This is one of the ways they’re limiting how fast California unravels. And it’s kind of a bizarre works program that you just know is getting taken advantage of. You could argue California makes it so difficult to live there, that they’re incentivizing people to scam government programs to pay bills and keep a roof over their heads. And as the article points out, half of the expense is passed to the federal taxpayers, so all of us in other states. The liberal train wreck that is California is impacting the entire country, as are the other blue states and their mismanagement. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
https:\/\/justthenews.com\/nation\/states\/center-square\/ca-lost-173k-private-jobs-added-181k-government-largely-part-time-jobs<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n By Kenneth Schrupp<\/p>\n\n\n\n California has lost 173,000 fully private sector jobs since January 2023, offset by a gain of 181,100 largely part-time government and government-supported jobs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thirty-eight percent of these new government and government-supported jobs are from elderly or disabled individuals using state funds to pay household members and others minimum wage for part-time care and assistance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The report also found that while hourly wages are up, average hours worked are down, suggesting employers are cutting hours to reduce labor costs, such as those imposed by the state\u2019s sector-based minimum wages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to the new report<\/a> from the California Center for Jobs and the Economy, a project of the California Business Roundtable pro-business association, \u201cCalifornia\u2019s job growth has been dominated by government and government dependent jobs in Healthcare & Social Assistance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n CCJE says of the 181,100 new taxpayer-funded jobs, 124,800 were in health care and social assistance, and that 55% of those were from the government\u2019s household care program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cUsing the unadjusted series, Social Assistance \u2014 composed primarily of minimum wage, part-time, government paid jobs in In-Home & Supportive Services (IHSS) \u2014 was responsible for 55% of the Healthcare & Social Assistance jobs growth in California \u2014 and 2\/3 of total net jobs growth. This source comprised only 4% to 16% in the other states.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The report said in the private sector, essentially only \u201cgreen\u201d energy and transportation jobs experienced any growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cTrade related jobs in Transportation, Trade & Utilities have been the one bright spot in the state\u2019s recovery progress, but as indicated in the Texas numbers, California\u2019s lead in this area has been under increasing competition from other regions,\u201d continued the report. \u201cTo put it more directly, other than in Trade, California has not grown jobs during the past 4 years of recovery; it has bought them with public funds.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Without state and federal funding and regulations mandating labor and capital-intensive replacement of energy and transportation infrastructure, it\u2019s thus likely every single sector in the private industry in California would have shrunk over the past two years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The report also said the low quality of the new \u201cjobs\u201d could create issues for the state over time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cCalifornia has not expanded its tax base; it has used that tax base to cover its competitive weakness for private sector jobs,\u201d wrote the CCJE. \u201cAnd the jobs California has bought are not the ‘good-paying’ jobs promised in the state\u2019s economic development goals, but are predominantly minimum wage, part-time and limited term.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Last year, the state-funded Legislative Analyst\u2019s Office reported<\/a> the state\u2019s fully private sector employment started contracting in 2022 and that all job growth had been through government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, the LAO has a new report<\/a> on just how much IHSS \u2014 which largely facilitates elderly and disabled individuals paying household members $21.65 per hour for the time they spend together \u2014 will cost the state in the coming 2025-2026 fiscal year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n California Gov. Gavin Newsom has proposed a $28.5 billion budget for IHSS this coming year, due to an estimated 7% increase in caseload and 2.9% increase in labor costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The LAO explained IHSS recipients generally can receive up to 283 hours of paid assistance per month \u201cwith tasks such as bathing, dressing, housework and meal preparation,\u201d and that county workers conduct assessments to approve service hours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn most cases, the recipient is responsible for hiring and supervising a paid IHSS provider \u2014 oftentimes a family member or relative,\u201d wrote the LAO. \u201cThe average number of service hours that will be provided to an estimated 771,650 IHSS recipients is projected to be 123.7 hours per month in 2025-26.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The LAO noted most costs for the program are shared with the federal government, and as a Medicaid program, receives 50% reimbursement from federal taxpayers, leaving the state and county governments with the rest of the tab, except in the case of certain individuals with federal reimbursement rates of up to 90%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The LAO warned \u201ccaseloads are growing at an increasing rate.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n The office noted program growth has risen since all illegal immigrants were made eligible for Medi-Cal and the state ended asset means-testing for the program, allowing technically low-income but asset-rich individuals to qualify for taxpayer-funded healthcare, nursing and other benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The LAO also said demographic changes are further increasing IHSS spending.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe report also found that while hourly wages are up, average hours worked are down, suggesting employers are cutting hours to reduce labor costs, such as those imposed by the state\u2019s sector-based minimum wages.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n