Side hustles, second shifts, temping—all euphemisms for the increasingly unstable jobs that make up a more visible share of the American workforce. For many, these roles are more than just an extra source of income. As of 2017, 10 percent of the US labor force considered their “side hustle” to be their primary or sole source of income.

These types of jobs have real consequences for workers’ well-being when compared with traditional, salaried positions: lower wages, few to no health or retirement benefits, and less scheduling stability. But many so-called “traditional” or “standard” occupations also offer low pay and limited benefits.

In our research, we classify occupations with these features as “vulnerable work.” This designation includes occupations with low pay, few benefits, and few hours, as well as alternative work arrangements such as independent contractors, contract workers, and temporary workers.

We find that Black women shoulder the brunt of this vulnerable work. In comparison with other race and gender groups, Black women are more likely to earn less and have fewer amenities at work, earning a median income of just $35,749.

Black Women Earn Lower Wages than Other Race and Gender Groups 

Source: American Community Survey 2020 five-year estimates (Minneapolis, MN: IPUMS, 2023). https://doi.org/10.18128/D010.V15.0.

Notes: We only show occupations with sufficient data for analysis. Here, we show all non-Hispanic-Black women. Next to the race and gender group, we show the number of occupations included in the distribution.

These wage disparities and the concentration of Black women in vulnerable work arrangements didn’t occur spontaneously. Long-standing workforce trends, including systemic racism and discrimination, have pushed Black women into low-wage roles, even when they are overqualified. This workforce segregation irrespective of educational credentials is known as occupational crowding.

We measure the occupational crowding of Black women using a three-tiered crowding score that controls for the educational attainment of race and gender groups. “Crowded in” means Black women are overrepresented in an occupation; “crowded out” means Black women are underrepresented, and proportional means the share of Black women in an occupation roughly matches the share of Black women that have the typical educational attainment for that role.

In occupations where they are crowded in compared with white men, Black women earn a median of $31,785 a year. In occupations where Black women are crowded out, they earn $40,499. This discrepancy demonstrates how occupational crowding can lead to larger gaps in the pay and earning potential of Black women, creating a negative feedback loop.

These findings repeat across different identity groups, with discrepancies growing even larger. Disabled Black women, for instance, earn a median wage income roughly $20,000 lower than white men. Among occupations that they are crowded in to, this gap between white men and disabled Black women grows to $28,000.

Black Women Earn Less than White Men across Identity Groups

Source: Occupational crowding and wage data are from American Community Survey 2020 five-year estimates (Minneapolis, MN: IPUMS, 2023), https://doi.org/10.18128/D010.V15.0. 

Notes: Occupational crowding for Black women is shown in comparison with white men, and white men are shown in comparison with the economy.

A good job consists of more than just high wages, however. Low-wage work is less likely than a high-paying occupation to offer health insurance, retirement plans, and full-time hours. These missing benefits can lead to other negative outcomes for low-wage workers, such as financial instability, less wealth building opportunity, and even elevated health risks.

Again, Black women are more likely than white men to be crowded in to occupations without these benefits after we have taken educational requirements and attainment into account. In fact, Black women are more than six times as likely to be concentrated in the occupations most likely to employ part-time workers. Although part-time work represents an opportunity for some—freeing up hours for other responsibilities like school or family—many people do not voluntarily seek part-time positions. Instead, these workers may be unable to find a full-time role or have their hours limited by an employer.

We spoke with a Black woman who had recently moved from a part-time fast food job into a full-time data entry role after completing a graduate degree. She explained that unlike her former job in fast food, the data entry role had better pay, insurance, health benefits, and opportunity for growth. “It gives you a sense of focus, determination,” she said. “Now, I can build my career path.”

Black Women Are Six Times as Likely to Work in Occupations with the Highest Share of Part-Time Workers

Source: Occupational crowding data and health insurance data from American Community Survey 2020 five-year estimates (Minneapolis, MN: IPUMS, 2023), https://doi.org/10.18128/D010.V15.0. Retirement data is from the Current Population Survey (CPS) Annual Social and Economic Supplement (2020), (Minneapolis, MN: IPUMS, 2023), https://doi.org/10.18128/D030.V11.0.

Notes: Data for health insurance and retirement plan show the share of workers that are employed in occupations in the bottom 25th percentile, meaning occupations that are least likely to offer workers those benefits. For part-time work, data show occupations in the top 25th percentile, meaning occupations that have the highest share of part-time workers.

Black women are most likely to be crowded in the worst form of alternative work

Alternative and part-time work arrangements are increasingly becoming common. Although estimates vary, between 16 and 36 percent of workers have worked a nontraditional job. These roles can include independent contractors, contract workers, and temporary workers.

