April's unemployment rate was the worst on record for every major worker group — with 1 exception

The Labor Department's shocking April jobs report showed the unemployment rate climb to the highest level since the Great Depression, reaching record highs for various worker groups — except for among black Americans.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics said Friday the unemployment rate in April soared to 14.7 percent, the worst level since the Great Depression. Breaking down the household survey data further, the Friday report showed that the unemployment rate reached 14.2 percent for whites, 14.5 percent for Asians, 16.7 percent for blacks, and 18.9 percent for Hispanics. It was also 13 percent for adult men, 15.5 percent for adult women, and 31.9 percent for teenagers.

"The rates for all of these groups, with the exception of blacks, represent record highs for their respective series," the report said.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.

Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.

Sign up

The unemployment rate for black Americans previously reached 16.8 percent in March 2010 and a record of 21.2 percent in January 1983, CNN reports, and it's "always been double the rate for whites, even in 'good' times," The Associated Press' Aaron L. Morrison noted.

The New York Times also observed the numbers were particularly devastating because prior to the coronavirus pandemic, "employment gains among minorities, and black workers in particular, had been a major bright spot" in the U.S.' post-recession expansion, while FiveThirtyEight pointed to the record high unemployment rate for Hispanics, writing that this all highlights "a running theme of this pandemic: workers of color are disproportionately bearing the brunt of the economic havoc."