Latina women earn significantly less than non-Hispanic men. A huge economy gap of $0.56 exists. This means that for every $1.00 that a non-Hispanic male makes, Latina women only earn $0.54. I believe that Latinas being hit the hardest with a wage gap does not get enough attention and it is seemed as “normal” in a country of “freedom”. My question is what are  some factors that contribute to the wage gap experienced by Latinas? Lower education rates play an important role because not all Latina women has the opportunity to obtain or continue their education. In addition, Citizenship status or immigration histories also contributes to a wage gap because of discrimination. Also, family structure plays important roles in the participation of women in the labor force because women are assumed to be the “primary caregiver”. This research demonstrates the problems and the needed solutions for the wage gap experienced by Latinas.
Source Entries:
Latinos and Education: Explaining the Attainment Gap.” Pew Research Center’s Hispanic Trends Project. Pew Research Center, 18 Sept. 2020. Web. 18 May 2021.
 This source talks about the Latinx and Education gap and why most do not continue their education during or after high school. Of the Latinos ranging from ages 16-25 years old, 74% had to stop their education because they had to support their families. The article states, “When asked why Latinos on average do not do as well as other students in school, more respondents in the Pew Hispanic Center survey blame poor parenting and poor English skills than blame poor teachers.” This example shows one of the reasons why there is a gap between the Latinx community and education. As an immigrant Latina, parents with poor English skills made education harder because no one was there to guide me with my classwork and homework. Eventually teaching myself became the norm in the household. In addition, most other immigrant parents are busy working extremely hard and long hours to support the household and this results in parents not paying enough attention to their kids or their education status. For the majority of the Latinx community, we believe that a college education is important for getting ahead but it can be very expensive when paying out of pocket. As it is already difficult to support a household, now imagine paying for college tuition on top of that. This source was created to demonstrate a National Survey of Latinx from ages 16 and older about their educational goals, high school & college experiences, and their opinions about educational institutions. In addition, it also demonstrates why a huge gap between education and Latinx exist, which contributes to a huge gap between Latinas and the economy.
“The Intersectional Wage Gaps Faced by Latina Women in the United States.” Equitable Growth. 19 July 2019. Web. 18 May 2021.
https://equitablegrowth.org/the-intersectional-wage-gaps-faced-by-latina-women-in-the-united-states/
  This article demonstrates the intersectional wage gaps that Latina women go through in the United States. Non-Hispanic men and Latina women of different countries are subjectively advantaged, and disadvantaged compared to other laborers in the economy. The Latina women’s wage gap has decreased with each generation since immigration, while also being the highest for Latina women non-citizens. An interesting fact from the article states that, “just encouraging higher education will not resolve the gender wage gap. Instead, addressing outright wage discrimination, occupational segregation, and work-life supports for Hispanic women of all ages is crucial to ensure that Hispanic women and all other women can be fairly remunerated and represented equal to men based on their skills, interests, and ambitions—their human capital.” Even though there is a huge gap between education and Latinx, there is more contribution to the economy gap, which is rooted in discrimination. In addition to the lower levels of education faced by Latinas, having a degree does not remove this economy wage gap between Latinas and non-Hispanic men. Apprenticeship can help underrepresented groups and implement a myriad of policies that would help Latinas balance both their work life and their families’ care needs. This article was created to demonstrate the economic research on Latina women in the labor market and the intersectional wage gaps faced by Latina women of different national, educational, nativity and citizenship backgrounds.
NewOnNetflix. “Explained | Why Women Are Paid Less | FULL EPISODE | Netflix.” YouTube. YouTube, 17 Apr. 2020. Web. 18 May 2021.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hP8dLUxBfsU
  This source explains factors of the pay gap between women and men even if they look the same, have the same educational records, professional experience, etc. One big factor is “Women should raise children” because they are the primary caregiver. Even with a professional career, society expects women to still do most of the work of raising children. Studies have shown how childbirth affects earnings: for example, a young couple with the same education and professional background have a baby, at that point someone must be home and give up their professional career. While women have the right to be mothers without being penalized from work, men are not allowed to take paternity leaves to take care of his family. If this were possible, all the responsibility of raising children would not fall onto the mothers. This source was created to demonstrate some of the factors that contribute to the wage gap between women and men. Even though this source does not specifically speak about Latina women, you can now imagine the gender plus race discrimination Latina women face.
In conclusion my research demonstrates the reasons that contribute to the wage gap experienced by Latinas such as lower education rates as not all Latina women gain the opportunity to continue their education or obtain higher education. In addition, citizenship status or immigration history also contributes to a wage gap because of discrimination. Also, family structure plays important roles in the participation of women in the labor force. Now that we know some of the detrimental factors of a wage gap, some of the best solutions to help improve this huge gap between Latina and non-Hispanic men are to:
- Create more scholarship opportunities for Latina women so this way they can continue to reach for a higher education and help Latinas from poor communities pay for education.
- Increase apprenticeship to help underrepresented groups that come from Latinx backgrounds.
- Implement a myriad of policies would help all Latinas balance both their work life and their families’ care needs.
- Increase paternity leaves to help balance work life and family care needs.
Even though discrimination is always going to exist, these are some solutions that can help improve the wage gap between Latina women and non-Hispanic men.
