Black women have maintained the highest labor force participation rate amid post-1970 rise in women’s labor force participation overall: Labor force participation rate for women by race and ethnicity, 1973–2024
| Year | White | Black | Hispanic | AIAN | Asian |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | 44.1% | 49.3% | 41.0% | ||
| 1974 | 45.2% | 49.0% | 42.4% | ||
| 1975 | 45.9% | 48.8% | 43.2% | ||
| 1976 | 46.9% | 49.8% | 44.3% | ||
| 1977 | 48.0% | 50.8% | 44.3% | ||
| 1978 | 49.4% | 53.1% | 46.6% | ||
| 1979 | 50.5% | 53.1% | 47.4% | ||
| 1980 | 51.2% | 53.1% | 47.4% | ||
| 1981 | 51.9% | 53.5% | 48.3% | ||
| 1982 | 52.4% | 53.7% | 48.1% | ||
| 1983 | 52.7% | 54.2% | 47.7% | ||
| 1984 | 53.3% | 55.2% | 49.6% | ||
| 1985 | 54.1% | 56.5% | 49.3% | ||
| 1986 | 55.0% | 56.9% | 50.1% | ||
| 1987 | 55.7% | 58.0% | 52.0% | ||
| 1988 | 56.4% | 58.0% | 53.2% | ||
| 1989 | 57.2% | 58.7% | 53.5% | ||
| 1990 | 57.4% | 58.3% | 53.1% | ||
| 1991 | 57.4% | 57.5% | 52.4% | ||
| 1992 | 57.7% | 58.5% | 52.8% | ||
| 1993 | 58.0% | 57.9% | 52.1% | ||
| 1994 | 58.9% | 58.7% | 52.9% | ||
| 1995 | 59.0% | 59.5% | 52.6% | ||
| 1996 | 59.1% | 60.4% | 53.4% | ||
| 1997 | 59.5% | 61.7% | 55.1% | ||
| 1998 | 59.4% | 62.8% | 55.6% | ||
| 1999 | 59.6% | 63.5% | 55.9% | ||
| 2000 | 59.5% | 63.1% | 57.5% | 59.2% | |
| 2001 | 59.4% | 62.8% | 57.6% | 59.0% | |
| 2002 | 59.3% | 61.8% | 57.6% | 57.8% | 59.1% |
| 2003 | 59.2% | 61.9% | 55.9% | 58.0% | 58.3% |
| 2004 | 58.9% | 61.5% | 56.1% | 57.5% | 57.6% |
| 2005 | 58.9% | 61.6% | 55.3% | 57.4% | 58.2% |
| 2006 | 59.0% | 61.7% | 56.1% | 57.4% | 58.3% |
| 2007 | 59.0% | 61.1% | 56.5% | 57.4% | 58.6% |
| 2008 | 59.2% | 61.3% | 56.2% | 57.5% | 59.4% |
| 2009 | 59.1% | 60.3% | 56.5% | 56.3% | 58.2% |
| 2010 | 58.5% | 59.9% | 56.5% | 54.5% | 57.0% |
| 2011 | 58.0% | 59.1% | 55.9% | 53.1% | 56.8% |
| 2012 | 57.4% | 59.8% | 56.6% | 52.5% | 56.5% |
| 2013 | 56.9% | 59.2% | 55.7% | 53.0% | 57.1% |
| 2014 | 56.7% | 59.2% | 56.0% | 53.5% | 55.8% |
| 2015 | 56.2% | 59.7% | 55.7% | 54.5% | 55.2% |
| 2016 | 56.3% | 59.4% | 55.8% | 55.2% | 55.5% |
| 2017 | 56.4% | 60.3% | 56.4% | 55.2% | 56.4% |
| 2018 | 56.4% | 60.2% | 57.0% | 55.3% | 56.4% |
| 2019 | 56.8% | 60.5% | 57.7% | 55.7% | 57.1% |
| 2020 | 55.7% | 58.8% | 56.4% | 55.3% | 55.5% |
| 2021 | 55.4% | 58.8% | 55.8% | 55.1% | 56.8% |
| 2022 | 56.1% | 59.7% | 57.3% | 54.3% | 57.7% |
| 2023 | 56.5% | 61.0% | 58.7% | 54.9% | 58.1% |
| 2024 | 56.7% | 60.5% | 58.9% | 55.1% | 58.6% |
Notes: AIAN refers to American Indian and Alaska Native. Race/ethnicity categories are not mutually exclusive; white, Black, and Asian data do not exclude Hispanic workers of each race. Shaded areas denote recessions. AIAN data are 3-year pooled averages to account for sample size restrictions. Please see Appendix Table 1 for 1-year estimates.
Notes: AIAN refers to American Indian and Alaska Native. Race and ethnicity categories are not mutually exclusive; white, Black, and Asian data do not exclude Hispanic workers of each race. Shaded areas denote recessions. AIAN data are 3-year pooled averages to account for sample size restrictions. Please see Appendix Table 1 for 1-year estimates. The labor force participation rate shows the number of people in the labor force—people who are employed or unemployed but looking for work—as a share of the number of civilian, noninstitutionalized people ages 16 and older.
Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Current Population Survey, Labor Force Participation Rate for Women by Race and Ethnicity data series LNU01300005, LNU01300008, LNU01300011, LNU01335335, and LNU01332342.
Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Current Population Survey (Household Survey), Labor Force Participation Rate for Women by Race and Ethnicity series LNU01300005, LNU01300008, LNU01300011, LNU01332342, and LNU01335335. Accessible via Series Report Data Retrieval Tool and https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/ln/. Accessed August 2025.