Black Workers Are Still Working, but Are We Losing the Jobs That Built Economic Stability?

When more than 300,000 Black women lose jobs over a period of months, the number deserves attention. After looking beyond that headline, however, I found myself asking a different question. Are Black workers simply moving into other industries, or are we losing some of the jobs that historically provided greater stability, professional mobility, and a stronger path toward the middle class?

President Donald Trump began his second term on January 20, 2025. To establish a reasonable comparison, I looked at Bureau of Labor Statistics data from 2024, the last full calendar year before the administration took office, and compared those figures with the 2025 annual averages. I then reviewed the most recent national labor-market data available through August 2026.

The picture is more complicated than saying Black people are simply losing jobs.

In 2024, approximately 20.728 million Black Americans were employed. By the 2025 annual average, the number stood at approximately 20.823 million, an increase of about 95,000 workers. Black women's total employment, however, declined from approximately 10.745 million in 2024 to 10.694 million in 2025.

A total employment number by itself does not tell us whether people are moving forward economically. I am more interested in where Black workers are employed, which areas are expanding, which are contracting, and whether the jobs replacing lost positions provide comparable pay, benefits, security, and opportunity.

Where Black Workers Were Working Before Trump Returned to Office

Bureau of Labor Statistics data for 2024 show that Black workers were spread across several major industries. Education and health services employed the largest number, followed by wholesale and retail trade, professional and business services, transportation and utilities, leisure and hospitality, manufacturing, public administration, and financial activities.

Black women were especially concentrated in education and health services. In 2024, approximately 4.476 million Black women worked in that sector. Another 1,059,000 worked in wholesale and retail trade, about 945,000 in professional and business services, 875,000 in public administration, 788,000 in financial activities, and 516,000 in manufacturing.

Those figures give us a clearer baseline than simply saying Black workers traditionally held government jobs. They show where Black women were actually working during the calendar year immediately before the Trump administration returned to office.

What Changed in 2025?

By the 2025 annual average, education and health services still employed far more Black women than any other major industry in the BLS table. Employment there increased from about 4.476 million in 2024 to 4.632 million in 2025, an increase of approximately 156,000. Wholesale and retail trade remained nearly unchanged, moving from about 1.059 million to 1.064 million. Professional and business services increased modestly from approximately 945,000 to 957,000.

Several other sectors moved in the opposite direction.

Black women's employment in public administration dropped from approximately 875,000 in 2024 to 734,000 in 2025, a decrease of roughly 141,000. Manufacturing fell from about 516,000 to 469,000. Financial activities declined from approximately 788,000 to 750,000, while the BLS category called “other services” fell from about 466,000 to 408,000.

Public administration clearly stands out in this comparison. The decline was considerably larger than what appears in most of the other major industries listed for Black women.

The federal workforce deserves separate attention because Black Americans have historically been represented there at rates above their share of the broader civilian workforce. Reductions in federal employment therefore have the potential to affect Black households more heavily even when a workforce-reduction policy is not written in explicitly racial terms.

Employment by Occupation Raises Another Question

Industry tells us where people work. Occupation tells us more about what kind of work they are doing.

The occupational figures caught my attention because total Black employment rose slightly between 2024 and 2025, while employment in management, professional, and related occupations declined.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, approximately 7.511 million Black Americans worked in management, professional, and related occupations in 2024. In 2025, the number was approximately 7.243 million, a decline of about 268,000.

The broader category includes management, business, financial, and professional positions. Black employment in management occupations alone declined from approximately 1.884 million in 2024 to 1.834 million in 2025. Business and financial operations moved differently, increasing from about 1.071 million to 1.127 million.

Those movements are worth examining rather than forcing all professional employment into one storyline. Some categories grew while others contracted.

Still, a loss of roughly 268,000 Black workers from the broad management and professional category raises a question I believe deserves far more attention:

Are Black workers moving into different jobs, or are some moving from positions associated with greater professional standing and economic security into work offering less of both?

Employment alone cannot answer that.

A person can lose a professional position with retirement benefits, health insurance, and a clear promotion path, then obtain another job and remain counted as employed. The household may still have experienced a significant economic setback.

