San Jose State leaders on Tuesday called on tech companies and other institutions to address white supremacy and inequality, which are seeped into nearly every aspect of Silicon Valley life, according to new research unveiled this week. A new report, called the Silicon Valley Pain Index, is shedding a glaring spotlight on wealth and income...
Silicon Valley trade school that trains essential workers at risk of closure
A longtime Silicon Valley trade school that trains essential workers such as electricians, mechanics and nurses could soon close its doors, the latest casualty of the coronavirus pandemic that’s swept the world. But its leaders are fighting for a chance to survive another year. Officials from the Metropolitan Education District (MetroED) are asking the city of San Jose and...
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Downtown San Jose restaurants struggle to survive amid pandemic, protests
Adolfo Gomez had driven just five minutes away from his downtown San Jose restaurant, Mezcal, when he got a call from a friend that the doors to the business had been broken and people were looting. His friend’s daughter had recorded and shared the action on her phone after what started as a peaceful protest...
Manufacturing is big business in San Jose, and it’s ready to get back to work
Virag Saksena’s whisky, which he makes at 10th Street Distillery in San Jose, is sitting in barrels ready to bottle, but his hands have been tied for months due to the shelter-in-place order that prohibited nonessential manufacturers from operating starting in mid-March. He set aside whisky making for producing hand sanitizer, but now Saksena is...
Silicon Valley economic slowdown brings positive news for environment, safety
With more than 2,800 cases of COVID-19 in Santa Clara County resulting in 144 deaths, and unemployment at almost 12 percent, a source of positive news can be found in the effects of quarantine on the environment and traffic safety. Significant decreases in travel by car should prove advantageous for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in...
Santa Clara County poll places public health over the economy
When forced to choose between public health or the economy, the majority of Santa Clara County residents surveyed in a new poll said they’re more concerned about public health — despite the county’s shelter-in-place order ravaging local businesses. The poll, conducted from May 14 to May 18, surveyed 1,000 randomly selected county residents by telephone,...
Amid ‘unprecedented’ unemployment numbers, Silicon Valley feels blow slightly softer
California is seeing record unemployment numbers, with the largest single month of job losses ever recorded and a 15.5 percent unemployment rate in mid-April, about a month after the state began sheltering-in-place due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. But the blow has been a little softer overall in Silicon Valley, local experts say. The unemployment...
Small businesses feel the brunt of shutdown in Silicon Valley and beyond
Hospitality, cafe and restaurant businesses and workers are being hit the hardest by the shelter-in-place orders, according to a new survey and report of more than 86,000 people across the country. Legislators and chambers of commerce have sounded the alarm about the impact of the pandemic-related shutdowns across the country on small businesses, but the...
Major layoffs in Silicon Valley hit Team San Jose, Goodwill and car dealers
Coronavirus-linked layoffs have soared in Silicon Valley in recent months, affecting more than 21,000 employees across 26 companies in March alone, according to a San José Spotlight analysis of data from the state’s Employment Development Department. Industries with the most layoffs were retailers, restaurants, hotels, the arts and entertainment sector, personal care services and gyms....
Coronavirus: San Jose legislator introduces bill to provide job-protected leaves
San Jose Assemblymember Ash Kalra introduced legislation Wednesday to allow Californians who are affected by COVID-19 to take a state-protected leave from their jobs, in addition to extending the leave by 12 additional weeks. The bill, AB 3216, would also allow employees to take a job-protected leave to care for a family member whose school...