Who was hit hardest during the Great Depression?
The poor were hit the hardest. By 1932, Harlem had an unemployment rate of 50 percent and property owned or managed by blacks fell from 30 percent to 5 percent in 1935. Farmers in the Midwest were doubly hit by economic downturns and the Dust Bowl.
What jobs were hit the hardest by the Great Depression?
Throughout the industrial world, cities were hit hard during the Great Depression, beginning in 1929 and lasting through most of the 1930s. Worst hit were port cities (as world trade fell) and cities that depended on heavy industry, such as steel and automobiles. Service-oriented cities were hurt less severely.
What groups struggled the most during the Great Depression?
The country’s most vulnerable populations, such as children, the elderly, and those subject to discrimination, like African Americans, were the hardest hit. Most white Americans felt entitled to what few jobs were available, leaving African Americans unable to find work, even in the jobs once considered their domain.
What jobs were affected by the Great Depression?
Demographic and Occupational Characteristics
| Occupation and Gender | Number of Gainful Workersa | Number in the Experienced Labor Forceb |
|---|---|---|
| Unskilled workers | 13,792 | 13,457 |
| Nonfarm laborers | 6,273 | 5,566 |
| Farm laborers | 4,187 | 3,708 |
| Servants | 3,332 | 4,182 |
What was life for workers during the Great Depression?
Even the affluent faced severe belt-tightening. Four years after 1929 stock market crash, during the bleakest point of the Great Depression, about a quarter of the U.S. workforce was unemployed. Those that were lucky enough to have steady employment often saw their wages cut or their hours reduced to part-time.
How many lost their jobs during the Great Depression?
During the Great Depression, millions of U.S. workers lost their jobs. By 1932, twelve million people in the U.S. were unemployed. Approximately one out of every four U.S. families no longer had an income.
What race is most unemployed?
In 2020, 11.7 percent of the Black or African-American population in the United States were unemployed, the highest unemployment rate of any ethnicity.
What is the highest unemployment rate in history?
The unemployment rate has varied from as low as 1% during World War I to as high as 25% during the Great Depression. More recently, it reached notable peaks of 10.8% in November 1982 and 14.7% in April 2020.