White Unemployment 5.3% -- Black Unemployment 11.4%

CNS News
September 5, 2014

(CNSNews.com) – While unemployment nationwide is 6.1%, the unemployment rate for black Americans at 11.4% is more than double the rate for white Americans, who have an unemployment rate of 5.3%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

The unemployment rate for Latino Americans, at 7.5%, is also lower than the unemployment rate for blacks, theBLS data show.

For black Americans, age 16 and older, seasonally adjusted, the unemployment rate between July and August stayed the same at 11.4%, and that is up from the 10.7% rate in June.  The last time the black unemployment rate was 11.4% was more than 5 years ago, in October 2008. (It was at a low 7.6% in August 2007.)

(AP Photo)

For white Americans, 16 years and older, seasonally adjusted, the unemployment rate also stayed the same at 5.3% between July and August, which was the same as it was in June. Except for April 2013, which also saw a rate of 5.3%, the last time it was at that level was in July/August 2008.

For Latinos, 16 and older, seasonally adjusted, the 7.5% unemployment rate in August was down from 7.8% in July. It has not fallen below the 7% range since May 2008.

According to the Census Bureau, whites make up 77.7% of the U.S. population; blacks comprise 13.2% of the population; and Hispanic or Latino make up 17.1% of the population.

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