COVID-19 Impact on the San Diego Region: Black and Hispanic Communities Hardest Hit

SANDAG release the following Analysis today that finds that as the COVID-19 pandemic shattered the San Diego regional labor market overall, the region’s Black and Hispanic communities were most impacted.  Blacks and Hispanics account for a significant portion of essential workers who continued to go to work, and they account for a significant portion of those who became unemployed due to the pandemic. This report aims to inform policymakers about the disproportionate impact to Black and Hispanic communities in the labor market and to help decision makers develop equity-focused relief and recovery strategies. The San Diego region is suffering from a devastating health.Listed below are some of the highlights.   

• More than two-thirds of Black (67%) and Hispanic (70%) residents live in ZIP codes with higher than average unemployment rates 
• Approximately half of Black (52%) and Hispanic (49%) residents live in ZIP codes with higher than average COVID-19 cases 
• Nearly half of Black (45%) and Hispanic (42%) residents live in ZIP codes that have higher than average COVID-19 cases and higher than average unemployment rates 
• When compared to the White population, Black and Hispanic populations are four times as likely to live in areas that have been impacted by COVID-19 and unemployment. When compared to the Asian population, they are twice as likely to reside in areas with high COVID-19 cases, and high unemployment 
• Hispanic employees account for 32% of the overall workforce in the region but represent 46% of those working in the food service industry, and 37% of those working in the retail sector (excluding grocery and drugstore). They are therefore over represented in these two sectors. Hispanic employees also make up the largest percentage of the essential workforce in building cleaning services (65%), grocery and drug stores (44%), and childcare and social services (39%). 
• Black employees account for nearly 5% of the overall workforce in the region but represent a larger percentage of the essential workforce--more than 7% of the childcare and social services, 9% in trucking, warehouse, and postal service, and nearly 20% of public transit workers. 
• Asian employees account for about 12% of the overall workforce in the region but represent 22% of those working in the health care sector. White employees, which account for 48% of the region’s workforce, account for only 40% of the pool of workers in high-contact and essential occupations.  

 

We encourage everyone to read the full version at SANDAG