Santa Barbara County’s businesses appear to be recovering from the global COVID-19 pandemic, according to a research report released Wednesday.
Consumer spending, job postings and the formation of new businesses “suggest that businesses and consumers are preparing to ramp up their economic activity,” an assessment offered by Carlsbad-based applied research firm BW Research stated.
Research unveiled Wednesday highlights the workforce and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in the county, as well as recommendations to steer the area’s post-pandemic recovery.
The Santa Barbara County Workforce Development Board and the Santa Barbara Foundation engaged BW Research to develop the 78-page report, titled “Santa Barbara County COVID-19 Impact Report.” It dives into county-specific impacts, including information on career pathways.
Scroll down to read the complete report.
Among the highlighted findings in Santa Barbara County’s report are that the effects of disruption to schools and child care are substantial and are continuing to impact the economy in the county; the scale of stimulus spending likely prevented greater economic pain; and higher-paying industries experienced “a minor recession through the pandemic, while lower-paying industry clusters went through an economic earthquake.”
The report’s authors gave this assessment:
“Of households with children that require adult supervision, four out of five (79%) reported at least one adult had taken on additional child care duties. As a consequence of additional child-related duties, these parents and guardians — 75% of which are women — faced work disruptions. Forty-two percent reported altering their work schedule, and another 25% reported leaving their job entirely. More than half (56%) report that these impacts are still ongoing as of April 2021.”
The data suggest that a substantial portion of the workforce have reduced their hours or left the labor force completely, “diminishing the pool of potential workers in the region” and decreasing household incomes, according to the report.
Roughly 8,100 businesses in Santa Barbara County received a total of $967 million during the first round of federal Paycheck Protection Program loans. Nearly 45% of the county workforce is employed at businesses that received PPP loans, according to the report.
Stimulus payments to individuals “likely had substantial impact on the financial security of many Santa Barbara County households,” the report said. “Sixty percent of residents reported that at least one member of their household received stimulus checks.”
Information and communication technologies, finance, insurance and real estate industries — with average annual earnings greater than $90,000 — saw a drop in employment up to 2% between February 2020 and February 2021 in the county. This is “roughly what is expected in a minor recession,” the report stated.
Tourism, hospitality and recreation, along with other services, such as hair salons, spas and dry cleaners — with average annual earnings of less than $45,000 — experienced a drop in employment between 15% and 40%.
Another key finding showed that most households in Santa Barbara County “have moderate to negative outlooks on the immediate future and a more negative outlook for the next generation.”
More than four in 10 respondents, or nearly 45%, believe that job opportunities in the county for people “will stay the same” in the next three to five years.
“When asked about the job opportunities for their children or the next generation, respondents’ sentiment changed, with 41% predicting that job opportunities would be worse,” the report said. “While some of the detailed drivers of this negative long-term sentiment are not clear, the most common financial concerns for households are high housing costs and not enough income or savings, suggesting that the costs of living and accessibility of living wage careers are considerable factors as Santa Barbara County residents consider the future for the next generation.”
The unveiling of research occurred during a 90-minute Zoom event hosted by REACH and the Workforce Development Boards of San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties.
“We’re pleased to roll out these results of this combined research portfolio together with the goal of providing the means to make data-driven decisions to implement targeted programs and direct funding towards initiatives that can fuel a widespread rebound across the Central Coast communities, businesses and workforce,” said Melissa James, president and CEO of REACH.
REACH, a San Luis Obispo-based economic action coalition that has partnered with both Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties on reopening, planning and recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the Workforce Development Boards of San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties joined to commission research on the economic development and workforce development considerations related to the impact of COVID-19.
In addition to Santa Barbara County’s report, two other new reports were released — the “COVID-19 Economic Impact & Recovery Outlook for the Central Coast” and the “Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Four-Year Regional Planning Unit Plan Program Years 2021-2024.”
Scroll down to read the complete Central Coast COVID-19 report.
Central Coast businesses have suffered significantly because of the economic impact of the pandemic.
“This has not been a crisis that has impacted everyone evenly,” said Josh Williams, BW Research president and principal researcher who helped prepare the Central Coast COVID-19 report and also served as a keynote speaker at the online event.
In the report, BW Research offered several conclusions and recommendations based on findings and input from stakeholders on the Central Coast.
More than 350 attendees registered for Wednesday’s event, including local elected officials, city managers, and business, education and nonprofit leaders.
Also addressing the group were Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors chairman Bob Nelson and San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors chairwoman Lynn Compton, as well as Raymond MacDonald, executive director of the Santa Barbara County Workforce Development Board, and San Luis Obispo County Workforce Development Board Director Dawn Boulanger.
The Santa Barbara County Workforce Development Board decided to commission a COVID-19 impact report because “we needed fresh and up to date industry sector data, as well as employment impact information and trends in order to effectively respond to this once-in-a-lifetime pandemic that we have all just experienced,” MacDonald said.
With the results of research, MacDonald said, “we hope to move forward under a set of guiding principles that will help us serve the business community, as well as the numerous workers whose lives have been severely upended by this national health crisis.”
In the coming days and months, the Santa Barbara County Workforce Development Board plans to work with local cities and county government “to see where we can assist and help on the road to recovery,” MacDonald said.
The neighboring counties have much in common, Boulanger said.
“Our employers cross county lines, as does our workforce, giving us a link economy,” Boulanger said of Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. “Working regionally on economic recovery just makes sense, and that expands our opportunities — opportunities for our businesses to access talent, and for our residents to obtain quality employment that allows them to stay and thrive here in the place they call home.”
Bruce Katz, co-founder and author at The New Localism, was a keynote speaker at the online event. He offered insight on how funds from President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan can be leveraged for collective impact.
Katz noted that understanding the depth of the funds and speed required for deployment is essential. He told the attendees to plan holistically.
“Going forward, I think we’re going to be seeing new opportunities that we need to act with intentionality and purpose,” Katz said.
Keynote speakers also participated in a question-and-answer session during the 90-minute virtual event.
— Noozhawk staff writer Brooke Holland can be reached at bholland@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
