California's Economy Runs on Latino Labor. Its Paychecks Still Don't Reflect That

CARSON, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 30: A job seeker meets with a recruiter during the HIRE360 Diversity Hiring Expo & Mega Career Expo at the Carson Event Center on June 30, 2026, in Carson, California. Thousands of job seekers attended the one-day HIRE360 Diversity Hiring Expo & Mega Career Expo, which featured more than 140 employers and agencies seeking qualified candidates. HIRE360 said it received nearly 7,000 RSVPs for the hiring expo. (Credit: Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Nearly four in ten workers keeping California's economy running are Latino — filling job sites, hotel floors, restaurant kitchens, and the homes of elderly and disabled residents across Los Angeles County. Yet a 2026 analysis from the UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute(LPPI) shows that scale of contribution hasn't translated into comparable pay, and nowhere is that gap more visible than in LA County's construction crews, care agencies, and service industries.

The size of the gap