Of the numerous and wide-ranging array of political issues that a country could have, many are too distant for the average person to comprehend or take interest in. The job market, however, is an issue that almost everyone has a stake in, and in recent years many have expressed dissatisfaction with job availability. As such, it has become one of the most popular campaign issues. Politicians, at all levels and from both parties, repeatedly promise voters that they can make the job market flourish.

California governor Gavin Newsom has committed to tackling California’s job market. In late February, Newsom announced $245 million dollars of investment into an ambitious, sweeping economic plan to revitalize California’s job market. This plan, called the California Jobs First Economic Blueprint, primarily aims to create stable, well-paying jobs by funding internship programs across a variety of critical sectors, as well as grassroots initiatives from local nonprofits.

At first glance the job market does not seem so bad for California. Current unemployment in California stands at 5.4%. That is higher than the national average of 4.1%, but it is comparable to some other large cities, such as New York (5.5%) and Los Angeles (5.8%). However, public sectors closely tied to government funding (healthcare, social services) have outperformed private sectors such as the information/media industry (think Instagram, Google, Netflix). This suggests that California’s job market may be overly reliant upon state jobs, which may cause long-term problems.

One issue is that public sector jobs tend to make less money than jobs in the private sector. In healthcare, doctors and surgeons working at public hospitals do make great money, but those with private practices can make over a million each year and the government needs that tax money. Tech is a mostly privatized industry dominated by corporations, and it is also one of the most lucrative. Losing high-paying jobs hurts the upper-middle class as well as the state budget, which largely relies upon wealthier taxpayers.

Another closely related problem is that the government pays the salaries for state jobs, meaning that those jobs are probably a considerable tax burden. Newsom has addressed this issue by proposing internship programs targeting both public and private sectors, with emphasis on finance and manufacturing.

Newsom’s announced investment dedicates roughly half its money to public programs, leaving $125 million for nonprofits with relevant project plans to apply for grants. A small portion of the money ($13 million) is going to Los Angeles specifically, in order to stimulate recovery from the Palisades wildfires.