Study Finds Senate Racial Pay Disparity

Minority staff members in the Senate are paid less than their white counterparts, according to a congressional study. A report by the Congressional Management Foundation, a nonpartisan group funded by corporations, found that black employees earned 76 cents for every dollar earned by their white counterparts, down from 83 cents in 1993. Latino workers averaged 85 cents for every dollar whites earned in 1997, up from 75 cents in 1993. Asians and Native Americans, who were grouped collectively in the report, made 93 cents for every dollar earned by white workers. The study attributed the disparity to a higher percentage of minorities in lower-paying jobs.