California’s electronics sector saw a major boost in employment over the past year, according to MNI, compiler and publisher of industrial business profiles for the nation’s nearly 400,000 manufacturers. Between December 2020 and December 2021, California's electronics sector added 4,312 jobs or nearly one percent.
California is currently home to 24,304 manufacturing companies that employ 1,541,050 workers, ranking the state first in the nation for number of industrial jobs according to MNI data.
Electronics is California’s largest sector by number of manufacturing jobs, accounting for 231,003 jobs statewide. Over the past year California’s electronics industry added 4,361 jobs or roughly 1.7%.
Read More: Key Facts & Statistics on California Manufacturing [INFOGRAPHIC]
The increase in jobs was fueled by rapid growth in the semiconductor industry, which grew by 5% or 2,650 jobs. Printed circuit boards (PCBs) also posted strong employment growth, up 15% or by 1,983 jobs. Electronic components added another 1% to its workforce.
Semiconductors have been in short supply following a surge in demand at start of the pandemic, impacting a wide range of industries and hitting automakers the hardest. The shortage prompted the Biden Administration to launch a new initiative to boost the domestic semiconductor industry.
Read More: Steel, Semiconductors & More: The Impact of Supply Shortages on U.S. Manufacturers
Four of the nation’s top 10 semiconductor manufacturers are located in California- making it a top state for semiconductor manufacturing. The largest of these is QUALCOMM, Inc. in San Diego, a $3.9 billion operation that employs 5,200. Other top California semiconductor manufacturers include Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. in Santa Clara and Analog Devices, Inc. in Milpitas.
Unfortunately, job gains in California’s electronics sector were not enough to offset losses in the state’s other manufacturing subsectors. Overall, the state of California lost 5,182 manufacturing jobs—about one third of one percent.
For the latest facts and statistics on California’s manufacturing sector, see our infographic or learn more about the state’s companies in our post: Top 10 Manufacturing Companies in California.
Looking to contact California manufacturing companies? Learn more about our California data for sales, marketing, business development and research here. Or read our post: Top 10 Manufacturing Companies in California.
