The Economics of Race and Ethnicity

There have been significant improvements in the economic, and especially educational, success of some ethnic minorities in recent years. Substantial ethnic inequalities in multiple domains across the life course persist, and many continue across generations. The experience of minority groups has been quite different in terms of how far their economic outcomes have become similar to or different from the majority.

The ambition of this project is to establish new, authoritative and policy-relevant evidence and understanding in this contested area, by providing a detailed account of how ethnic economic inequalities emerge, evolve and are maintained across the life course at a level of detail and in ways not previously possible.

The working paper  'Health inequality and economic disparities by race, ethnicity, and gender' reveals staggering inequalities. At age 55, black men and women have the biological age of white men and women 13 and 20 years older, respectively. Health deficits are more likely for black and Hispanic individuals than white individuals. Larger health gaps occur for black men especially. The report reveals structural inequities related to race in the UK, and finds that health inequality also emerges as a powerful determinant of economic inequality.

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