Equal Opportunity and Latinos - Fact Sheet
Americans for a Fair Chance - January 1, 2004
Equal opportunity is a tool to provide qualified individuals with equal access to opportunities. Equal opportunity programs, including recruitment, outreach, and training initiatives, have played a critical role in providing Latinos with access to educational and professional opportunities they would otherwise have been denied despite their strong qualifications.
Although progress has been made over the last 30 years, ensuring equal opportunity for Latinos remains an elusive goal. Continued use of equal opportunity is necessary to help break down barriers to opportunity and ensure that all Americans have a fair chance to demonstrate their talents and abilities. Consider the following facts:
Pay Inequity
- While the wage disparity has decreased since the passage of the 1963 Equal Pay Act, the statistics are still bleak. Today, Hispanic women still earn only 52 cents to every dollar earned by their white female counterparts. (U.S. Census Bureau, 2000)
- Hispanic men earn only 63 cents to every dollar earned by their white male counterparts. (U.S. Census Bureau, 2000)
Obstacles to Advancement
- Since 1990, the white-collar employment gap between Latinos and other groups has widened. From 1990-2000, the percentage of workers who were managers or professionals increased from 29 percent to 33 percent for whites, from 16 percent to 22 percent for blacks, and from 13 percent to 14 percent for Hispanics. (Population Reference Bureau, 2000)
- Latino workers are more likely than their black or white counterparts to earn low incomes and be poor. The median income for Hispanic workers in 2001 was $19,651. For white and black workers, it was $30,622 and $23,453, respectively. Also, compared to poverty rates for white workers (four percent), the rate of poverty for Hispanic workers was 10.4 percent. (U.S. Census Bureau, 2000)
- While the number of corporate board seats occupied by Latinos increased in 2000, of the total places at Fortune 1000 boardroom tables, Latinos held only 1.7 percent. ("2001 Corporate Governance Study," Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility)
Although equal opportunity programs aiming to recruit Latinos have resulted in the educational advancement of an increasing number of Latinos, they still lag far behind whites and other ethnic groups in access to many educational areas and opportunities beyond education.
- Although an increasing number of Hispanics are earning degrees at different levels of higher education - 11.1 percent increase for associate degrees, 3.6 percent increase for bachelor's degrees, and 11.9 percent increase for master's degrees - the overall enrollment of Hispanics in institutions of higher education are still low. In fact, high school completion rates from 1998 to 2000 for Hispanics 18- to 24-years-old (59.4 percent) were considerably lower than both African Americans (75.5 percent) and whites (87.0 percent). (Twentieth Annual Status Report on Minorities in Higher Education, American Council on Education, 2003)
- Although there has been an overall increase of Hispanic enrollment at institutions of higher education, this increase is reflected primarily in two-year institutions that award associate degrees. U.S. Census data indicate, further, that the income of associate degree holders is far less than their counterparts; associate degree holders earning only 73.2 percent of bachelor's degree holders and 61.3 percent of master's degree holders. ("The Big Payoff: Educational Attainment and Synthetic Estimates of Work-Life Earnings," Current Population Reports, U.S. Census Bureau, 2002)
- In the absence of equal opportunity in California, Latinos experienced a decline in enrollment at institutions of higher education. For example, after Proposition 209 was enacted in 1996, the rate of Latinos at the University of California at Berkeley and the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) fell precipitously. At UC Berkeley, new Latino enrollees fell 14.5 percent in 1997 to 7.5 percent in 1998. At UCLA, the rate of Latino enrollees fell from 15.8 percent in 1997 to 11 percent in 1998. ("Percent Plans in College Admissions: A Comparative Analysis of Three States' Experiences," The Civil Rights Project, Harvard University at 50, February 2003)
Equal opportunity has helped Latinos in the workforce, allowing them greater access to higher-paying jobs and new employment fields. Limitations, however, still remain.
- Latino employment grew 5.1 percent in 1999, faster than other major racial and ethnic groups. (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2000)
- Latinos were a major factor in the U.S. economy's recent success. In 1999, the unemployment rate for Latinos fell from 6.7 percent to 5.8 percent, the lowest since the Labor Department began calculating it in 1973. The nation's unemployment rate fell to a 29-year low of 4.2 percent in March 2000, with Latinos among the groups registering the most dramatic improvement. (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2000)
- Latinos are underrepresented as Federal employees, representing 6.6 percent (98,667) of the permanent federal workforce as of September 2000, compared to 11.8 percent in the civilian labor force. ("Annual Report to Congress," Federal Equal Opportunity Recruitment Program, 2000)
- Latinos are more likely than whites or Asians to work in lower-paying, semi-skilled jobs or as service workers. The share of U.S. workers in farming, fishing, or forestry is greatest among Latinos, reflecting the large number of Latinos who work in agriculture. (Population Reference Bureau, 2000)
