South Florida’s economic rebound from the Covid-19 pandemic has been turbulent, driven by persistent barriers to quality employment prospects for residents of color and an elevated risk of automation-driven job displacement. This report—produced in partnership with Florida International University and Lightcast, with support from JPMorgan Chase—examines the economic costs of these upheavals and ongoing racial economic exclusion in the Miami metropolitan region. Our in-depth analysis of disaggregated equity indicators and labor market dynamics found that Black workers and Hispanic women have the lowest median wages at $16 per hour, while white men earn the highest median wages at $27 per hour—a 69 percent pay gap. The research also indicates that eliminating racial gaps in wages and employment for working-age people could boost the region's economy by $122 billion a year. The report concludes with several strategies to advance workforce equity in South Florida and to ensure that all workers, including those who face the additional burdens of systemic racism, are prepared for the jobs of tomorrow with the skills, supports, and access they need to fully participate and thrive in the economy. Download the report.

In the years following the Great Recession, Metro Detroit showed promise of a strong economic rebound. But new research shows that the region’s recovery was racially uneven, and persistent racial inequities in housing, income, and other key measures of well-being have constrained the region’s economic growth. This report, produced in partnership with the Detroit Area Workforce Funders Collaborative and Lightcast, with support from JPMorgan Chase illustrates how long-standing racial gaps in income and employment have impacted the region’s workforce and economy: The region has a shortfall of good jobs that do not require a college degree and only 29 percent of the region’s workers hold good jobs. Despite the growing diversity of the region's workforce, workers of color remain crowded in lower paying and lower opportunity occupational groups, while white workers are overrepresented in many higher paying professions. These persistent inequities cost the region an estimated $28 billion in lost economic activity per year. The report concludes with a strategic roadmap for the region to advance workforce equity, which was developed in partnership with a local advisory group of policymakers, employers, educators, training providers, community-based organizations, and advocates. Download the report.

Additional resources:

• Summary data slide deck

Media: New Research Reveals that Black Workers Have Borne the Brunt of Metro Detroit’s Inequitable Labor Market and Uneven Economic Growth (Press Release)

Nashville’s strong and sustained growth has helped make it Tennessee’s largest city and the state’s biggest economic powerhouse, but racial inequities in the workforce threaten the region’s future prosperity. This report, produced in partnership with the Urban League of Middle Tennessee and Lightcast, with support from JPMorgan Chase, offers a comprehensive look at the racial inequities in workforce outcomes that have long persisted in the Nashville metropolitan region. It also underscores how the Covid-19 pandemic is impacting these dynamics and how automation is projected to affect industries and workers in the area. Our in-depth analysis of disaggregated equity indicators and labor market dynamics found that only about 41 percent of the region’s 915,000 workers hold good jobs, that white workers with only a high school diploma earn higher median wages ($17/hour) than Black workers with an associate’s degree ($16/hour), and that eliminating racial inequities in employment and wages could boost the Nashville economy by $9.5 billion a year. The report concludes with actionable solutions to advance workforce equity across the region, informed by these findings and shaped by local leaders. Download the report.

Media: Here's a Blueprint for How Nashville Can Achieve Workforce Equity (The Tennessean)

The Columbus regional economy is strong and growing quickly, but racial inequities in the workforce threaten the region’s future prosperity. This report, produced in partnership with Emsi Burning Glass, One Columbus, and the Workforce Innovation Center, provides a comprehensive analysis of long-standing racial gaps in labor market outcomes, the economic impacts of Covid-19, and the racial equity implications of automation. Our in-depth analysis of disaggregated equity indicators and labor market dynamics found that only 42 percent of the region’s workers are in future-ready jobs, that Black workers with an associate’s degree earn on average the same wages as white workers with just a high school diploma, and that eliminating racial inequities in income could boost the Columbus regional economy by about $10 billion a year. The report concludes with actionable solutions to advance workforce equity across the region, informed by the data and shaped by local leaders. Download the report.

Media: Racial Inequities Cost Columbus Economy $10 Billion a Year, Report Finds (The Columbus Dispatch)