Abasto Magazine

Bonus English t nearly 23 million, people of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity represented 15 percent of the U.S. labor force in 2011. By 2018, Hispanics are expected to comprise 18 percent of the labor force. According whit the U.S. Department of Labor in 2011, 58.9 percent of Latinos aged 16 and over were employed and just under 1 in 5 of those employed was working part- time. Women comprised 41 percent of all Latinos in the labor force in 2011, compared to 46 percent among the white labor force. Women represent a smaller share of the Latino labor force both because of the high laborforce participation of Latino men and the lower labor force participation rate of Latina women when compared to Whites. % Usually working part-time % Women (age 16 and over) % College graduates (age 25 and over) % Working in the private sector (wage and salary workers) % Working in the public sector % Self-employed (unincorporated) Employed Latinos are much less likely to have a college degree than are either Whites or African Weekly earnings Total Men Women Americans. Approximately one in six employed Latinos aged 25 and over have completed a bachelor's degree, less than half the proportion among employed Whites. Since 2000, this gap in the share of employed Latinos and Whites who are college graduates has widened. Between 2000 and 2011, the gap between employed Whites with a college education and employed Latinos with a % Women (age 16 and over) Latinos are more likely than either Whites or African 50 | | Mayo/Junio 2012 Characteristics of the unemployed Unemployment rate Hispanic Labor Force in the Recovery A U.S. Department of Labor UNEMPLOYMENT, EMPLOYMENT, AND EARNINGS CHARACTERISTICS BY RACE AND LATINO ETHNICITY, 2011 ANNUAL AVERAGES Latinos Whites 58.9 18.9 40.6 16.7 83.7 10.4 5.8 59.4 African 51.7 Characteristics of the employed % Employed (employment-population ratio among those 16 and older) Median duration of unemployment in weeks 18.5 % Long-term unemployed (27 weeks or more) 39.9 Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey Note: queried about their race. Americans to be employed in the private sector, with more than 8 in 10 employed Latinos working in the private sector, not including the unincorporated self-employed. Conversely, Latinos are less likely to work for government than are either Whites or African Americans. In 2011, 5.8 percent of Latinos were self-employed compared to 7.2 percent among Whites. The lower self- employment among Latinos is partly attributed to lower educational attainment and to less access to fi nancial wealth. However, according to the most recent Census Bureau Survey of Business Owners (2007), Latino-owned businesses were the fastest growing small business sector prior to the recession, expanding at nearly twice the rate of the national average between 2002 and 2007. In fact, the entry rate of Latinos into self-employment compares favorably to that of non-Latino Whites and their entry rate is even higher than that of Whites in low-barrier sectors. Americans 19.9 46.0 36.1 78.5 14.2 7.2 18.0 53.8 26.0 76.9 19.3 3.8 $549 $775 $615 $571 $856 $653 $518 $703 $595 11.5 41.9 7.9 43.0 19.7 41.7 15.8 46.9 27.0 49.5 The main problem is that Latinos tend to have lower success rates with their new businesses and exit self- employment at a higher rate than Whites. Half of Latinos working full-time earned at least $549 per week in 2011. college education grew from 17.6 percentage points to 20.1 percentage points. This median weekly wage was only 71 percent of that earned by Whites. This gap in earning has been largely stable over the recession and recovery period.

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