Report: Port of Oakland helps drive regional job growth

Increasing activity at the Port of Oakland is helping drive job growth in the region, according to an economic impact study the port released Thursday.

The study showed that 84,000 Bay Area jobs are supported by the port, a 15 percent increase since 2010. The study also put the port's overall economic value—which includes business revenue, consumer spending, and total value of goods and services—at more than $130 billion.

The study authors also pointed to a direct correlation between job growth and the growth of container volumes, airport passengers, and occupancy rates. Oakland International Airport has seen 62 months of growth and the Oakland Seaport broke records in both 2017 and 2018, port officials said.

"The report confirms the Port of Oakland's role as a jobs generator for the region," Port of Oakland Director of Social Responsibility Amy Tharpe said in a statement announcing the findings. "The Port creates business opportunities that provide good, family-wage jobs."