A new report released is shedding light on the grim financial circumstances many Black women in the U.S. are facing due to workplace disparities.
As a result, Black women are forced to live check to check while carrying growing debt, including student loans and medical bills. Other disparities include access to quality, affordable childcare, lack of career advancement, and adequate health insurance, among many others.
The grim findings highlight the 42% of Black women who work full-time or part-time and say they lack opportunities for career advancement or promotion. This is compared to 35% of US adults who feel the same. While Black women have health insurance, only 43% receive it through their employer, in comparison to 53% of adults nationwide.
For Black women on the job search, 19% report childcare as a barrier affecting their job search while only 11% of US adults say the same. Despite the grim findings, 63% of Black women report optimism about their financial futures.
Goldman Sachs hopes the report will help spark systemic change and close the earnings gap for Black women. By seeing Black women grow financially, the US annual GDP could rise by as much as 2.1% each year and generate 1.2 to 1.7 million US jobs since Black women are the fastest-growing group of entrepreneurs in the country.
“Goldman Sachs research has shown that one of the fastest ways to accelerate change and effectively begin to address the racial wealth gap is to listen to and invest in Black women,” Asahi Pompey, Global Head of Corporate Engagement and President of the Goldman Sachs Foundation said.
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Source: Black Enterprise
