A "Help Wanted" sign hangs in the window of Gino's Pizza on Main Street in Patchogue, New York on August 24, 2021. Steve Pfost/Newsday RM/Getty Images The housing crisis and the labor shortage are linked. Fighting the former could help solve the latter. Numerous studies show that affordable housing improves job growth, while expensive housing can damage local economies. Investing in underserved neighborhoods and creating affordable housing in cities can boost hiring across the US. San Francisco could learn something from Columbus, Ohio.It's a fairly simple concept: Though the Bay Area boasts abundant jobs, housing for the people to fill those jobs isn't affordable.