Tech sector spared from huge job losses

Silicon Valley, often called an engine of California’s economy, was able to wield the shield of its vaunted tech sector in April to ward off some of the economic fallout unleashed by coronavirus-linked business shutdowns.

April’s job losses were nothing short of a catastrophe for California: 2.34 million jobs lost statewide, 555,100 positions erased in the Bay Area.

Yet Santa Clara County’s employment losses were far less pronounced than elsewhere in the Golden State, according to this news organization’s analysis of job statistics compiled by Beacon Economics and UC Riverside.

“So far through the COVID-19 crisis, Santa Clara’s economy has retained its labor market edge over the rest of the Bay Area and California,” said Scott Anderson, chief economist with Bank of the West.

During April compared with the month before, job totals plunged 13.7 percent in the Bay Area, 13.5 percent in California, 14.6 percent in the East Bay, and 14.4 percent in the San Francisco-San Mateo metro area.

But Santa Clara County, deemed the primary center of Silicon Valley’s tech sector, suffered a significantly smaller decline of 11.2 percent.

“Santa Clara County’s vibrant technology sector remains largely intact and in some cases benefits from the widespread business shutdowns and stay-at-home orders,” Anderson said.

State and local government agencies have imposed shutdowns and restrictions on businesses to corral the spread of the coronavirus. In response, employers were forced to jettison or fur