MyBlack^® Career

Pay gap persists for African-Americans

Source: CNN

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) African-American workers continue to earn far less than whites, according to statistics released by the U.S. Census Bureau.

Furthermore, little progress has been made over the years to close the income gap. At a per-capita income of $18,054 in 2008, African-American earnings were just 57.9% that of whites'' $28,502. That was a slight improvement over 2007 when black income was just 56.4%, but down from 2005, when it was 59.3%.

Those figures are averages and they can be skewed by the very high income of relatively few individuals. But even examining median incomes, the point in a population where half the people earn more and half less, which should shrink the difference because it gives no extra weight to inflated earners, the racial gap still exists.

According to the latest figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, whites earned a median of $756 weekly during the three months ended June 30, 25% more than blacks, who earned $607.

"There are, of course, individual cases where people can overcome the pay disparity, but unfortunately, we''re still seeing the trend," said Monique Morris, Vice President for Research and Advocacy for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Read Article