OF THE nearly 5.5 million workers who have lost their jobs in this recession, a disproportionate share of the losses has been borne by younger workers, men, those without college degrees, and blue-collar employees. But black males, who were already shut out of the job market in disproportionate numbers, have fared the worst, and their labor-market fate has not received the attention it deserves.
According to the 2007 American Community Survey, the black male unemployment rate in Massachusetts was already 12.7 percent before the recession, compared with the overall unemployment rate of only 6.1 percent for the state as a whole. However, between November 2007 and March 2009, the national decline in the number of black men with jobs was 660,000, accounting for 82 percent of the job losses among all black workers. Nearly 9 percent of black men lost jobs over this period, the highest rate of job loss by far among any gender or race-ethnic group.
The relative size of this loss in employment among black men was the highest in any of the 11 post-World War II recessions in the United States. It is ironic that at the same time that the nation was electing its first African-American president, it was displacing record numbers of black men from the ranks of the employed.
Similar to the case for male workers generally, the employment declines among black men have been concentrated among the youngest workers (ages 16-24), among those with limited formal schooling, and among blue-collar workers. The lack of adequate employment opportunities among these young black men contributes to a lack of hope and an increase in despair, which often leads to rising delinquency, crime, and incarceration. In recent months, only one in six black teen males has worked, and only 52 percent of 20- to 24-year-old black men held any type of job. Another new record employment low is being established for these young men.
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The federal economic stimulus passed by Congress provides an opportunity to take immediate steps to improve job prospects for these men. First, the state must seek ways to leverage infrastructure investments to create more jobs in construction and manufacturing. Second, in order to make these jobs available to black and young workers, the state should post all job openings on a state website as well as at the local one stop career centers. Third, where possible, the state should set aside a portion of the infrastructure monies to create job training opportunities for these men. Fourth, the state should continue to build on its past efforts and use WIA youth monies, available via the federal stimulus package, to create both year round as well as summer jobs for 16-to-24-year-olds. The focus should continue on those youth most in need.
In addition, the state should consider a number of policy options and alternatives that should be adopted to respond to the particular challenges and barriers faced by African-American and Hispanic males. A variety of educational, employment, training, and ancillary programs will be needed to bolster their economic and social well-being.
To explore these issues and to develop viable policy prescriptions that are responsive to the needs of disproportionately impacted populations, the state recently formed a Task Force on Black and Hispanic Men. Its primary purpose is to identify strategies the state can adopt to mitigate the negative employment experiences of many African Americans and Hispanics. The economic prospects for young black and Hispanic males will be dependent on the success of such efforts.
Ron Marlow is assistant secretary for access and opportunity in the Patrick administration. Andrew Sum is a professor of economics and director of the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University. Both serve on the State Task Force on Black and Hispanic Employment. 
