Occupational Mobility of Black Women, 1958–1981: The Impact of Post-1964 Antidiscrimination Measures

This study finds that between 1965 and 1981, black women's occupational mobility rose relative to that of white women and white men by about 20% and 24%, respectively, and that more than half of these gains remain even after controlling for pre-existing trends, cyclical economic conditions, education, and factors potentially influencing the labor supply. No evidence is found to support the null hypothesis that this pattern is explained in significant measure by a decline in the labor supply of black women. The author argues, instead, that the results reflect the effects of Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act and, by the mid-1970s, affirmative action laws.