Tuesday May 25 12:45 AM ET Study: Many California Workers Miss Out SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - California's high-tech success has helped drive the long U.S. economic boom, but workers inside the state have often fared worse than those in other parts of the country, a new study shows. Californians experience ``a higher level of job insecurity'' than their counterparts elsewhere, said the report by Working Partnerships USA and the Economic Policy Institute to be presented Tuesday in Sacramento as part of a labor-backed effort to put worker issues on the state's legislative agenda. The much-touted ``new economy'' has led to a general expansion in the state's business and exports, the report said, but it has also led to ``insecurity, dislocation and displacement'' for many in the state. The largest category of new jobs ``has not been software engineers but employees of temporary help agencies.'' The state with the largest economy, and the largest population, California is also a leader in job changes, time spent on unemployment, and a lack of opportunities for older workers, it added. Workers in the state ``are less likely to have secure or comprehensive health care, pensions or other benefits'' than those in other parts of the country. The ``virtual corporation''-style of management favored by high-tech companies tends to mean that workers are hired on a ''contingent, contractual basis'' instead of getting long-term employment commitments, the study said. That relationship ``denies them a share in the success of the larger, core business.'' The continual upheaval in the job market ``affects not only less educated workers but even those with advanced degrees.'' The study said the state should favor legislation that boosts workers' salaries and benefits, expands educational opportunities and provides a stronger safety net for workers who lose their jobs. The labor unions are optimistic that more of their policy initiatives will be backed by Democratic Governor Gray Davis, whose administration followed Republican Pete Wilson. The unions have had a hard time having any impact on the state's high-tech industry, where only 2 percent of workers are in a collective bargaining unit. Unions have also lost out in the state because of major cutbacks in the more heavily unionized aerospace and defense sectors. The state accounts for more than 25 percent of the country's computer industry jobs. ===================================
