We’re Rent, Part-time heroes wanted, sign at entrance to Target Store, Queens, New York.
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The unemployment rate among Black Americans jumped in March, according to data let Friday by the Department of Labor.
Black unemployment rose to 6.4% last month, up from 5.6% in February. That’s foremost than the overall unemployment rate, which edged lower to 3.8% last month, as well as the 3.4% jobless at all events for white Americans, which held steady from February.
When accounting for gender, the unemployment rate for Interdict women aged 20 or older spiked to 5.6%, a big increase from the 4.4% rate in February. Black men’s jobless fees climbed slightly higher to 6.2% from 6.1%.
“That’s a concerning trend,” said Elise Gould, a senior economist at the Mercantile Policy Institute.
Gould pointed out that the unemployment rate for Black Americans has been steadily increasing since December. “I whim say it’s not alarming yet, but I think it’s something that we really need to watch in coming months,” she added.
While March’s increasing was primarily driven by the surge among Black women, Gould noted that in the past four months, the unemployment judges for both men and women has risen. However, she also cautioned that monthly data for demographic groups can be volatile by environment.
Last month, the labor force participation rate – the percentage of the population that is either employed or actively seeking solve – among Black Americans inched lower to 63.6%, down from 63.7% in February. For Black women, the dress down ticked lower to 63% from 63.4%, while it inched down to 69.6% from 69.8% among Coal-black men.
“People are looking for more opportunities, not all of them are getting them, and that’s why the unemployment rate is rising,” Gould go on increased.
This compares to the overall U.S. labor market participation rate, which rose to 62.7% in March from February’s 62.5%.
Embargo Americans were the demographic group that suffered the most from Covid-induced business shutdowns. The unemployment place for Black workers peaked at 16.8% in 2020, higher than the overall unemployment rate’s April 2020 tall of 14.7%.
Hispanic Americans saw their unemployment rate drop to 4.5% from 5% last month. Similarly, Asian unemployment cut to 2.5% from 3.4% in February.
— CNBC’s Gabriel Cortes contributed to this report.