While analysts lament California’s population doldrums and its aging labor force with slowing participation (PPIC 2024), a recent report shows that Latinos offer a bright spot amidst the gloom: they are a young, growing portion of the state’s labor force, with a very high work ethic, ready to move the California economy into 2040 and beyond.
The report points out that Latino labor force entrants also demonstrate demographic force multipliers that will further strengthen the California labor market in the decades ahead. Latinos are more likely to be actively working or seeking work than their non-Latino counterparts.
“Simply put, the California labor force of 2040 already has been born,” declared Hayes-Bautista.
We at UCLA and California Lutheran University invite you to read the report and to share it with your friends, colleagues and contacts.
“A positive Latino natural increase means more workers in the future who have a higher propensity to work. It is now up to the state to step up investment in Latino education, so that the California economy can remain competitive in the knowledge economy,” added Hayes-Bautista.
For more information and/or to arrange a telephone interview with David E. Hayes-Bautista, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor of Medicine, please contact Adriana Valdez, at [email protected] or Barbra Ramos, at [email protected].
