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Contact: lppipress@luskin.ucla.edu
UCLA Analysis Finds Latino Workers Power the Inland Empire’s Growth, Yet Struggle to Get Ahead
The factsheet—which includes interviews with workers—reveals how wages, education gaps, and housing costs are shaping the lives of the region’s Latino workforce.
LOS ANGELES (October 21, 2025) — A new factsheet from the UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute (LPPI), developed in collaboration with the Cultivating Inland Empire Latino Opportunity (CIELO) Fund at the Inland Empire Community Foundation, offers a detailed look at the realities shaping the region’s Latino workforce. Drawing on data from the Latino Data Hub and interviews with local workers, the analysis shows that while Latino workers power the Inland Empire’s economic expansion, they continue to face stark inequities that limit long-term opportunity and economic mobility.
Between 2000 and 2022, the Latino workforce in the Inland Empire grew by 154 percent, from 460,000 to 1.2 million workers—accounting for nearly 90 percent of all labor-force growth in the region. Today, Latinos represent 53 percent of all workers, making them the backbone of the local economy.
“Latino workers have been essential to the Inland Empire’s economic growth, yet too many continue to encounter barriers that keep them from fully sharing in that prosperity,” said Mariah Bonilla, co-author of the report and project policy analyst at LPPI. “Our report offers a data-driven view of how these inequities manifest across wages, education, and job quality, giving local leaders a clearer picture of where opportunity gaps persist.”
Among the key findings:
- Latino workers now make up more than half of the region’s labor force, with participation rates among the highest in California—74% of Latino men and 58% of Latinas are working or seeking work.
- Nearly one in five (18%) Latino workers are between ages 16–24, compared to 15% overall.
- Latinas earn the lowest median hourly wage at $17, and even college-educated Latino workers earn less than their peers of other racial or ethnic groups.
- Only 15% of Latino workers hold a bachelor’s degree, while 23% lack a high-school diploma.
- Roughly one-third (33%) of Latino workers are employed in occupations classified as high risk for automation—the largest share of any group in the region.
- Nearly one in five Latino workers lives in overcrowded housing, and 44% of Latino renters are cost-burdened.
In addition to the quantitative analysis, the brief draws on eight in-depth interviews with local workers in Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, offering insight into how these disparities shape daily life. Participants described unstable employment, limited opportunities for training and promotion, language barriers in the workplace, and the need for jobs that provide stability, dignity, and safety.
“By pairing hard data with worker experiences, this project helps explain not only the numbers but the people behind them,” said Rodrigo Dominguez-Villegas, co-author and director of research at LPPI. “The voices we heard reveal both the challenges workers face and the creativity they bring to navigating those challenges.”
“Latino workers power the Inland Empire’s economy – making up more than half of the labor force and contributing greatly across sectors,” said Jesse Melgar, chair of the Inland Empire Community Foundation and founder & chair of the CIELO Fund. “Yet, these same workers face deep inequities in wages, education, and housing that demand urgent solutions. We thank the researchers at UCLA LPPI for producing this report and spotlighting where local workers are struggling and where they thrive. The findings will help ensure that decision-makers, advocates, philanthropy, and community leaders in our region and beyond have access to the rigorous data needed to better support workers in Riverside and San Bernardino counties.”
The Inland Empire analysis is part of LPPI’s recent series of publications about regional workforce trends for Latinos in California. Other briefs focus on Los Angeles County, the Bay Area, and the North and Central San Joaquin Valley. The Inland Empire brief is the only publication in partnership with the CIELO Fund.
About UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute:
The UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute is a non-partisan research institute that seeks to inform, engage, and empower Latinos through innovative research and policy analysis. LPPI aims to promote equitable and inclusive policies that address the needs of the Latino community and advance social justice. latino.ucla.edu.
About Inland Empire Community Foundation:
Founded in 1941, the Inland Empire Community Foundation is the oldest and largest community foundation in Inland Southern California. We partner with individuals, families and corporations to build a culture of philanthropy. Over the past 25 years, we have given out over $225 million in grants and scholarships. For more information visit the IECF’s website at www.iegives.org. Be a part of our conversation on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.
