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L 3<o . I \4/'3: 9'1 - &) Facts onWorl(ing Women ST. LOUIS COUNTY LIBRARY DEPOSITORY U.S. Department of Labor Women 's Bureau APR 1 6 1997 0336A No. 97-2 February 1997 WOMEN OF HISPANIC ORIGIN IN THE LABOR FORCE Women of Hispanic origin 1 are one of the fastest growing population groups in the nation. In 1986, here were 6.2 million Hispanic women age 16 years and over in the United States. By the end of 1-996, there were 9.6 million (see Table 1). The largest subgroup continues to be women of Mexican origin (5. 7 million), followed by women of Puerto Rican origin (1. 1 million), and women of Cuban origin (485,000). The remaining 2.3 million were of other Spanish descent. 2 Between 1986 and 1996, Hispanic women's population increased by 54.1 percent, compared with 18.1 percent for black women and 7.1 percent for white women. During this period, Mexican women recorded a population gain of 2.1 million--the largest among all Hispanic origin women, while Puerto Rican and Cuban women experienced gains of 264,000 and 65,000, respectively. When looking at the three major groups of Hispanic women, only Puerto Rican women outnumbered their male counterparts in 1996. There were 1. 1 million women compared with 809,000 men. Table 1 Population of Hispanic Origin Women 16 Years and Older, 1986 and 1996 (numbers in thousands) All Hispanic Women Mexican women Puerto Rican women Cuban women Other Spanish decent 1986 1996 Change 1986-1996 Percent Change 6,238 3,605 829 420 1,384 9,610 5,704 1,093 485 2,328 3,372 2,099 264 65 944 54.1 58.2 31.8 15.5 68.2 Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment and Earnings, January 1987 and 1997. 1 Hispanic origin refers to all persons who identify themselves as Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central American , or other Hispanic origin. Persons of Hispanic Origin can be of any race. 2 Includes persons of Central or South American and of other Hispanic origin . https://fraser.stlouisfed.org Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Figure 1 Percentage Distribution of Hispanic Origin Women, 1986 and 1996 While all groups of Hispanic women experienced population gains between 1986 and 1996, only Mexican women increased their share of the total population (see Figure 1). 57.8% 59.4% Hispanics, as a group, are younger than all other ethnic 6.7% 5.0% groups--10 years younger than non-Hispanics. The median 1986 1996 age for Hispanic women in ■ Mexican □ Puerto Rican ■ Cuban ■ other 1996 was 26. 8 years compared U.S. Department of labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics with 27. 7 years for American Indian women, 30. 9 years for black women, 31.6 years for Asian and Pacific Islander women, and 37.9 years for white women. I I LABOR FORCE PARTICIPATION--Of the 61.9 million women in the civilian labor force in 1996, 4.9 million (8.3 percent) were of Hispanic origin. The labor force participation rate for Cuban women was 53.3 percent; for Mexican women, 52.8 percent; and for Puerto Rican women, 47.4 percent. Cuban women have had participation rates above 50 percent throughout the 1980s and 1990s, except in 1993 when their rate dropped to 47.9 percent. Since the mid-1980s, Mexican origin women have participated at or above the 50 percent level. Puerto Rican origin women continue to participate at a rate less than 50 percent (see Table 2). Their lower participation rate can be partially attributed to their younger ages, fewer years of education, and a greater number of dependent children to rear than women of the other Hispanic groups. During the recession of 1990 and 1991, labor force participation rates for most women remained steady or displayed a slight drop (see Table 2). Post-recession participation rates have shown a slow but steady rise for all women. Hispanic women continue to have lower participation rates than white and black women (see Table 2). When viewed collectively, however, Hispanic women and men participated in the labor force nearly at nearly the same rate as whites (66.5 percent compared to 67 .2 percent) and at a higher rate than blacks--(66.5 percent compared to 64.1 percent). This was possible because Hispanic men had noticeably higher participation rates than white or black men--79.6 percent as compared with 75.8 percent for white men and 68. 7 percent for black men in 1996. 