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2017 | Book

The Position of African American Men in the US Labor Market Prior to the Great Recession Read chapter Read first chapter

African American Men and the Labor Market during the Great Recession

Author: Michelle Holder

Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan US

Part of: Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik" , Springer Professional "Technik" , Springer Professional "Wirtschaft"

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About this book

This book analyzes the status and position of African American men in the U.S. labor market prior to, during, and after the Great Recession. Using a model of occupational crowding, the book outlines how the representation of African American men in major occupational categories almost universally declined during the recent recession even as white non-Hispanic men were able to maintain their occupational representation in the face of staggering job losses. Using US Census Bureau data, this book illustrates how African American men sought to insulate their group from devastating job losses by increasing their educational attainment in a job market where employers exercised more leverage in hiring. However, this strategy was unable to protect this group from disparate job losses as African American men became further marginalized in the workforce during the Great Recession. Policy approaches to address high African American male unemployment are outlined in the final chapter.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter
Chapter 1. The Position of African American Men in the US Labor Market Prior to the Great Recession
Abstract
This chapter examines the position of African American men in the labor market prior to the start of the Great Recession. In order to provide a multidimensional picture of the average African American male worker, descriptive statistics will be provided, which includes the occupations in which most African American men were employed, this demographic group’s average earnings, their average unemployment rate and labor force participation rate, and trend analyses for these statistics. Examination of the position of African American men in the workforce begins with the four- to five-year period that preceded the Great Recession. This chapter also includes a brief look at the role of the relatively higher incarceration rate of African American men in their labor market position.
Michelle Holder
Chapter 2. African American Male Unemployment during the Great Recession in Comparison to Other Groups and Theoretical Considerations
Abstract
The Great Recession pushed millions of people out of the US labor force, and this chapter uses descriptive statistics to show that this push had a disparate impact on African American men. The chapter outlines the profound impact of the recession on the landscape of the American labor market, and focuses on changes in major labor force indicators for African American men. Since no demographic group in the USA was able to escape the impact of the downturn, in order to discern whether the recession’s impact on unemployment was more devastating for African American men than for other groups, changes in labor force indicators for other groups are examined and comparisons drawn. This chapter concludes with theories about discrimination as well as why some groups appear vulnerable to unemployment during economic downturns.
Michelle Holder
Chapter 3. African American Men’s Decline in Labor Market Status during the Great Recession
Abstract
This chapter is the anchor of this research and covers original quantitative analyses I have conducted on occupational shifts that occurred among African American men during the recession. The importance of a group’s occupational distribution lies in the distribution’s influence on the group’s average wages. Occupational distribution by race can therefore influence inter-group wage disparities. This chapter shows that while African American male representation in high-, mid- and low-wage jobs declined over the course of the recession, the opposite occurred for white non-Hispanic men; the latter group was able to maintain its occupational representation during the recession. Based on the quantitative evidence presented in this as well as the preceding chapter, my conclusion is that African American men were further and disparately marginalized in the workforce during the Great Recession.
Michelle Holder
Chapter 4. Where African American Men Stand Post-Recession in the Labor Market: Economic Theories Underlie Advocacy Efforts and Policy Approaches
Abstract
Federal anti-discrimination policies implemented in the 1960s helped improve the position of African Americans in the US labor market, but these policies did not eliminate persistent occupational segregation based on race. Because the problem of discrimination in the US labor market is complex, effective solutions must be multifaceted. The policy avenues outlined in this chapter are national and local in scope and include approaches that have the potential to mitigate the disparate effects of economic downturns on African American men. I begin this chapter by providing a snapshot of where African American men stand in the US labor market today with regard to occupational representation and unemployment, and then discuss potential policy solutions.
Michelle Holder
Backmatter
Metadata
Title
African American Men and the Labor Market during the Great Recession
Author
Michelle Holder
Copyright Year
2017
Electronic ISBN
978-1-137-56311-8
Print ISBN
978-1-137-56310-1
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-56311-8