At Work in a Pandemic: Black Workers’ Experiences of Safety on the Job

Race and labor scholars have argued that precarious, dangerous work, along with the work of social reproduction, has long been disproportionately placed on Black workers. This research examines how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted essential in-person workers differently by race. Using data collected from approximately 8,000 respondents in five survey waves, we find that Black essential and in-person workers were far more likely to experience safety concerns on the job than white workers, from inadequate sick leave and protective gear in the early pandemic to customers who refused to mask in later months. This pattern extended to stress off the job, where Black workers were more likely to have experienced food, childcare, and housing insecurities. Black workers were also more likely to be interested in unionization. These findings point to distinct ways in which the COVID-19 pandemic has collided with Black workers’ struggle for economic inequality and amplified existing patterns of labor market inequality.