2 https://fraser.stlouisfed.org Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Table 2 Labor Force Participation Rates of Hispanic, White, and Black Women, Selected Years Women 1986 1990 1991 1992 1996 All Women Hispanic Mexican Puerto Rican Cuban 55.3 50.1 50.5 38.1 56.9 57.5 53.0 52.8 42.8 55.9 57.4 52.3 51.5 45.9 52.8 57.8 52.6 52.1 47.1 50.3 59.3 53.4 52.8 48.5 53.3 55.1 56.9 57.5 57.8 57.4 57.0 57.8 58.0 59.1 60.4 White Black Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment and Earnings, January 1987, 1992, 1993, and 1997. Teenage Hispanic origin women (16-19 years of age) accounted for only eight percent of the total female Hispanic labor force, however, they represented 17 percent of all unemployed Hispanic women and 13 percent of those not in the labor force. They also participated in the job market at a lower rate than their white counterparts--36.5 percent compared with 54. 7 percent. Teenage Hispanic and black women have very similar participation rates--36.5 percent and 38.9 percent, respectively. The Bureau of Labor Statistics has projected that the female Hispanic labor force should grow from 4.8 million in 1994 to about 6.9 million in 2005 and that their labor force participation rate will be 53. 6 percent. This 43 percent increase will be the greatest among all other groups of women or men, excluding Asian and Pacific Islander women, whose percentage increase will be about 45 percent. The number of Hispanic women outside the labor force has been increasing steadily over the past decade at a rate of about 137,000 women per year. Even though slightly more than half--5.1 million out of 9.6 million--Hispanic women were either working or looking for work 1996, a very large number~-4.5 million--were not in the labor force. Any person not in the labor force is classified as keeping house, going to school, unable to work, or not in the labor force for other reasons. 3 https://fraser.stlouisfed.org Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Table 3 Employment Status of Hispanic Women, 16 Years of Age and Over, 1996 Annual Averages (numbers in thousands) Civilian noninstitutional population Civilian labor force Percent of population Employed Unemployed Unemployment rate Not in labor force All Hispanic Women 1 Mexican Origin Women Puerto Rican Origin Women 9,610 5,128 53.4 4,602 525 10.2 4,482 5,704 3,011 52.8 2,680 331 11.0 2,693 1,093 529 48.5 472 57 10.8 563 Cuban Origin Women 485 259 53.3 237 22 8.3 226 1 Includes persons of Central or South American origin and of other Hispanic origin, not shown separate!y. Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment and Earnings, January 1997. EMPLOYMENT AND UNEMPLOYMENT--Hispanic women are one of the fastest growing groups of working women in the United States. Their total employment increased 65 percent over the past ten years--from 2.8 million in 1986 to 4.6 million in 1996. Of this 4.6 million, 2.6 million were of Mexican descent; 472,000 were of Puerto Rican origin; 237,000 were of Cuban origin; and the remaining 1.2 million were of various Central or South American origin. Unlike their black and white counterparts, Hispanic women did not experience the small downturn in total employment during the recession period between 1990 and 1991--a result of their occupational distribution. Just as in 1991, two thirds of employed Hispanic women worked in technical, sales, and administrative support jobs (39 percent) and in service occupations (26 percent)--occupations that tend to suffer the least during economic downturns. Their employment numbers actually rose each year between 1986 and 1996. Double digit unemployment continued to plague Mexican and Puerto Rican women in 1996--11. 0 percent for Mexican women and 10.8 percent for Puerto Rican. Cuban women, who generally have higher educational attainment than their Hispanic female counterparts and are typically older, had a lower unemployment rate--8.3 percent in 1996. 