California Gov. Brown to sign expanded fair pay legislation

Associated Press ^ | Sep 20, 2015 7:14 PM EDT | Janie Har

[Myrddin]

I’ve been home in Idaho for the last year. So busy that my bikes have been ridden under 50 miles total all year. Working remotely with San Diego based staff.

[Seaplaner]

Writes Myrddin:My employer made a preemptive strike. All company property was "sold" to a holding company. We don't own it anymore. We lease by the square foot with each contract responsible for covering floor space costs. It resulted in massive reductions in floor space. If the operation has to move, you tell the staff it's over at the end of the month. Phones are all Microsoft Lync/Skype for Business now instead of the old PBX. Poof. New location, same phone connectivity. Even in another state. Payroll outsourced to ADP. Poof, no more CA state income tax collections on the closed locations. IT support? All phone/internet based. Nothing left in CA. A whole bunch of payroll taxes and property tax payers go POOF!

The group I supported since 1992 now has an alternate base in another state. I took me a couple months to stand up the site, hire new employees and spin them up. Done. That wipes down half a floor. I support them remotely from my home office in Idaho using Lync. Just one out of town trip required this year to train the new system admin and developers and setup the new source code control and build systems.

Yours is a fascinating and important story re the migration of biz out of the once-Golden-State.

You should consider writing it as a letter to a major biz publication (WSJ ed page, perhaps?)

.

[Myrddin]

It has been a sad experience to watch an employee owned company, founded in San Diego turn into a public company headquartered in VA. The outsourcing/downsizing was done company wide. Because it is a multi-state/multi-national company, geographic labor rates have also created competition inside the company. I cited the CA -> NE move that I did directly. Others in CA offices found themselves bidding against other groups inside the company and losing due to higher costs in CA.

Does it need a write up in a business mag? Probably not. Texas is successfully poaching lots of businesses. Buck moved the knife business from El Cajon, CA back to Post Falls, ID (near their founding location). That was driven by workman's comp rates and electricity costs. CA is a study in how to drive away business.