. Unemployment rates are lowest among workers with a bachelor’s or higher degree, only 4.5% in 2014. By contrast, 11.3% of citizens with a high school diploma and no college degree were unemployed and almost 13.5% of citizens without a high school diploma in 2014 were unemployed.

3. In 2013, workers with a bachelor’s degree earned approximately 70% more than those with only a high school diploma. Workers who graduate with degrees in engineering and computer science saw even higher wage increases.

4. PPIC predicts that 38% of jobs will require a bachelor’s degree but only 33% of the workforce will have one. This means that upwards of 1 million professional jobs will be unfillable within California by 2030.

5. California college grads are increasingly Californian. In 2010, 37% of California college graduates were born in California, the highest percentage to date. 33% of graduates were born in other states and 30% were born outside the US.

Sources:
Public Policy Institute of California http://www.ppic.org/main/publication_quick.asp?i=1166