Public Administration Deserves Particular Attention

The decline in public administration did not occur in isolation from changes in federal policy. The Trump administration entered office on January 20, 2025, and quickly began implementing federal workforce changes intended to reduce staffing, restructure agencies, and alter federal hiring practices.

Black workers were already heavily represented in federal employment before those reductions began. That employment pattern developed over decades as civil-service employment became one route into stable professional work for Black Americans who often encountered more restrictive opportunities in portions of the private labor market.

A reduction in government employment therefore reaches more than individual employees. Salaries support mortgages, rent, retirement contributions, tuition, businesses, churches, and extended families. When hundreds or thousands of professional jobs disappear within a relatively short period, some of the economic effects move beyond the agency where the cuts occurred.

The 2025 industry figures cannot tell us why every person lost a position. They can show us where employment contracted and where it expanded.

I prefer staying with what the numbers actually establish.

What Do the Most Recent 2026 Numbers Show?

The detailed industry tables currently allow a 2024-to-2025 comparison. Comparable annual industry-by-race figures for 2026 are not yet available because 2026 is still underway.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics does provide more recent monthly information about the overall labor market.

In August 2026, the national unemployment rate was 4.1 percent. The unemployment rate for Black Americans was 6.0 percent, compared with 3.7 percent for White Americans. One year earlier, in August 2025, the Black unemployment rate had been 7.6 percent.

Among Black women age 20 and older, the seasonally adjusted labor-force participation rate was 60.6 percent in August 2026. Approximately 10.264 million were employed, according to the same monthly household survey.

So the most current numbers do not support saying that Black employment has simply continued falling month after month through 2026. The Black unemployment rate was lower in August 2026 than it had been in August 2025.

What remains unresolved is the quality and distribution of the employment people are finding.

That is the part I want to keep watching.

AI Gives Me Another Reason to Pay Attention

The labor market is also changing; at the same time, employers are becoming more comfortable using artificial intelligence to recruit, screen, and evaluate applicants.

I work with AI, so my concern is not based on a belief that artificial intelligence is automatically harmful. I see what the technology can do well.

I also see an opportunity for old problems to become much harder to identify.

Racial discrimination in employment existed long before artificial intelligence. Employers discriminated when applications were paper, résumés arrived through the mail, and interviews occurred without an algorithm anywhere in sight.

Now a hiring decision can pass through applicant-tracking software, automated assessments, ranking systems, résumé scanners, and artificial-intelligence tools before a candidate speaks with anyone.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has warned that federal employment-discrimination laws still apply when employers use AI and automated systems in recruiting, résumé screening, hiring and other employment decisions. The agency has also explained that an apparently neutral employment practice can violate Title VII when it creates an unlawful disparate impact on a racial group.

My concern begins there.

AI could become a great cover for racism when employers, vendors, and regulators fail to examine outcomes closely.

I am presenting that as my concern, not as a conclusion that AI caused the employment losses discussed in this article.

A company does not need to program an algorithm with an openly racist instruction for a system to produce unequal outcomes. Historical hiring data can carry old patterns into a new system. Variables involving geography, education, previous employers, employment gaps and other characteristics may appear race-neutral while still correlating with inequalities that already exist.

Once software becomes part of the decision, responsibility can become much harder to trace.

An applicant may be told that other candidates were a better match. The employer may say its technology ranked the applicants. The vendor may say the employer determined the criteria. Nobody may ever tell the rejected worker which variables lowered the score or prevented the résumé from reaching a human being.

A computerized decision can look objective simply because the discrimination, if it exists, is no longer visible.

For Black workers, that possibility deserves examination because we are entering an employment market where two developments are occurring at once. Some historically significant employment channels are contracting, while more private employers are using technology to determine who gains access to new opportunities.

The combination deserves scrutiny.

Not Every Decline Can Be Blamed on AI or Trump

I do not want to turn correlation into proof.

The BLS statistics do not establish that President Trump caused every decline in Black employment after January 20, 2025. They also do not establish that artificial intelligence caused Black workers to lose professional positions.

