Blacks and Hispanics in the Workplace: The Racial Pay Gap In this paper, we plan to focus specifically on the presence of Latino/Hispanic and Black minority groups in the workforce, and the differential treatment they have received in the past or are presently receiving. Minorities, such as Hispanics and Black have played important roles in the nation's workforce throughout history. Despite their contributions, they have almost always received differential treatment. Throughout this paper, we seek to explore the treatment of these minorities, past and present, identify some of the causes of this unequal treatment and also help define their roles in the workforce. To do so we must first define each of these minority groups. According to …show more content…
In the past, as well as in present day, they experienced many difficulties. Problems such as segregation from the dominant group, hate crimes and more. For example, when the "down low discourse" first appeared Black men were scapegoated without any real evidence to support the claim (Phillips, 2005). This reaction was an indicator of the hostile environment of this time period. Black and Hispanics were treated like second class citizens, without any remorse from their suppressors. Black men were segregated from the White community using various methods such as poll taxes, separating the facilities that they use and the way that they interact with them. At one point segregation was so severe that middle-class Black men were "relegated to a separate and marginalized economy" where Black businesses served Black communities exclusively (Collins, 1989). In this economy, a Black man could purchase items from a White man, however, a White man would not buy goods from a Black store owner. The White men believed that they had the responsibility to make it clear that the Black were not their equals, and did not have the right to sell them any …show more content…
But still it lingers in the depths our society. Flint Michigan, a predominantly Black community, is a prevalent example of Neoliberalism putting property over the lives of others. The ongoing water crisis, and the events that led to it are prime examples of neoliberalism to an extreme degree. Due to the Flint economic crisis, emergency managers were put in place to ensure the safety of the people. Individuals who were not voted for by the people of Flint took control and focused far more on their personal interests of making money than helping the people of Flint. In an effort to save money and make business deals the water source was switched from the Detroit River to the polluted Flint River. A river that in earlier years had been polluted by individuals who were more focused on creating products and making money than caring for the well-being of the environment or the local people in the area. Those individuals would show a similar lack of concern for the well-being of others by leaving Flint in the 1980’s, leaving only 10% of its previous workforce employed. The polluted river remains a problem today. The continued lack of sanctity of human life is further shown when, after health concerns were first raised, the emergency managers declined the Detroit River’s offer to reconnect the
He whites-only that a group would put another group down to increase their self-image. This kind of thinking was enforced by the Jim Crow laws. The separation of the two groups made it so people would see each other as lesser, allowing more Jim Crow laws to be put in place. During the Jim Crow era, many activist fought against these laws. Although the activists had a variety of jobs, many of the activists were teachers or scholars.
The Flint water crisis has been a well known life-threatening issue for nearly three years, and yet has still not been solved. The problem began in April, 2014, when the city of Flint, Michigan switched their water supply to the Flint River in order to save money. Almost immediately after the switch of water source, residents complained about the quality of water, while city and state officials denied the possibility of an issue for months. As time went by, the supply pipes had corroded and lead began making its way into the water supply, potentially endangering the Flint population, as high blood lead levels are especially harmful to children and pregnant women, and can cause “learning disabilities, behavioral problems, and mental retardation,”
Both the state and federal governments have just declared a state of emergency for Flint, Michigan, yet (“even though” instead of “yet”?) the people of Flint have been without clean drinking water since 2014. After switching the city’s drinking water supply from Detroit’s water to the Flint river, lead infected the water that Flint’s residents rely on due to aging water pipes and polluted river water. This water crisis has not received the attention it requires. In order to solve this problem, it is important to understand how this problem started, how people are impacted day to day, and the long term consequences of this crisis.
In addition, “Even so, they faced physical and verbal abuse from their white peers (source B).” This shows that the great influence of racial segregation could
Even though slavery was over, there was still racial tensions across the country, highly, and African Americans continued experience oppression (Source 1). Oppression meaning being subjected to unfair treatment (Source 1). With this mind, African Americans were unfairly even though before they were used, bought and also sold before this. ”The Supreme Court had given segregation a legal “okay” and many states took advantage of this” (Source 1). With this happening, it was very prevalent in the South.
