Two new reports seem to confirm that the opportunity gap for many workers is widening in Connecticut even as the economic recovery continues. According to one set of data, black workers in the state may be earning up to $8.00 less an hour than whites.
If you’re white and college educated, chances are the economy is treating you pretty well right now. However, if you’re black or Hispanic, or have only a high school diploma, you may still be feeling the pinch, even six years after the great financial crash and the recession it triggered.
Connecticut Voices for Children’s annual report, The State of Working Connecticut, shows that unemployment for black residents is 13.1 percent, compared to 5.1 percent for whites.
And because workers of color are less likely to have a college degree, they end up getting an hourly wage that could be on average up to $8.00 less than that of white workers.
Report author Nick DeFiesta said that statistic shocked him.
"That affects these workers’ ability to pay the rent, put food on the table," DeFiesta said. "We are a child advocacy organization and we care about this because kids who live in households where parents aren’t making enough and are struggling, face much more toxic stress, and do worse in school, and generally have a lesser chance to succeed."
Another report, from Georgetown University's Center on Education and the Workforce, also shows that education levels are becoming a much bigger factor as the economy strengthens. Nationally, 13 percent of those with a high school education are underemployed, compared to just 6.2 percent of those with a college degree.
Those statistics, too, break down by race, with Hispanic and black workers suffering underemployment rates much higher than whites.
