| 
December, 2004
By Nancy
Mcardle
| The Metropolitan
Boston Equity Initiative is a yearlong effort investigating
racial change and the implications of such change for social
and economic opportunity within the region’s diverse population.
More in-depth research can be found at MBE's
web site. |
People of color make up a vital and growing part of
Metro Boston’s workforce. They face substantial challenges,
however, in obtaining employment (especially in faster-growing and
higher-paying sectors), in accessing locations of rapid job growth,
and in earning a livable income. Latinos and blacks face the greatest
hurdles, yet certain Asian populations struggle as well—especially
those with less education and those working in the shrinking manufacturing
sector or low-paying service jobs. Previous work by the Metro Boston
Equity Initiative of the Civil Rights Project at Harvard University
has examined the related challenges of segregated housing patterns
and unequal educational opportunities faced by racial and ethnic
minorities in Metro Boston. This paper takes the next logical step—exploring
how segregated living patterns result in limited minority access
to fast growing job areas and how unequal educational opportunities
and high drop-out rates handicap minorities in a labor market where
the gap between the economic returns to those with education and
skills and those without is widening.
Metro Boston’s workforce is becoming more racially
and ethnically diverse. Over the 1990s total employment growth was
just 4%, but the number of Latino workers grew by over 50%, and
the number of Asian workers grew by more than 70%. At the same time,
the number of white workers declined slightly. Foreign immigration
is the main driver behind minority employment growth. As of 2000,
over 80% of employed Asian workers and over half of Latino workers
were immigrants. Nevertheless, the Metro Boston workforce remains
overwhelmingly (85%) white--the third whitest workforce among large
metro areas. If current trends continue, the Metro Boston workforce
will be about three quarters white by 2020, roughly matching the
composition of today’s entry-level workforce (age 20-30.)
However, given the movement of the large, mostly white baby-boom
generation toward retirement ages, it is likely that the future
workforce will be even less white than current trends suggest.
Consistent with national spatial patterns, job growth
continues to move outward, away from the areas of greatest minority
population growth. The large majority (71%) of Metro Boston’s
net job growth over the 1990s occurred in the outer suburbs (suburban
areas beyond Route 128.) While all of net white population growth
occurred in these outer areas, only 18% of Latino, 24% of black,
and 30% of net Asian population growth occurred there. In contrast,
only 4% of Metro Boston’s net job growth took place in the
urbanized satellite cities (places such as Lowell, Lawrence, Brockton,
and New Bedford), but 56% of Latino, 48% of black, and 33% of Asian
net population growth occurred there. While people of color are
finding jobs in suburban locations to a greater degree than in the
past, if current trends persist, minority residential patterns and
the geography of job growth will continue to diverge.
The spatial mismatch between where people of color
live and where jobs are growing fastest makes access to transportation
especially important in gaining and maintaining employment. Generally
speaking, the ability to work in the outer suburbs depends on access
to a reliable car. Yet, people of color are much less likely than
whites to live in a household with a vehicle available. Almost a
third of black and Latino and a fifth of Asian households have no
vehicle access, versus 11% of white ones. Even in the suburbs, 1
in 7 black and 1 in 6 Latino households lack vehicle access. People
of color, and blacks especially, are much more reliant on public
transportation as a means of commuting to work than are whites.
This pattern is partially explained by the much greater concentration
of blacks in the City of Boston, where public transportation is
most accessible. Yet, the disparity prevails within geographic sub-regions
as well, particularly in the suburbs. Even in the outer suburbs,
about 12% of black workers and 7% of Asian workers rely on public
transportation for their commute, compared to 4% of whites. Roughly
10% of suburban Latinos rely on public transportation. Relative
to other groups, suburban Latinos disproportionately rely on carpooling,
as do those Latinos living in the urbanized satellite cities.
Metro Boston’s employment base is shifting not only in terms
of location, but also in terms of occupation—a shift primarily
from manufacturing to services. Over the 1990s, almost 72,000 manufacturing
jobs were lost--close to one sixth of all manufacturing jobs in the
metro. The majority (58%) of these losses occurred in the urbanized
satellite cities, which lost close to a third of their manufacturing
base. In almost all locations, the service sector added the most jobs
and grew at the fastest rate (34%). The loss of manufacturing and
production jobs is especially problematic for Latinos. As of 2000,
Latinos were twice as likely as the general population to work in
the production, transportation, and material moving occupations, occupations
that generally require less English language fluency. Unlike most
Asians, blacks and Latinos are over-represented in lower-paying service
jobs, relative to their share of the total workforce, and greatly
under-represented in professional and technical jobs. Thus, as of
2003, Latinos had the highest rates of poverty in Metro Boston (27%
vs. 6% for the non-Latino white population.)