Even though some got away your owner you catch you and bring you back. You had to work out on searing hot days. If you don’t work you don’t get paid and you get beaten. Blacks and whites were paid different white got more blacks got less. No matter how hard blacks worked white still got more.
The blacks did not receive the same luxuries as the whites did. For instance, the colored received less than stellar entertainment where as the whites were able to get anything they wanted, “There, instead of houses and trees, there were fishing wharves, boat docks, nightclubs, and restaurants for whites. There were one or two nightclubs for colored, but they were not very good” (Gaines 25). It was unjust to the blacks that they could not enjoy themselves as much as the whites because of their skin color.
Education, wealth and assets, and labor and market opportunities has always been unequally divided between Caucasian and African Americans. African Americans do not amass huge sums of money, they own less property and receive unequal educational opportunities. These disparities have landed African Americans in the low socio-economic class. Trying to narrow the economic gap between White and Black Americans, policies such as the Elementary and Secondary Education Act and Welfare Policies were implemented. This essay will highlight how education, wealth and assets and labor market opportunities contribute to the economic gap in America.
Racial issues are sometimes dismissed as history; they are thought of as issues of the past. People sometimes believe that since the government preaches equality, that most racial issues are resolved. This is not the case in today’s society, as racial issues are still prevalent in everyday life. Not only facing discriminatory practices in the job market, minorities face racism in many different aspects of everyday life. In the world we live in today, people tend to judge a whole group of people based on the actions of only a few.
A hispanic female earns roughly 54 cents for every dollar earned by a white. This accounts for a loss of almost $24,000 in a year’s time. In 2012 the jobless rate was 10.3% for hispanics. This is one of the many reasons that a hispanic person has been discriminated at work. A hispanic not only get discriminated in their workplace
Only 75 percent of blacks have received post-high school education, compared to 85 percent of whites. Not surprisingly, blacks on average also make less money than whites” (Philip M. Deutsch). It’s unjust that people of color are treated as inferior to white people, and it is that kind of social issue that interferes with the liberties of all Americans of
Gender Pay Gap The wage gap disparity against women and racial groups is extremely important to acknowledge because it is a violation of equal rights. Not only unequal pay disparity against women is discrimination, but it also discriminatory based on race. The pay gap also affects the economy and society. How does unequal gender pay affect society, women would not feel discriminate and the economy will be better. Poverty levels for all working women would be cut in half, falling from 8.0 percent to 3.8 percent (Institute for Women’s Policy Research).
Women in Australia are also faced with inequality in the workplace, particularly regarding unequal pay. Although the principle of equal pay was granted to women in 1969, full-time working women continue to suffer an apparent decreased wage in comparison to men, with the average gender pay gap at 2015 being 24% or $27 254 per year . As instigated by Fair Work Australia, gender pay equity is when ‘men and women receive equal pay for work of equal or comparable value,’ ideally meaning that employers should ensure uniform pay for equal work. However, this inequality continues to impact women. The discrimination inflicted upon women can be attributed to a number of factors, however primarily to the continued societal stereotypes governing the role of women and how they are expected to engage in the workplace.
These places are considered majority-minority populations. However, the definition of majority does not depend on a numerical value, but rather differences in prestige, income, and power. Minority groups are individuals with less power, wealth, and prestige, and the majority groups are those with more of each category. These classifications case prejudice and discrimination, which negatively effect individuals in minority groups.
“The income of female workers across the world will lag behind men’s for another 70 years if the gender pay gap continues to reduce at the present painfully slow rate”. (Topping, 2015) Today, several complex factors cause disproportional wages between men and women. Mostly women are disadvantaged in this pay gap, which continues to show the discrimination against women in the workplace. The exact percentage of difference of wage varies throughout Europe and mainly deviates from sector to sector.