Silicon Valley's Inequalities Worsened Over Past Year: Pain Index

SILICON VALLEY, CA — Predominantly white and wealthy communities far less impacted by COVID-19 than predominantly working-class communities of color. Senior and executive positions at tech companies largely dominated by white people. High school dropout rates increasing the most among English as a second language learners, Latino students and those experiencing homelessness.

The statistics released in the 2021 Silicon Valley Pain Index this week indicated that the pandemic resulted in an even starker inequality by race and class in a region that houses some of the country’s wealthiest people and companies. The index, created by San Jose State University’s Human Rights Institute, examined over 60 recent studies and reports conducted on Silicon Valley and presented over 80 statistics, indicating the “level of inequality during this pandemic has gone from bad to horrific.”

According to the index, the largest “pain” indicators — hunger, housing insecurity, homelessness, high school dropout rates, income inequality and wealth inequality — all increased.

"We're not here to just talk about problems," said Scott Myers-Lipton, a San Jose State University professor and lead author of the index. "We are hoping that this inspires solutions. Because what is being inflicted on the Silicon Valley residents is totally unacceptable."

View the full report here.

Some statistics revealed by the index include:

• The top 10 Silicon Valley executives, all white men, increased their net wealth by $571 billion since 2020 for a 130 percent increase, while African American incomes have decreased by 1 percent.
• Los Altos, a wealthy suburb, has vaccinated 93 percent of its residents for COVID-19. The neighborhood of East Side San Jose, which is mostly Latino and working-class, has vaccinated 66 percent of its residents.
• The number of households that have more than $10 million in investable assets is 7,200. This is 0.8 percent of the total number of households in Silicon Valley, yet they control 11 percent of the net wealth.
• About 18 percent of households, or 172,000 estimated families, in the region have no savings — zero or negative assets.
• Nearly three quarters of extra low-income households have spent more than half their income on housing.