When compared with some of the most vulnerable traditional workers—those in the service sector—people in “alternative” work arrangements were more likely to make below the federal minimum wage, to use the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and to be unable to pay their bills. However, the earning potential and benefits of alternative work can vary by arrangement type.

Temporary agency workers, for instance, fare the worst. Urban research finds that temporary agency workers earn 70 percent less per week than traditional workers, have more trouble accessing unemployment benefits, and are less likely to have health insurance and retirement benefits.

Contract workers and independent contractors’ wages, however, often outperform traditional roles, depending on the occupation. Even though some roles infamous for their precarity—such as delivery and ride share drivers—are categorized as independent contractors, other higher-paying roles can also fit that designation, including doctors, lawyers, and consultants. Contract workers also outearn traditional roles on a weekly basis by 22 percent.

Black women are more likely than white men to work in occupations that have a disproportionate share of temporary agency workers, and less likely to work in occupations that have a high share of independent contractors or contract workers. These findings indicate that although some people do experience the benefits of the expanding alternative work economy, Black women feel most of its ill effects.

Black Women Are More Likely than White Men to Work as Temporary Agency Workers

Source: Occupational crowding data from American Community Survey 2020 five-year estimates (Minneapolis, MN: IPUMS, 2023), https://doi.org/10.18128/D010.V15.0. Alternative work arrangement data is from the Contingent Worker Survey (2017), IPUMS-CPS, University of Minnesota (Minneapolis, MN: IPUMS, 2023), https://doi.org/10.18128/D030.V11.0.

Notes: Data show occupations in the top 25th percentile for each alternative work arrangement. Occupational crowding for Black women is shown in comparison with white men, and white men are shown in comparison with the economy.

To ensure that Black women have access to stable, high-quality occupations, regardless of employment status, policymakers could consider protections that emphasize equitable access to secure employment. These efforts could include the following:

• Mitigating employment discrimination by conducting a proactive audit of employers to assess discrimination in the hiring stage rather than waiting for complaints to be filed
• Protecting and expanding collective bargaining rights to all workers, as greater union coverage tends to increase wages, benefits, and schedule reliability, but many workers in both traditional and alternative arrangements, particularly independent contractors, do not have access to collective labor unions
• Improving the social safety net for alternative workers, which could include improving retirement savings access, strengthening and protecting social security, expanding medical coverage, increasing the minimum wage, and creating guaranteed income programs

Below, explore how occupational crowding disproportionately affects Black women compared with other race and gender groups. For example, select all, part-time workers, and white men to see the occupational crowding of Black women related to part-time work in comparison with white men.

About the Data

Occupational crowding measures the degree to which a group is over-, under-, or proportionally represented in an occupation, considering their educational attainment and the educational requirement for the role. We examined occupational crowding across 426 occupations among the following race and gender groups ages 25 to 64: Black women, Black men, white women, and white men. We use the methodology found in the research by Gibson, Darity, and Myers (1998). Because of sample size limitations, not all occupations have data for all work characteristics, Black women identity groups, or comparison identity groups. Occupations without sufficient data are excluded from tool selections.

Using data from the American Community Survey, we identify education requirements as the 20th and 80th percentile of education among the universe of all employed and unemployed workers in that occupation. In determining crowding by occupation, we used the methodology described in the research conducted by Hamilton and colleagues (2021) and compared Black women, Black men, and white women with white men. When analyzing crowding for white men, we examined their sorting in comparison with everyone in the economy (see King’s “access model” as cited in Hamilton et al. 2021).

To understand worker vulnerability, as defined by occupation characteristics (e.g., wages, hours, benefits) and alternative work arrangements, we used detailed Census occupation codes to link occupations across different data sources to the populations of interest. We then measured which share of workers in each occupation had those characteristics or benefits and used that information to understand the relationship between crowding and worker vulnerability. To learn more, please view the full report here.

View the project on Github.

Project Credits

This data tool was funded by the Capital One Foundation as part of Urban's Financial Well-Being DataHub, a research initiative that delivers evidence-based solutions to enhance equity and improve financial well-being. We are grateful to them and to all our funders, who make it possible for Urban to advance its mission. The views expressed are those of the authors and should not be attributed to the Urban Institute, its trustees, or its funders. Funders do not determine research findings or the insights and recommendations of our experts. More information on our funding principles is available here. Read our terms of service here.

RESEARCH Ofronama Biu, Afia Adu-Gyamfi

DESIGN Christina Baird

DATA VISUALIZATION AND DEVELOPMENT Ben Kates

EDITING Alex Dallman

WRITING Wesley Jenkins