Manufacturing changes for many reasons. Financial employment changed for many reasons. Businesses restructure, consumer demand shifts, interest rates change, companies merge, technologies develop, and occupations evolve.

Several Black employment categories grew during 2025, including education and health services. Business and financial operations occupations also increased.

Leaving those facts out would make the argument weaker, not stronger.

I want to know where the losses are occurring, where the gains are occurring, and what separates the two.

I Want Better Questions Asked About Black Employment

The unemployment rate alone will not tell us whether Black workers are advancing.

We need to know what happens after someone loses a federal position, a management job, or another professional role.

Did that person obtain another professional position?

Was the salary comparable?

Did the new employer provide health insurance?

Was there a retirement plan?

Did the person move from permanent employment into contract work?

Did the worker remain in the same field or take whatever position was available?

How long did the transition take?

Did a college-educated worker eventually accept work that did not require the degree?

How many qualified Black applicants are being removed by automated screening systems before a hiring manager ever sees their résumés?

Those questions tell us much more about economic mobility than a headline announcing that another person has been added to the employed column.

A Note About Comparing 2024 and 2025

There is also a technical limitation readers should know about.

Beginning in January 2025, the Bureau of Labor Statistics introduced the 2022 Census industry classification system into these statistics. BLS states that the 2025 industry estimates are therefore not strictly comparable with earlier years. In addition, October 2025 household survey data were not collected during the federal government shutdown, so the 2025 annual industry figures are based on 11 months rather than the usual 12.

I am still using the figures because they provide the most direct federal data available for examining Black employment immediately before and after the January 2025 change in administration. Readers should understand the limitation rather than interpret every numerical difference as an exact measurement of policy effects.

Where Do We Go From Here?

I began looking at this story because of reports about Black women losing jobs. What interests me now is larger than one employment statistic and larger than one administration.

I want to know whether Black Americans are losing ground in the kinds of positions that historically helped families establish long-term economic security.

Total Black employment was slightly higher in the 2025 annual average than it had been in 2024, yet Black employment in management, professional, and related occupations declined by roughly 268,000. Black women's employment increased substantially in education and health services, while public administration, manufacturing, and financial activities declined.

Those figures leave me with a question I intend to keep asking:

Are Black workers simply moving into different industries, or are we moving from higher-quality, stable employment into jobs that provide less pay, fewer benefits, less security, and fewer opportunities to build wealth?

If the answer eventually points toward the latter, we need to know why.

We also need to know what role artificial intelligence is playing as more employers use automated tools to decide who receives access to the next generation of jobs.

Being employed and being economically secure have never meant exactly the same thing.

The employment numbers tell us who is working.

The next investigation should tell us whether the work Black Americans are gaining is actually replacing what is being lost.

Sources reviewed: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Current Population Survey annual averages for 2024 and 2025 and August 2026 Employment Situation data; U.S. Office of Personnel Management federal workforce reporting; U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guidance on race discrimination and automated employment systems; and official White House records establishing the January 20, 2025 beginning of the current Trump administration.

— Nicholl McGuire

Sources and Further Reading

BLS — 2024 employment by industry, race, and sex
https://www.bls.gov/cps/data/aa2024/cpsaat14.htm

BLS — 2025 employment by industry, race, and sex
https://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat14.htm

BLS — employment by occupation, class of worker, sex, and race
https://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat12.htm

BLS — August 2026 Employment Situation
https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.htm

BLS — August 2026 employment status by race, sex, and age
https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t02.htm

OPM — FY2025 Federal Equal Opportunity Recruitment Program Annual Report
https://www.opm.gov/about-us/reports-publications/agency-reports/fy25-federal-equal-opportunity-recruitment-program-feorp-annual-report.pdf

EEOC — Race and Color Discrimination guidance
https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/section-15-race-and-color-discrimination

EEOC — Employment Discrimination and AI for Workers
https://www.eeoc.gov/sites/default/files/2024-04/20240429_Employment%20Discrimination%20and%20AI%20for%20Workers.pdf