4 https://fraser.stlouisfed.org Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis The unemployment rate for teenage Hispanic women was 25.1 percent in 1996. Contributing to the high unemployment rate for Hispanic teenagers--female, as well as male--is their higher high school dropout rate. In addition, many may have trouble communicating in English. OCCUPATIONS--In 1996, 4.6 million Hispanic women were job holders. Just as with black women, the largest share were employed in the technical, sales, and administrative support (TSAS) and service (SERV) occupations. Large numbers of white women worked in TSAS jobs, but contrary to Hispanic and black women, white women were more likely to work in managerial and professional jobs. Figure 2 Occupational Distribution of Employed Hispanic and Non-Hispanic Women, 1996 1.9% 25.0% 1.2% 7.5% 2.0% 41.5% 2.9% 17.5% Hispanic Women Non-Hispanic Women ■ Mgt/Prof. Specialty □ TSAS ■ Service ■ Craft and Repair II Oper/Fab/Labs 8 Farm/Forest/Fishing U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics In 1996, half of the ten leading occupations of Hispanic women were in sales and .administrative support, while the remaining were service jobs, excluding managers and administrators, not elsewhere cited and textile sewing machine operators (see Table 4 and Table 5). These two occupational groups accounted for nearly two-thirds of total employment for Hispanic origin women. Most jobs in these categories require few skills, little training, and offer low wages. According to Bureau of Labor Statistics projections, secretaries, cashiers, and retail/personal services workers are among the occupations projected to experience large job growth between 1994 and 2005. Hispanic and non-Hispanic women employed as full-time wage and salary workers in these occupations, however, had median weekly earnings of only $240-$406 in 1996. Here is a brief list of occupations projected to experience abundant employment opportunities through the year 2005 and that had median weekly earnings over $400 in 1996--registered nurses; systems analysts; elementary and secondary school teachers; social workers; lawyers; and financial managers. 5 https://fraser.stlouisfed.org Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Table 4 Occupational Distribution of Employed Hispanic, White, and Black Women, 1996 Occupational Group Total Management and professional specialty Technical, sales and administrative support Service Precision, production, craft, and repair Operators, fabricators, and laborers Farming, forestry, and fishing Hispanic Women White Women Black Women 100.0% 100.0% 100.0% 17.4 31.5 22.8 38.4 25.0 41.9 16.3 38.4 25.4 2.9 2.0 2.2 14.3 6.9 11.0 1.9 1.3 0.2 Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment and Earnings, January 1996 and unpublished tabulations from the Current Population Survey, 1996 Annual Averages. Table 5 10 Leading Occupations of Hispanic Origin Women, 1996 (numbers in thousands) Occupations Number Employed 1. Cashiers* (TSAS) 222 2. Secretaries* (TSAS) 189 3. Sales workers, retail and personal services (TSAS)* 165 4. Janitors and cleaners* (SER V) 142 5. Nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants* (SERV) 123 6. Textile sewing machine operators 116 7. Cleaners and servants, private household (SERV) 100 7 Cooks (SERV) 100 8. Managers and administrators, n.e.c. 93 9. Sales supervisors and proprietors (TSAS) 90 10. Bookkeepers, accounting and auditing clerks (TSAS) 84 * Occupation projected to have large job growth. n.e.c. not elsewhere classified. Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. 6 https://fraser.stlouisfed.org Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis EARNINGS AND INCOME--Earnings include total money wages or salary received for work performed as an employee. Hispanic women who worked year-round, full-time had median earnings of $17,178 in 1995--84 percent of what their male counterparts earned ($20,379); 83 percent of what black women earned ($20,665); and 75 percent of what white women earned ($22,911). lncome is the sum of earnings plus the amounts received from wages and salaries, self-employment income (including losses), social security, supplemental security income, public assistance, interest, dividends, rent, royalties, estates, trusts, veteran's payments, unemployment and worker's compensation, retirement and disability pensions, alimony, child support, and any other source of money income that is regularly received. Hispanic women who worked year-round, full-time had a median income of $17,855 in 1995--87 percent of what their male counterparts earned ($20,553); 85 percent of what black women earned ($21,079); and 74 percent of what white women earned ($24,264). EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT--In 1996, 46 percent of all Hispanic women age 25 and older had less than a high school diploma. Twenty-seven percent were high school graduates, with no college; 13 percent had some college, but no degree; 