Over the last 37 years, the gender wage gap has declined as men’s wages have gone down, but racial wage gaps have widened. And while black women came close to making the same pay as white women in 1979, last year white women’s pay reached 76% of white men. That compares with the 67% for black women relative to white men.
EPI also dismissed a number of myths cited as reasons for the wage gap for black women. These include the idea that black women could earn more if they worked harder; if they raised their level of education; and if they choose careers that pay higher.