Santiago Solutions Group analysis of the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that all race/ethnic segments for unemployment in April 2023 are lower than even pre-pandemic 2019 April levels. According to NPR, these low unemployment rates are a wonderful surprise considering high-interest rates and the current fragility of the banking sector. In the last 4 years, the employment growth has been entirely led by multicultural segments with a net growth of the employed population of 4 million.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, online LABSTAT database, Average monthly employment statistics: Pop employed 16+ (Unadj.)
The share of labor force participation by racial/ethnic segments, from 2019 to 2023, clearly echoes the changes in population reflected in the last census. Multicultural segments have increased their share (+2.4) of the labor force while the share of jobs for Non-Hispanic Whites in the workforce decreases by the same (-2.4). Hispanics contributed the largest share of the labor force at 1.3% followed by Blacks with 0.6% and Asians with 0.4% points.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, online LABSTAT database, Average monthly employment statistics: Pop employed 16+ (Unadj.)
Hispanics have generated the highest number of new jobs over the past 4 years at 2.8 million and account for half of the share of all new workforce jobs since 2019. Blacks have added 1.4 million or 25% of the share of new jobs in the same period. Asians with 1.2 million or 18% of the share of new jobs. The White Non-Hispanic segment has not been a source of new jobs losing 1.2 million jobs in the workforce since 2019.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, online LABSTAT database, Average monthly employment statistics: Pop employed 16+ (Unadj.)
This aligns with the growing diversity in consumer buying power shown by the University of Georgia Selig Center for Economic Growth. These are strong indicators that multicultural segments are growing, and marketers should allocate resources accordingly to avoid missing out on this growing slice of the consumer pie. The culture experts at Santiago Solutions Group can guide marketers to better understand the values and drivers of each target segment, through comprehensive quantitative and qualitative analysis, persona profiles, and more strategic offerings.