Research Facts & Figures > Employment & Employer Data

Labor Force, Employed Residents and Unemployment

The very diversified industrial base of the East Bay continues to provides well paying jobs to its residents and offers a rare economic stability that is not nearly as influenced by the ups and downs of some of the more specialized economies of San Jose (technology) and San Francisco (financial and tourism).

 The East Bay is therefore an integral component of the Bay Area economy with its incredibly strong research and development foundation, innovation that permeates all industries and venture capital investments ranking the East Bay 4th in the nation (just below the "Silicon Valley", which includes the East Bay $), and the highly educated workforce needed to support the strong technology sectors.  The health and stability of East Bay employers is critical to the overall economic vitality of the Bay Area as one-third of the Bay Area' s workforce and jobs are provided by the East Bay.

WORKFORCE & JOBS VS HOUSING

A balanced economy will have a diversified industry base with a workforce large enough to fill the jobs it creates. San Francisco (which is geographically restricted) and San Jose (where far more jobs were created than housing and workforce) are not in balance, and that puts stress on housing and transportation throughout the Bay Area. Of all the Bay Area’s regions, the East Bay most closely meets the workforce to housing criteria, however, recent changes within the East Bay’s industry structure are evident and are a cause of growing concern.

PAYROLL EMPLOYMENT

Payroll employment is the type and number of jobs located within a specific area and provides the data to analyze the industrial composition of an area including job growth by industry.

When broken down by industry, the diversity of East Bay’s economy is evident, and closely mirrors that of the state as a whole. Government, Professional and Business Services, and Education & Health Services are the East Bay’s three largest industries.

EMPLOYER LISTS

Largest Employer Lists for the East Bay, Alameda and Contra Costa Counties, and member cities. The East Bay has a significant portion of the Bay Area's Fastest Growing Companies, according to data provided by the San Francisco Business Times.

WAGE AND OCCUPATIONS

The average wage rates for specific job descriptions are available on California's website. The following links provide the ability to search by county and occupation

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