An Opportunity or Gift Gone Wrong | NM Enterprise 7 audio

African American Workaholics - Robbing Family of Quality Time

Sitting back listening to Slide by Slave, an old school R&B jam, I thought of those good ole' days chillin' at the local park with relatives.  Uncles and cousins on the grill preparing tasty ribs, chicken breasts, hot dogs, kielbasi, sausages--my mouth is watering.  Like family cookouts, the holiday season brings its share of memories with Nat King Cole singing, "...chestnuts roasting by an open fire..."  Yet, with all the good time memories, there are those who rather not be reminded.  They are the African American workaholics in pursuit of personal goals while saying, "I just want my family to have the best of everything."  Their seriousness (sometimes mean-spiritedness) along with their drive to be everything that their predecessors weren't is robbing them of what is important, quality time with their own families.

There is no energy to talk to spouses, correct children, connect with kinfolk or sit back and breathe.  They have made it so!  No blaming "the man" this time especially when you got favor with him.  A relative isn't going to get to speak with a workaholic, who has his or her phone redirected to voicemail or set to an automated reply via text, anytime soon.  You can cry, beg, or even send an S.O.S. across the Internet and they are no where to be found unless they want to be.  The determination to be the best, make the most money, and obtain more contacts then the workaholic will ever speak to is all-too-important until someone dies or then again, maybe not.  "I'm sorry I just got too much work to do!  What do you want from me, blood?"

Our most talented and successful in the black community didn't "make it" without hard work of course, but they also gave up intermediate or extended relatives and once so-called good friends in an effort to take care of themselves and others.  We might complain about our sons and daughters not having enough time for us, but think back to all the preaching and teaching we received and what we spoke to our children.  Our parents and grandparents didn't want us in jail or prematurely in our graves over nonsense and we didn't want that for our sons or daughters either.  However, the motivation to be the best is still prevalent among many of our elders and for some they are torn between work and family responsibilities.  The money earned is most appreciated, but how much are you willing to lose to gain abundant wealth?

The leaders, preachers and educators, who love money, rarely share personal disappointments and discord truthfully.  They rather tell stories of success that make them look phenomenal.  But what about the days and nights a wife didn't see her husband while children cried for "Daddy!" and the family members and friends who had to watch their children while she worked.  What about the men and women who helped them get there and the times the family went without so that someone could achieve a dream?  The workaholics also don't share the temptations along the way that they didn't rise above but succumbed to.  They don't tell of the lies told and immoral services performed to achieve fame, fortune and power.  They will never speak of those who shoved their dirty work under the rug so that they could remain free to make more money.  Silence is golden with the most wealthiest in the African American communities across our land and their occult and fraternal allegiance attests to that.

So what might we glean from those who robbed their families of good memories in exchange for long hours in the street, at the office or out in the field?  Recognize our shortcomings and don't repeat what the workaholics have done or still do--the love of money is indeed the root of all kinds of evil.  Many are separated from their Creator in pursuit of it.

Nicholl McGuire
Author of Say Goodbye to Dad and She's Crazy

The Solution to the Problem Is?

Name any challenge you are going through from past issues to workplace dilemmas and most likely you have but one or two ideas for solving those obstacles.  You probably didn't put nearly enough time sitting down working a plan to solve as you did watching television or listening to your jams.  So what are some things within your power you can do to problem solve? 

1.  Communicate with those who are also impacted by the issue(s).  Talking with others about problems can help sometimes, but the focus on solving the issue ultimately comes from you.  Think of how many people had to contend with corporations, family members and others alone, because support systems backed out at the last minute.  Be sure your back up is strong and your case is stronger for why something has got to change!

2.  Do your research.  Why some people burn out on solving problems before they truly get started is because they have not bothered to do through research about the subject matter and how others came up with solutions.

3.  Manage money and time well. Timing is everything and if one chooses to deal with an issue, he or she has to have some idea what day, time, season, etc. will work best.  Spiritually minded men and women pray and fast about when they should contend and when to wait.  There is a season for all things.  So if your timing is off, you might find yourself wasting money too.  Get financing from businesses and others only when you need it and be sure your plan is transparent and comprehensible.

4.  Seek professional counselors and assistants when you are confused, lack motivation, ignorant, tired, and too busy doing other things.  Why create more problems for yourself by not stepping outside the box?  So many people never resolve issues because they don't bother to seek help.

