Much to the chagrin of many in the media, there is good news\nto report. Current historically low unemployment rates are bolstering the\npaychecks of American workers generally. More specifically, the tight labor\nmarket is boosting the earnings of minority workers, whose wages have\ntraditionally lagged behind those of white workers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to a report by the Atlanta Federal Reserve, white\nAmericans have seen a nice 3.5 percent increase in their wages since the start\nof 2019. Nonwhite American workers fattened their paychecks by an even nicer\n4.3 percent since the start of the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It does not take low unemployment rates for the powerful\nbusiness lobby to clamor for greater access to foreign workers \u2013 they demand\nmore foreign labor even when unemployment is high. But, when unemployment is\nlow, as it is now, they add the additional warning that the failure to infuse\nthe labor market with more immigrant and guest workers will harm the economy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Which begs the question: Whose economy? Certainly not the economy of American workers. Certainly not women and minorities who are trying to close longstanding wage gaps. Certainly not workers who have been at the margins of our economy. As economist Karl W. Smith notes in a column in Bloomberg.com<\/a>, \u201cThe longer a tight labor market persists, the more willing employers become to consider applicants they once would have passed over. Social networks between employers and marginalized communities strengthen, and companies get better at attracting and retaining minority workers.\u201d In other words, when the law of supply-and-demand is not working in favor employers, they find ways of getting creative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n