Poverty spikes in the land of the tech billionaires - WaPo

[question everything]

(snip)

For the first time in more than a decade, the Bay Area’s poverty rate is rising significantly, jumping by more than 4 percent in less than a year, according to an analysis released Wednesday by Tipping Point Community, a San Francisco-based anti-poverty nonprofit organization founded 20 years ago by the man who is now the city’s mayor.

More than a million Bay Area residents live in poverty — an income of about $28,000 or less per year for one adult — and about 800,000 others are near the line, according to the study. It relies on data through 2023, the most recent numbers available. The spike of poverty across the region, which includes six counties that ring San Francisco Bay, outpaced the statewide increase and widened existing racial and educational disparities.

(snip)

Even as San Francisco appears to undergo a resurgence — with crime rates falling, optimism rising and money from the booming artificial intelligence industry pouring in — the analysis suggests the reality is far more complicated. By one count, the Bay Area is home to more billionaires than any other metro area, but rising prices are driving more people into poverty, making the region one of the most visibly unequal in the country.

(snip)

Even tech workers are getting crunched. Layoffs at some of the region’s largest companies have left thousands of people newly unemployed, as firms restructure and embrace AI. The market for new openings is fierce... Researchers say the trends outlined in the Tipping Point Community report should compel governments and philanthropies to shore up the social safety net before the crisis worsens. San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie, who took office in January, said his administration has sought to address some of the issues outlined in the analysis.

When the White House refused to cover Americans’ food assistance during the government shutdown, Lurie announced the city would send its residents preloaded cards to fill the gap. And he is pushing zoning changes that would allow thousands of new homes to be built.

https://wapo.st/4ojg9Pj

free, I hope

[Igel]

1. Lots of COVID-era enhanced government payments ended that fall.

Some of the temporary measures, once extended, failed to be extended again.

Then there was inflation.

This was a national spike. California has its own issues unrelated to that and to inflation.

[fujiyamasan]

2. A lot of the tech companies also "overhired" during COVID-19

Especially to build out cloud infrastructure as a large percentage of the workforce began to work remotely.

And at some point they had to go back to Wall Street to say what they’re doing to improve EPS, and the easiest is usually reducing headcount.

It’s brutal, but I wouldn’t feel sorry for the employees, given the compensation and the name they get on their resumes. Even their severances are very generous.