People of color are more disconnected from the workforce and from
education than are whites. Unemployment rates for Metro Boston’s
blacks and Latinos are well over twice as high as for whites. Particularly
troubling are the relatively high shares of Latino young people
who have no high school diploma, yet are neither enrolled in school
nor working. Over ten percent of Latinos ages 16-19 fall into this
category--almost 12 percent in the satellite cities. High school
graduates have lower unemployment rates for all racial groups, and
a diploma is essential as a gateway to higher education. For example,
the unemployment rate of young (aged 25-44) black men without a
diploma in 2000 was 13.5%. That rate dropped to 9.7% for high school
graduates and 3.5% for those with post-secondary education. Similarly,
Latino women without a diploma earned $18,000 per year in Metro
Boston in 1999 while those with a diploma alone earned $20,000 and
those with further education earned $28,000 annually. As the economy
increasingly rewards workers with higher skills, college is even
more crucial to earning a livable income. Relatively high levels
of dropping out put minority youth at risk of criminal activity
and imprisonment, and having a criminal record is increasingly a
barrier to employment.
Employment discrimination, while less blatant than
in the past, and the perception of discrimination also still remain
as significant barriers for workers of color. A recent poll of 400
blacks and Latinos in Metro Boston commissioned by the Harvard Civil
Rights Project revealed that over one in five African Americans
(21%) and one in six (17%) Latinos reported that they were discriminated
against at work during the past year because of their race/ethnicity.
Almost a third of blacks (31%) and 15% of Latinos reported that
they were denied a job they applied for in Metro Boston over the
past decade because of their race or ethnicity.
After more than three years of sputtering, the employment
outlook in Massachusetts is once again brightening, and it is likely
that minority populations will continue to account for the vast
majority of labor force growth. Lowering the hurdles that loom for
these workers will benefit not only their families and communities
but the Metro Boston economic engine as well. Specifically, to promote
equity and opportunity for workers of color in Metro Boston we need
to:
Reduce barriers that keep people of color
from living in job growth areas
- Produce more affordable housing in outlying, high employment
growth areas.
- Provide information about non-traditional destinations to homeseekers
of color and increase the number and reach of realtors who work
with minorities.
- Vigorously enforce Fair Housing laws, with monies allocated
for fair housing testing and education.
Develop employment opportunities where workers
of color already live
- Develop good-paying jobs in more urbanized areas, particularly
many of the satellite cities that have experienced the greatest
job losses.
- Take advantage of the existing workforce, reduce traffic congestion
and its associated environmental impacts by creating more centralized
jobs as a critical component of any “smart growth”
strategy.
Facilitate transportation to job sites for
workers who live at a distance
- Whether through fixed route services or, more flexibly, subscription
taxi, van services, or short term rentals--the public sector,
employers, and non-profits must continue to strive to connect
people with employment opportunities.
Promote quality education, foster inter-racial
contact in schools, and retrain workers in some manufacturing sectors
- Closing the achievement gap will likely take a multi-pronged
effort including more equitable funding, early childhood intervention,
smaller classes, and greater parent involvement. However, the
substantial segregation of students of color in concentrated poverty
schools must also be challenged. Many students of color are segregated
into high-poverty schools that have trouble obtaining the best
teachers, have less challenging curriculum, and have higher drop-out
rates.
- As society becomes more multi-racial, the ability to
interact successfully with co-workers and clients of different
backgrounds becomes more important. Plans that facilitate integration,
such as METCO, are needed to encourage interaction between youth
of different races, leading to more successful and harmonious
workplaces.
- Given the importance of immigrants to the metro’s
workforce, it is necessary to increase funding and reduce waiting
lists for English, literacy, and GED training, and workforce development.
- Support retraining for those in shrinking manufacturing
sectors, either into higher-skilled technology manufacturing or
more skilled services.
Actively support workers of color and challenge
workplace discrimination
- Encourage programs, such as those run by The Partnership, that
support professionals of color.
- Enforce fair employment laws to fight employment discrimination
and unfair labor practices.
To view
the COMPLETE REPORT and study conducted
by The Civil Rights Project go to:
Racial Equity and
Opportunity in Metro Boston Job Markets (in PDF Format) 
Issue
Summary (in PDF Format)
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