“The Labor Market Experiences of Afro-Latinxs”

• In Event: Visualizing AfroLatinos/Black Latinos in Education Research: Illuminating Complex Inequities for Policy and Practice

Abstract

Latinos are not a racial or ethnic monolith, and their experiences are better understood when we consider how gender, immigration status, national origin, and race—among other social positions—intersect and shape those experiences. Much of the research on Latino labor force outcomes assumes that all Latinos experience race the same way. However, Afro-Latinxs, or individuals who identify as Black Latinos, may be subjected to the labor market’s anti-Black bias in a way that does not affect non-Black Latinos. We seek to understand the unique experiences of AfroLatinx with unemployment and labor force participation through employing intersectionality and critical race theory (Mills 1997; Collins 2019). We use the Current Population Survey (CPS) microdata to analyze labor market outcomes for the prime-age (25-54 years old) Afro-Latinx population from 2010 to 2022. Based on our analysis of the Current Population Survey, we find that Afro-Latinxs are more likely to have completed a bachelor’s degree than non-Black Latinos but less likely than their respective non-Latino Black and white counterparts. For Afro-Latinas, the simultaneity of gender, race, and ethnicity contributes to uniquely complex labor market outcomes.Despite Afro-Latinas’ higher levels of educational attainment and labor force participation, we find that Afro-Latinas have experienced higher unemployment levels than non-Black Latinas over the last 12 years. From 2010 to 2022, unemployment and labor force outcomes for Afro-Latina women were closer to those of Black women than non-Black Latina women. During the pandemic’s economic downturn, Black, Afro-Latina, and non-Black Latina women experienced similar unemployment and labor force shocks. Afro-Latino men experienced worse unemployment and labor force outcomes than non-Black Latino men but better than those of Black men between 2010 and 2022. During the pandemic’s economic downturn, Black and Afro-Latino men experienced harsher unemployment and labor force shocks than their non-Black peers.
Among the U.S.-born, unemployment rates for Afro-Latina women and Afro-Latino men were closer to their Black peers than their non-Black Latina/o peers from 2010 to 2022. Afro-Latinxs are a fast-growing, young group with a larger share possessing a Bachelor’s degree or higher than their non-Black Latino peers. We provide preliminary evidence that Afro-Latinx workers ages 25 to 54 are subject to anti-Black bias in the labor market. Over the last decade and a half, prime-age Afro-Latina/o workers have experienced worse labor force outcomes than their non-Black Latina/o peers. Additionally, for both male and female Black Latinos, workforce trends closely track those of Black workers. The conflation of race and ethnicity in equity-minded policy relevant research is a major challenge. We suggest the following policy recommendations that focus on combating the structural barriers in the labor market: Reduce the incarceration rate and facilitate re-entry into employment. Increase funding and capacity for anti-discrimination enforcement agencies at federal, state, and local levels, especially the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Federal and state data agencies should collect demographic data that captures the complexity of race and lived experiences.

Author

• Misael Isaac Galdamez, University of California - Los Angeles