Black Unemployment 84% Higher Than White

By Hristina Byrnes Published Nov 5, 10:30AM EDT

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Black Unemployment 84% Higher Than White — © SIphotography / Getty Images

The BLS released its THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION — OCTOBER 2022. It showed the pace of job creation slowed compared to recent months, but the economy added 261,000 jobs, which is impressive during an economic downturn. The unemployment rate was 3.7%, close to the lowest level in decades. Notable among the October figures was that the unemployment rate among Blacks was 84% higher than among White Americans. The ratio has not changed much since the BLS started to release job data.
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Across groups measured by the BLS, the jobless rate among white people was 3.2%. Among adult males, the figure was 3.3%. Among adult women, the figure was 3.4%. Among Asians, the figure was 2.9%. Among black Americans, the number was 5.9%.

The reasons black Americans have higher jobless rates than white people fall into several categories. The Economic Policy Institute reports that among the primary reasons are “racism” and single adult households where one person tries to care for children and hold a full-time job simultaneously.

The American Progressive reports that the spread between black and white jobless rates goes back to 1972 when the BLS started to gather monthly employment data. It gives incarceration, the rate of which is higher among blacks than whites, as another reason. “Mass incarceration plays a significant role in the lower labor force participation rate for African American men.” Educational attainment is another reason. White people tend to graduate from high school and college at a higher rate than black people.

None of these reasons can be taken alone, according to many experts. They represent a web of problems black Americans face as they try to enter the workforce. One thing almost all experts agree on is that these problems will not go away.

A study by 24/7 Wall St. last year shows the deep problems can be further explained at the city level. Among the worst cities for Black Americans: “Black residents in these metro areas are much less likely to hold a high school diploma or college degree than white residents. Lower levels of high school attainment can drive down wages and make it more difficult to find a job.”
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Based on all these factors, the gulf between Black unemployment and white is unlikely to change.

About the Author Hristina Byrnes →

Hristina Byrnes is the editor of 247Tempo.com, where she handles the site's assignments and editing. She holds a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University, which she earned in 2012, and she specializes in translating complex health data research into engaging, accessible stories for a general audience.

When she's not poring over the latest data sets or brainstorming story ideas, you can find Hristina watching tennis, playing tennis with her son, or trying to get her daughter into tennis.