Allen Timmons Are businesses leaving California?
According to Forbes, from Jan 2018 to June 2021, 265 business headquarters have relocated out of California or an average of six per month and this is an undercount, as many relocations are not made public. What is more troublesome is the trend; there were more relocations in the first half of 2021 (74) than in all of 2018 (58) or 2020 (62). Some of the most well-known are Apple, Nestles, Oracle, HP, Uber, Airbnb, Salesforce, Yelp, Twitter and now Tesla.
So where are they going?
The top three states for business relocation are Texas, Tennessee, and Arizona.
So why are they going?
California ranks 49th as the highest taxes in the country – only New Jersey is worse. As most business owners know, California has one of the worst legal environments in the country. Because of the Private Attorney General Act, employees can file civil suits against employers on behalf of themselves or other employees. These laws create an abundance of costly lawsuits filled by lawyers looking to benefit financially vs. protecting the employee. According to the Daily Breeze, California tops the list as the worst Judicial Hellhole. California has had a reputation where it’s far too easy to file all lawsuits and way too easy to get way with filing frivolous and abusive suits. These lawsuits cost residents on average, $574/person and over 200,000 lost jobs per year. Business insurance is higher in California. According to Insureron.com, the average rates for workers compensation in California were almost 188% higher than the medium. Only Alaska and Montana have higher rates. California is also the most regulated state in the union with 396,000 restrictions; second highest is New York with 296,000. These regulations increase the cost of doing business and reduces growth. California has some of the highest prices in the county; 16% higher than the US average. This high cost makes it harder to compete in a global economy. BUT, California does have great weather – is it worth it?
Western Steel & Wire’s Commitment
Western Steel & Wire has been in San Francisco, California for over 80 years. In this period of time, all capital equipment has been paid off and depreciated allowing us to run manufacturing with minimal expense. In addition, we utilize Lean Six Sigma principles in manufacturing for cost efficiencies, quality, and fast turnaround. In the office, we utilize the latest ERP computer systems for efficient and reliable administrative functions. We have minimal turnover by offering a great work environment, competitive wages, and challenging, consistent and reliable work, even throughout the pandemic.
All of this allows Western Steel & Wire, to keep our costs down and offer very competitive pricing, despite CA’s taxes, legal environment, regulations and high costs.
This is not to say, that we will not expand into other states. Our strategic business plans do in fact, incorporate expansion.
Bottom line, Western Steel & Wire’s commitment is to keep a presence in California.
References:
- Businesses Are Fleeing California Along With Its Residents …https://www.forbes.com › adammillsap › 2021/08/27
- Daily Breezehttps://www.dailybreeze.com › 2021/12/15
- Insureon https://www.insureon.com
