race

The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically affected households across New Jersey. For several weeks in 2020, weekly Unemployment Insurance claims topped 100,000, and the unemployment rate jumped to 16.6%. Insecurity about a household member’s job translates into insecurity about paying for rent or mortgage, utilities, child care, education, and food for the entire household. A 2018 Heldrich Center for Workforce Development report highlighted how some households rely on wages as their primary source of income more than others. This dependency on wages over other sources of income leads to a greater financial shock and slower recovery for those who lose their jobs.

The Heldrich Center is launching a new research series titled, Wages and Wealth in the Context of COVID-19. The new series explores the impact of the pandemic on New Jersey workers and households by different demographics. The first brief in the series, Loss of Work and Income Insecurity by Race and Ethnicity, by Meghna Hari and Stephanie Holcomb, focuses on differences in loss of income and employment by race and ethnicity to better understand how those in New Jersey are affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Key findings in the brief include:

Non-white households in New Jersey are more dependent on wages as a source of income than white households.
The share of non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic households that experienced work loss is higher than the share of non-Hispanic white households reported to experience work loss.
A higher share of Hispanic and non-Hispanic Black households expected imminent loss of income as compared to non-Hispanic white households.

Meghna Hari is a Research Project Manager and Stephanie Holcomb is a Research Project Coordinator, both at the Heldrich Center.

Tagline

New research brief examines differences in loss of income and employment by race and ethnicity to better understand how those in New Jersey are affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Work Trends Survey on Discrimination on the Job

admin — Mon, 26 Oct 2020 23:16:47 +0000

Work Trends Survey on Discrimination on the Job

Topic

workplace discrimination

admin Mon, 10/26/2020 - 23:16

Published Date

June 9, 2015

Status

Completed

Funded By

Private contributions to the Heldrich Center

Work Category

Projects

(OLD) Related Experts

Carl E. Van Hor

(OLD) Related Work

http://heldrich.rutgers.edu/node/642/edit?destination=admin/content

Featured Image

Excerpt

In 2002, the Heldrich Center conducted a survey of American workers on their views related to the contentious issue of discrimination in the workplace. The survey examined how workers perceive and experience discrimination, as well as what they expect government and employers to do about discrimination in the workplace. Survey respondents described two very different workplaces. Whites described a workplace where equitable treatment is accorded to all, few personally experience discrimination, and few offer support for policies to correct past discrimination. Non-whites described a workplace where the perception of unfair treatment is more pronounced, where many employment policies are perceived as unfair to African Americans, and where support for corrective action is high.

Product:

Workplace Divided: How Americans View Discrimination and Race on the Job (January 2002)

Tagline

Survey about Americans' views on workplace discrimination.

Wages & Wealth: A Data Story of Wage Share of Income for New Jersey Households

admin — Thu, 22 Oct 2020 15:18:19 +0000

Wages & Wealth: A Data Story of Wage Share of Income for New Jersey Households

Topic

U.S. Labor Market & Industry

admin Thu, 10/22/2020 - 15:18

Published Date

April 5, 2018

Type

Research Publications & Reports

Related Authors

Stephanie Walsh

Work Category

Research Products

Featured Image

Excerpt

Tagline

This data story analyzes what share of the households' income is from wages in order to understand how wages affect household incomes. Differences in income source by race of householder, total income, and other demographics are highlighted.

Male White-Black Wage Gaps, 1979-1994: A Distributional Analysis

admin — Thu, 22 Oct 2020 15:13:51 +0000

Male White-Black Wage Gaps, 1979-1994: A Distributional Analysis

Topic

U.S. Labor Market & Industry

Wages

race

admin Thu, 10/22/2020 - 15:13

Published Date

September 7, 2005

Type

Research Publications & Reports

Related Authors

William M. Rodgers III, Ph.D.

Work Category

Research Products

Attachments

WP_07.pdf (287.91 KB)

Featured Image

Excerpt

Examines whether the increased variance of wages in skill distribution during the 1980s explains the growth in within-group white-black wage gaps, develops a skill-specific decomposition that measures the variance’s contribution to the wage gap’s growth at various skill levels of the distribution, and shows that the wage distribution’s variance is an important contributor to the overall wage gap’s growth.

Tagline

Examines whether the increased variance of wages in skill distribution during the 1980s explains the growth in within-group white-black wage gaps.