At the same time that they're making a comeback, America's cities are becoming more economically divided, facing a new set of profound challenges. The San Francisco Bay Area metro in particular has seen a powerful influx of talent and tech investment, pulling startups and venture investment away from even Silicon Valley. But as housing in San Francisco has grown increasingly unaffordable, class divides have worsened, and tensions have erupted over the Facebook private bus and the "infiltration" of Google Glass-toting yuppies. The city's measurable level of inequality is comparable to that of El Salvador or the Philippines.

Now a new report head up by SPUR, an urban think tank in the San Francisco Bay Area, makes the case for a new and more inclusive kind of economic prosperity—one that would continue to stoke the engine of innovation and technology, but also address growing economic gaps and ensure that all workers and residents benefit from economic growth.

The report provides a compelling diagnosis of the economic divides and gaps the region faces. The chart below points to a key source of the problem. It dissects the region’s jobs and finds three key categories: low- and moderate-wage jobs in industries like hospitality, childcare and retail, which pay under $18 an hour; middle-wage jobs, in industries like construction and manufacturing, which pay $18 to $30 an hour; and higher-wage jobs, in high-skill sectors like technology and finance, which pay more than $30 an hour.

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