9 percent were college graduates; and 5 percent had associate degrees. Since nearly half of all Hispanic women do not have a high school diploma, this helps explain their concentration in sales, administrative support, and service jobs and their low median annual earnings (See previous sections on Occupations and Earnings and Income). Of all Hispanic women age 25 and over who were labor force participants in 1996, 32 percent had less than a high school diploma; 31 percent were high school graduates with no college; 17 percent had some college but no degree; 8 percent had an associate's degree; and the remaining 12 percent were college graduates. For Hispanic women, as for all women, with higher educational attainment, labor force participation rises and unemployment decreases. In 1996, Hispanic women who had less than a high school diploma participated at a rate of 38 percent; high school graduates, with no college, 62.8 percent; and college graduates, 75. 6 percent. Hispanic women with less than a high school diploma had an unemployment rate of 13 .4 percent; high school graduates, with no college, 7 percent; and college graduates, 4.2 percent. FAMILIES MAINTAINED BY WOMEN--Of the 12.2 million families maintained by women in the U.S. in ·1995, 1.5 million (12.2 percent) were Hispanic. Between 1985 and 1995, the number of Hispanic families maintained by women grew from 905,000 to 1.5 million--a 64 percent increase. Women maintained a quarter of all Hispanic families (1,485,000 out of 6,200,000). The average size of Hispanic families maintained by women was between three to four persons. Of all family types, those maintained by women had the lowest median income. In 1995, the median income for Hispanic families maintained by women with no husband present was only $13,474; for !'amilies with a male householder and no wife present, $22,257; and for married-couple families, $29,861. Families maintained by Hispanic women had lower median incomes than similar black and white families--$13,474 as compared with $15,004, and $22,068, respectively. 7 https://fraser.stlouisfed.org Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR WOMEN'S BUREAU REGIONAL OFFICES Region I: Boston Ms. Jacqueline Cooke, RA John F. Kennedy Federal Building Room E-270 Boston, MA 02230 Phone: (617) 565-1988 Fax: (617) 565-1986 (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont) Region VI: Dallas Ms. Nancy Chen, RA Federal Bldg., Suite 735 5 25 Griffin Street Dallas, TX 75202 Phone: (214) 767-6985 Fax: (214) 767-5418 (Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas) Region II: New York City Ms. Mary C. Murphree, RA 201 Varick Street, 601 New York, NY 10014-4811 Phone: (212) 337-2389 Fax: (212) 337-2394 (New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands) Region VII: Kansas City Ms. Rose Kemp, RA Center City Sq. Building 1100 Main St., Suite 1230 Kansas City, MO 64105 Phone: (816) 426-6108 1-800-252-4706 Fax: (816) 426-6107 (Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska) Region III: Philadelphia Ms. Cornelia Moore, RA Gateway Building, Room 2450 3 5 35 Market Street Philadelphia, PA 19104 Phone: (215) 596-1183 1-800-379-9042 Fax: (215 ) 596-0753 (Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia) Region VIII: Denver Ms. Oleta Crain, RA 1801 California Street, 905 Denver, CO 80202-2614 Phone: (303) 391-6756 1-800-299-0886 Fax: (303) 391-6752 (Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming) Region IV: Atlanta Ms. Delores L. Crockett, Field Coordinator Atlanta Federal Center, Suite 7T95 61 Forsyth Street, SW Atlanta, GA 30303 Phone: (404) 562-2336 Fax: (404) 562-2413 (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee) Region TX: San Francisco Ms. Barbara Sanford, Acting RA 71 Stevenson Street, Suite 927 San Francisco, CA 94105 Phone: (415) 975-4750 Fax: (415) 975-4753 (Arizona, California, Guam, Hawaii, North Nevada) Region V: Chicago Ms. Delores L. Crockett, Acting RA 230 S. Dearborn Street, Room l 022 Chicago, IL 60604 Phone: (312) 353-6985 l-800-648-8183 Fax: (312) 353-6986 (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin) Region X: Seattle Ms. Karen Furia, RA 1111 Third A venue, Room 885 Seattle, WA 98101-3211 Phone: (206) 553-1534 Fax: (206) 553-5085 (Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington) https://fraser.stlouisfed.org Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
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