Latino workers earned 78 cents on the dollar compared to the national average over the past year. But they’re also making economic gains. That’s according to an analysis by Well Fargo Economics, unveiled last week by the Latin American Chamber of Commerce Charlotte.
Since the early days of the pandemic, February 2020, Latino employment in the U.S. has grown 7.4%. Analysts from Wells Fargo Economics say that compares to 1.1% for non-Latinos.
The growth has been propelled by Latino workers taking on essential and at times dangerous jobs, says Gris Bailey, president and CEO of the Latin American Chamber of Commerce Charlotte.
“During the pandemic, when a lot of people were not willing to work, Latinos really stepped up and many Latinos continued to work during the pandemic. And we were the most affected as well,” she said.
Bailey says that resilience has helped Latino workers make gains in their net worth over the past decades, despite lower average compensation.
The median Latino household held about $36,000 in net worth as of 2019, the most recent data year available. That’s an 80% increase from 2016. But it was still just one-fifth of the median net worth of white, non-Latino families.
Read the U.S. Economic Outlook Report's analysis on Latinos here.