Workers of color see strong gains as New Hires Quality Index hits new highs

Woman congratulates another woman after being hired

The Upjohn Institute New Hires Quality Index keeps rolling with its fifth consecutive record high, climbing 0.2 percent to $18.77 between August and September. Hiring volume slipped 0.7 percent over this period but is still 3 percent above its prepandemic level; hiring rates are 1.5 percent above.    

In this month's news release, Index creator Brad Hershbein examines trends among newly hired workers by race and ethnicity. Black, Hispanic, and Asian and Pacific Islander workers have all experienced stronger growth in hiring volume and hiring rates than have white workers since early 2020.

Each of these three groups has seen its share of the total earnings power of all newly hired workers grow since 2001, sharply for Hispanic and Asian and Pacific Islander workers and modestly for Black workers. Since the start of the pandemic, the shares for Black, Hispanic, and Asian and Pacific Islander workers are up 0.7, 0.7 and 0.9 percentage points, respectively, but down 2.4 percentage points for white workers.

Read the full release or explore the Index 


Date: November 1, 2022