Black Workers Are the Canaries in the Coal Mine During Trump 2.0

In 2025, Black Americans reported larger declines in financial well-being than other racial groups. Sixty percent of Black Americans said their financial well-being declined, while 79 percent of white Americans said they were doing okay. Black job losses in 2025 align with these findings. The Black unemployment rate rose 1.2 percent in the first quarter of 2026 compared with the same period the prior year. The Black unemployment rate reached 7.3 percent, matching levels seen in 2021. Black women faced major job losses, with more than 300,000 laid off in the first months of 2025. Job losses also affected Black workers across labor sectors during the first year of the new Trump administration, including federal workers targeted through DOGE.

"The Federal Reserve answered Trump's question in its recent Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households report for 2025: Black Americans lost more financially than every other racial group. According to the report, 60 percent of Black Americans expressed that their financial well-being declined, down 5 percent from 2024. In contrast, 79 percent of white Americans said they were "doing okay" last year."

"Black job losses in 2025 underscore the Fed's reporting. According to the Economic Policy Institute's Valerie Wilson, the Black unemployment rate rose 1.2 percent in the first quarter of 2026 compared to the same time last year. The Bureau of Labor Statistics also recently reported that the Black unemployment rate, which is typically higher than the national average, rose to 7.3 percent, making the rate as high as it was the pandemic in 2021."

"As I've previously noted, Black women endured sudden and staggering job loss as more than 300,000 were let go in the first few months of 2025. Black American workers have experienced job losses across labor sectors during the first year of the new Trump administration. Its targeting of federal workers using the "Department of Government Efficiency" (DOGE) as an economic battering ram disproportionately hit Black Americans hard."

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