PolicyLink and PERE
33
An Equity Profile of Orange County
Decline in wages for
workers at the lowest
percentile since 1979:
-26%
Highlights
• Orange County's regional economic growth is outpacing national
growth. The number of jobs grew by 116 percent between 1979 and
2016 while real gross regional product (GRP) increased by 209
percent, both surpassing national growth rates.
• Income inequality, driven in part by a widening wage gap, has sharply
increased. Wages for top earners increased 24 percent between 1979
and 2016, while wages for the lowest earners fell by 26 percent. Low-
wage jobs are the fastest growing job segment in the county.
• Black and Latino workers earn the lowest median wages and their
wages stagnated between 2000 and 2016.
• Although education can be a leveler, racial, and gender gaps persist in
the labor market. People of color with college degrees have a lower
median hourly wage than their white counterparts. In addition, women
of color at all levels of education earn a lower median hourly wage.
Economic vitality
Increase in low-income
households since 1979:
11
Median hourly wage gap
between college-educated
white men and women of color:
$16/hr
How is the region doing on measures of economic growth and well-being?
percentage
points
Equitable regions possess economic vitality, providing high-quality
jobs to their residents and producing new ideas, products,
businesses, and economic activity so the region remains
sustainable and competitive.
