An Analysis of the Status of African Americans in the U.S. Labor Market in the 1980s and 1990s

The diploma thesis analyses and evaluates the position of African Americans in the U.S. labour market, especially in the 1980s and 1990s. The theoretical part explains selected economic theories related to the topic. Also, orders and acts concerning African Americans and the U.S. labor market and the economic situation of the United States primarily in the 1980s and 1990s. In the practical part, I analyse the labor market with emphasis on the position of African Americans during the 1980s and 1990s. The important part is to test the validity of the scientific hypothesis as stated, the actions of the federal government during the 1980s and 1990s did not have positive effects on the labor market position of African Americans according to the analysis of selected indicators. Time series analysis of unemployment rates, as well as employment rates, average wages, and educational attainment is used to test the hypothesis. Based on the analysis, the hypothesis was partially confirmed. In this paper, I also address the research questions of how the employment rate of African Americans in the U.S. labor market has evolved. Further, what has been the evolution of the average wages of African Americans compared to the average wages of white Americans and how have tax cuts affected the wages of African Americans relative to the general population. At the end of the article, I compare the situation in the 1980s and 1990s with the current situation and conclude that African Americans have made significant progress in reducing the gap between them and white Americans across multiple indicators.