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Oakland

Family Economic Success (FES)
Survey Results

Survey development and administration
by the East Bay Asian Youth Center

Analyses and summaries prepared by
the Urban Strategies Council

View this document in MS Word format

Table of Contents

Introduction

Under the leadership of the East Bay Asian Youth Development Center (EBAYC), the Family Economic Success (FES) Work Group developed a survey to gather information regarding economic issues for families in the Lower San Antonio. The purposes of the survey process include: 1) identifying issues and concerns that families have about economic matters; 2) identifying residents who are interested in working on economic issues and developing their leadership capacities; 3) identifying catalytic issues for residents around which organizing can occur; 4) engaging CBOs in developing their capacities to address family economic success services.

This document summarizes the findings of the Lower San Antonio Family Economic Success survey. It is a quick overview of the questions organized around the five core survey areas:

  1. Background of respondents
  2. Employment
  3. Small business development
  4. Asset development (housing)
  5. Mobilizing issues

The FES survey was administered by EBAYC staff to 415 neighborhood residents from April to May 2004. This is not a representative sample of the neighborhood, so the reader should be cautious about generalizing the results.

Background of Survey Respondents

Gender: 72% of respondents were female, 27% were male. (The 2000 Census for the LSA showed a population of 48.5 % female and 51.5% male.)

Race/ethnicity: Of the 414 people who indicated their race/ethnic background, 37.4% (155) were Mexican, or 14.3% (59) were Mien, 13% (54) were Vietnamese, 11.6% (48) were African American, 7.5% (47) were Chinese and 6.8% (23) were Cambodian.

Language: Most respondents spoke Spanish at home (41%) compared to English (18%), Vietnamese (11%) and Mien (10%). The remaining 20% were divided among Cantonese, Chinese, Khmer, Korean, Thai, and combinations of the above languages.

Household size: 80% of households had between 3 and 6 members. The average household size was 5.

Citizenship/documentation status: 84% were foreign-born. Of those, 38% were permanent residents, 32% undocumented, 24% naturalized citizens, and 3.5% refugee or asylum seekers.

Education: 58% of the respondents had received formal education in the US, while 34% had not.

Criminal justice involvement: 14.7% reported that they or members of their family had been incarcerated, on probation, or on parole.

  1. Of the 62 respondents who had experience with the criminal justice system (either personally or through a family member), 66% were born outside of the U.S.
  2. Of that same group, 36% were between 25 and 34 years of age, while 24% were between 18 and 24.
  3. 57% of Cambodian respondents (16 of 28) reported that they or members of their family had been incarcerated, on probation, or on parole. This compares to 31% of the Mien respondents (19 of 61), 30% of African American respondents (14 of 47), and 4% of Vietnamese respondents (2 of 52).
  4. 33% of males (37 of 112) reported that they or members of their family had been incarcerated, on probation, or on parole. This percentage dropped to 8% for women (25 of 299).
  5. 18% of those without jobs (41 of 226) reported that they or members of their family had been incarcerated, on probation, or on parole. This compares to 11% of those with jobs (21 of 187).

Employment

Current employment

  1. Employment status: 45% of respondents were employed; 55% were not. Only 4% of those employed had more than one job.
  2. Hours worked: Of those who have jobs, over 60% work 31-40 hours a week. 5% work over 40 hours per week.
  3. Job pay: Over 70% of respondents with a job are paid less than $2000/month, with 30% paid less than $1000/month. Nearly 40% did not report their income.
  4. Job type: Of the 165 respondents who identified their job type, 38% work in the service industry, which includes personal care, laundry, and auto repair. 12% work in education and health services, 11% in wholesale and retail, and 6% in construction.
  5. Gender: 56% of male respondents and 41% of female respondents have jobs.
  6. Race/ethnicity: 52% of Chinese, 48% of Mexicans, 44% of Mien, 41% of Vietnamese, and 38% of African Americans had jobs.
  7. Driver’s license: Of those who had jobs, 57% had a driver’s license, while 35% did not.

Barriers to employment

  1. Leading Barriers: Over two-thirds of the respondents reported being prevented from getting a job or a better job because they lacked the necessary job skills. Two-thirds also reported having difficulty finding a job because they did not know where to look. Over half of respondents reported being prevented from getting a job or a better job due to their English skills.
  2. Number One Barrier: However, when asked to name the number one barrier to employment, 30% of question respondents named education. Other “number one” barriers included poor English skills (21%), immigration documentation (14%), language (9%), and health (6%).

 

Income/Expenses

  1. Single Earner Households: 58% of respondents live in single-earner households.
  2. Income and Expenses: 22% of respondents who earn $999 or less spend more than $1000 a month, while 5% of those earning between $1000 and $1999 spend more than $2000 a month.

