Black Women Employment Rates Are The Lowest Since The Pandemic

Last month, US payrolls soared in and the unemployment rate dropped, however, the opposite was true for Black Americans, especially Black women.

Unemployment For Black Women 

Black unemployment rates have surged reaching a peak not seen since August 2022. 

As per the latest Labor Department data, the overall unemployment rate for Black Americans climbed to 6.4% in March 2024, up from 5.6% in February. 

The three-month average unemployment rate for Black people has risen to 5.8%, up from 5.4%. 

However, the overall shift is mainly seen among Black women, who have experienced employment and overall labor-force participation declines.

March has marked the most significant single-month decrease since the pandemic lockdowns of April 2020, with Black women seeing payroll losses 181,000. 

The employment-to-population ratio, an indicator of labor market health, also decreased to 59.6% for these women.

The comparison in unemployment rates between Black and white Americans is also significant, with March figures showing that the Black unemployment rate is double that of whites, which remained steady at 3.4%. 

Why Are Black People Seeing More Unemployment?

The reasons behind the increase in joblessness among Black workers, particularly women, remain unclear.

The ever-changing nature of data divided by race and gender makes it challenging to pinpoint the causes of this trend immediately. 

According to Bloomberg, experts suggest that more months of data are needed to determine if this represents a meaningful deterioration in the job market for Black Americans.

“In past business cycles, Black workers have been the last to be hired during expansions and first fired during contractions, so an increase in the Black unemployment rate is eye-catching to forecasters,” Comerica Bank said in a note.