It is unfortunate but many of us have far too many negative, critical individuals around us who we just can't trust to bounce some ideas off of and who sincerely don't have our best interests in mind.  Most of "our people" are more interested in talking about folks than doing something to solve problems about folks.  What is really standing in between you and solving an issue but more people?

So when I thought of problem solving on any issue--great or small for myself, I had to come back to the question of whether or not I truly wanted to reach a solution or come to some sort of peaceful conclusion.  Sometimes people hold on to their personal woes like collectible items with no intention of giving them up until they grow in value (or increase in size).  As long as nothing is blowing up, breaking, or causing World War III, some people will just reason, "I'm okay...that thing is alright.  I don't need to do anything with it right now.  We will just wait and see..." until what?  Meanwhile, for some they know that is not what they really want to do.  I don't know about you, but I don't like to wait around and watch something grow if it can be solved right now.

Nicholl McGuire has been sharing spiritual insight on a number of issues since 2008 on YouTube channel: nmenterprise7.

Crazy Relationship and Work

A Good Boss, Worker, Friend or Family Member? Not! When Things Don't Go ...

Keeping it Real on the Job - Not! When Black Folks Just Don't Know When to Shut Up

Warning this blog entry will bother some readers, but the truth hurts.

So he thought that he could express his honest opinion, because he had the following:  years of work experience, a large network who sings his praises, and the mannerisms of those who don't look like him down to a science, yet he learned the hard way.  The articulate, well-dressed, yet stubborn black man didn't know what was ahead until WHAM!, just like that, a powerful individual changed his life in a blink of an eye with a stroke of a pen.  "We regret to inform you, but your services with XYZ company are discontinued...."

What the black professional didn't know is that all of his boasting, insensitive remarks at work and elsewhere, complaints from others (that just so happened to reach the ears of his boss,) and his leader's deep-rooted personal resentment would be enough to end their agreement.

One large eye on the back of many dollar bills governs what many black men and women covet the most--money.  "I need my money...I got to get my money...when my money is right..." some arrogant, angry, happy, and crazy, successful blacks will say.  They will show out when it comes to messing with their money.  Their emotional outbursts will usually come after those professional speaking mouths had been talking too much followed by some ghetto slip ups while their eyes were rolling and fingers were pointing.  The boss responds to the negativity with threats to take funds away, "Now you care about your money...you didn't think too much about that when you were telling everyone where to go...and how you don't need...and what you will not put up with..."

Spiritual men and women who brag about what their gods or God is doing are usually tested more than most, because they teach/preach/brag about their "haves" and why "everyone else needs..." as if no one around them is qualified to speak wisdom, but they. 

The warnings are all around motor mouth black folk!  Just Joking Jenny is going to lose her job because of her big mouth.  Prideful Paul is going to be fired because he is unprofessional with his boss.  Flirty Frank is going to be hit with a lawsuit one day, because he just can't keep his sexy comments and hands to himself and so the list goes on. All of these types and more think that "Keeping it real at work, at home, and everywhere else is okay," but it's not!

How many African American women and men lost their job, not because of the color of their skin (as some would like for you to believe), but because of a negative attitude?  Many bosses aren't even thinking about skin tone when the ax is first being dropped.  How about Lazy Lisa sleeping on the job or Always Tardy Tom who often misses important meetings?  What does skin color have to do with unproductive employees?  Now if we compare them with others who are different skin tones doing the same negative things and they get to keep their jobs, then we have a racial issue that needs to be addressed!   

How many more blacks will lose their job, because they just can't control their tongue despite repeated warnings?  Yelling at one's boss/supervisor on the job, unacceptable!  Sexy talk with the secretary on the job, unacceptable!  Acting like a fool, talking loudly, slapping folks on the back and hitting the table over something said in a quiet workplace, unacceptable!  But some of the educated, as well as the ignorant, just don't get it until something is taken from them.  Others never learn!  Decades of firings, layoffs, suspensions, and reprimands and they are still so called, "Keeping it real." (sigh)

Nicholl McGuire shares spiritual insight on YouTube