Interest in/knowledge of high growth jobs

Healthcare
  1. General Interest : Of respondents interested in health services employment, the position of medical assistant received the most interest (85 people), followed by office clerk (77), nurse’s aide (75), dental assistant (69) and registered nurse (65). Respondents are least interested in the position of interview clerk (29). Overall, healthcare jobs were selected 566 times, meaning some respondents are interested in more than one health care job.
  2. Medical assistant: Of the 85 respondents who selected medical assistant as a job of interest, 9% are male and 91% female. 34% are English speakers, 25% speak Vietnamese, and 22% speak Spanish.
  3. Office clerk: Of the 77 respondents who were interested in the position of office clerk, 9% are male and 91% female. 43% are Spanish speakers, and 22% are English speakers.
  4. Registered nurse: Of the 65 respondents who were interested in the position of registered nurse, 18% are male and 82% female. 33% are English speakers, and 29% are Spanish speakers.
  5. Nurse’s aide: Of the 75 respondents who indicated an interested in becoming a nurse’s aide, 13% are male and 87% female. 52% are Spanish speakers, while 28% are English speakers.
Construction
  1. General Interest : Of respondents interested in construction employment, electricians’ work received the most interest (82 people), followed by carpentry (77). Respondents are least interested in hazardous materials removal work (29). Overall, construction jobs were selected 407 times, meaning some respondents are interested in more than one construction job.
  2. Electrician: Of the 80 respondents who expressed an interest in electrician’s work, 71% are male and 29% female. 51% of all male respondents are interested in becoming electricians. 46% of those interested in this line of work are Spanish speakers.
  3. Carpentry: Of the 74 respondents interested in carpentry, 74% are male and 26% are female. Of the 112 males who responded to the survey, 49% are interested in carpentry. 43% of those interested in carpentry are Spanish speakers.
Job training
  1. General Interest in Job Training : 82% of respondents said they would be likely or very likely to participate in an 18-month job training program if it helped them get a job in the healthcare or construction industries.
  2. Gender: 82% of both female and male respondents said they would be likely or very likely to participate in a job training program.
  3. Primary Language: Of those respondents who are likely or very likely to participate in a job training program, 44% speak Spanish, 23% English, 12% Vietnamese, 9% Mien, and 9% Chinese or Cantonese.
  4. Employment Status: 78% of respondents with a job and 84% of respondents without a job reported that they are likely or very likely to participate in a job training program.
  5. Salary or Pay: Nearly 75% of question respondents said that receiving a salary or pay would make them more likely to participate in a job training program.
  6. English Language Support: Nearly 60% said they would be more likely to participate if English language support were offered.
  7. Documentation Services: Fewer than 50% of respondents said that documentation services would increase their interest in participating in a job training program. Nearly 20% said that documentation services would make them less likely to participate in such a program.

Small Business Development

  • General Interest in Business: 60% of respondents reported an interest in starting their own business. Of those, 71% were female compared to 29% male. 49% are Spanish speakers compared to 21% English speakers.
  • Businesses of Interest: Of those interested in starting their own business, 55% did not identify a particular industry, while 15% named the leisure and hospitality industry (which includes food services, entertainment, and recreation), 12% named the wholesale and retail trade, and 10% named other services such as beauty salons, laundry, and auto repair.
  • Business Interests by Gender: 37% of females who named a specific industry were interested in the leisure and hospitality industry, compared to 26% of males. This was followed by the wholesale and retail trade with 30% of females and 20% of males.
  • Business Interests by Age: Of 25-34 year olds, 36% were interested in wholesale and retail, 30% in the leisure and hospitality industry, and 22% in other services. Of 35-44 year olds, 35% were interested in leisure and hospitality, 22% in wholesale and retail, and 22% in other services.
  • Business Interests of Undocumented: Of undocumented respondents, 37% showed an interest in wholesale and retail trade, followed by leisure and hospitality (32%).
  • Primary Needs for Business Start-up: Financial resources were identified as the primary need for starting a business (56%), though respondents also identified as needs business planning (36%), market studies (31%), finding a facility (33), banking services (31%), permitting (37%), and tax filing (32%).

Asset Development: Housing

Renters:

  1. Publicly Assisted Housing: Nearly 50% of renters reported living in housing subsidized by the Oakland Housing Authority or Section 8.
  2. Monthly Rent: Roughly 20% of respondents report paying less than $600/month in rent, while nearly 40% report paying more than $800.

Homeowners:

  1. Homeownership: Fewer than 10% of respondents reported owning their own home.
  2. Owners by Ethnicity: Of those who owned their home, 46% were Mexican, followed by Mien (20%) and African American (17%).
  3. Owners by Place of Birth: 13% of residents born in the U.S. owned their home compared to 8% of those born outside of the US.
  4. Understand How to Buy Home: Only 12% of question respondents stated that they understood the process of buying a home well or very well, while nearly half said they had “no idea.”
  5. Barriers to Buying a Home: Insufficient savings, insufficient income, and high housing prices were cited as the top three barriers to buying a home.
  6. Understanding Home Buying by Language: Of the 44 people who understand the home-buying process well or very well, 38 (or 86%) are Spanish or English speakers. Of the 240 people who “don’t really understand” the home-buying process or have “no idea” how it works, 35% speak Spanish, 18% speak Vietnamese, 16% speak English, 13% speak Mien, and 10% speak Cantonese.