Moving up, but How Far? African American Women and Economic Restructuring in Los Angeles, 1970–1990

Abstract

In this article we use 1970 to 1990 Public Use Microdata Samples (PUMS) to examine patterns associated with African American women's economic and labor market integration in Los Angeles. We examine key indicators of overall economic restructuring in Los Angeles, such as patterns of industrial growth and decline during the period in question. Wefocus primarily onfour specific labor market characteristics: changes in industrial characteristics of Los Angeles, changing occupational distribution, changes in earnings, and employment patterns among African American women. Although we focus on trends for African American women, these trends are also examined, where relevant, for other groups. Specifically, comparisons are made with white women and Latinas and with African American, white, and Latino men. Our analysis illustrates the manner in which economic restructuring has had important and contradictory impacts on labor market participation and occupational distribution among African American women.Recent changes in the labor market experiences of men have been an issue of great intellectual and public policy concern. For example, several researchers have noted recent wage stagnation (Angelo 1995; Freeman 1991) and increasing wage inequality among men (Freeman 1991;Juhn, Murphy, and Pierce 1993). Declines in labor force participation of young African American men have been a paramount concern examined in both urban poverty and labor market literature (Juhn, 1992;Welch 1990). The deteriorating status of African American men in the labor market has been related to the process of economic restructuring that has

The Gender of Precarious Employment in Canada

“…Income polarization is the result of occupational and income disparities between men and women, as well as among women and among men along the lines of "race," ethnicity, age and other social locations (Vosko 2000). Previous research has found growing income and occupational polarization among women by "race," ethnicity and immigrant status (Bakan and Stasiulus 1997;Das Gupta 1996;James, Grant and Cranford 2000;Vosko 2002). …”

“…For example, different regulatory challenges are posed by own account self-employment, the triangular employment relationship characterizing wage work in the temporary help industry and part-time permanent wage work Fudge, Tucker and Vosko 2003;Mayer 1996;Vosko 2000). With economic restructuring, there is also growing income polarization among full-time permanent paid employees (James, Grant and Cranford 2000;Luxton and Corman 2001). Finally, there are inequalities along lines of gender, "race" and ethnicity within both standard and non-standard forms of employment (Das Gupta 1996;Zeytinoglu and Muteshi 1999).…”

Labor Exploitation and Health Inequities Among Market Migrants: A Political Economy Perspective

“…The occupation-specific examples and current manifestation of this are live-in domestic workers and personal caregivers who are recruited from abroad (Arat-Koc 1997; Zaman 2012) as well as seasonal agricultural workers (Tucker 2005). Furthermore, "because of enduring racism and nativism, women of color, and immigrant women are particularly disadvantaged by shifts to a polarized service sector and downgrading of manufacturing" (Vosko 2005, p. 46;Glenn 1992;Gabriel 1999;James, Grant, and Cranford 2000;Das Gupta 2002).…”