Highlighting the diversity of California’s Asian American and Pacific Islander workforce
Asian Americans are often described as the “model minority”—a stereotype that draws on characteristics such as higher levels of education and lower unemployment rates relative to non-Asian workers. This narrative ignores the vast heterogeneity within the group and fails to take into account the lived experiences of many Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPI). The UC Berkeley Labor Center’s Low-Wage Work in California Data Explorer offers disaggregated data by regional subgroup for AAPI workers, showing important differences across occupation, gender, and nativity status within this diverse group.
We separate AAPI low-wage workers into five subgroups, as shown in the table below (Exhibit 1).[1] While data suggest that California’s non-Hispanic AAPI workers are less likely to be paid low wages than other racial or ethnic groups—with 25.5% earning less than $19.69 in 2022[2]—this is not the case for all AAPI workers, particularly those with Southeast Asian and Pacific Islander origins.
The blanket non-Hispanic AAPI group masks higher rates of low-wage work among certain regional subgroups. About a third of Southeast Asians and Pacific Islanders are paid low wages, similar to the share among all California workers (35.2%).
Southeast Asians are significantly overrepresented in jobs that pay low wages relative to their share of the total AAPI workforce. While roughly 4 out of 10 AAPI workers (39.6%) are Southeast Asian, they make up over half (50.7%) of all AAPI low-wage workers across the state.
What drives differences in low-wage work prevalence among California’s AAPI workers?
Our analysis shows AAPI workers are overrepresented in industries and occupations characterized by low wages–what is known as occupational segregation.[3]
Close to half (46.1%) of all low-wage AAPI workers are employed in just three industries: Health Care and Social Assistance; Retail Trade; and Accommodation and Food Services. Within these industries, common occupations include healthcare support; office and administrative support; and food preparation and service. When we unpack each regional subgroup even further, we find that many AAPI workers paid low wages are Indian, Filipino, Vietnamese, Chinese, or Korean—groups overrepresented in healthcare and restaurant jobs.[4]
Women across all AAPI subgroups are more likely to be paid low wages than men from the same region—something we find with all other major racial groups, as detailed in our Data Explorer.[5] This difference is particularly stark, however, for workers who identify as Pacific Islander, with 37% of women and 26.6% of men earning low wages—a gap of almost 10-and-a-half percentage points, which is almost double that of the gender gap in low-wage work among all AAPI workers (5.9 percentage points). While previous studies have documented significant gender pay disparities within AAPI communities, likely as a result of both discrimination and occupational segregation,[6] further research is needed to understand why the gender gap in low-wage work between Pacific Islander men and women is so large.
Our data also show that over two-thirds (68.1%) of all AAPI low-wage workers are born outside the United States. For South Asians, this share is even greater. More than three-quarters of South Asian workers who are paid low wages are foreign-born.
The Low-Wage Work in California Data Explorer shows that AAPI workers are not a monolith. To truly understand this group of workers, researchers, policymakers, and others should avoid stereotypes like the “model minority” which ignore the diverse experiences of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. Richer analyses based on disaggregated race or ethncity data (e.g., by region or nationality) will improve our ability to understand the realities of AAPI workers within the group, not simply as they compare to other racial or ethnic groups, allowing us to better address the needs of this diverse community.
Endnotes
[1] Rubin, Victor, Danielle Ngo, Ángel Ross, Dalila Butler, Nisha Balaram. (2018). “Counting a Diverse Nation: Disaggregating Data on Race and Ethnicity to Advance a Culture of Health.” PolicyLink. Accessed November 15, 2023.
[2] In 2022, the value of the low-wage threshold is $19.69. The sample includes individuals who live and work in California, were employed the week before being surveyed but were not self-employed, ages 16+, and with non-zero earnings last week.
[3] Zhavoronkova, Marina, Rose Khattar, and Mathew Brady (2022). “Occupational Segregation in America.” Center for American Progress. Accessed December 17, 2024.
[4] Nasol, Katherine and Valerie Francisco-Menchavez (2021). “Filipino Home Care Workers: Invisible Frontline Workers in the COVID-19 Crisis in the United States.” Am Behav Sci. 65(10): 1365-1383. Accessed December 11, 2024.
Sangalang, Cindy C., Marisa Montoya, Samantha R. Macam, Audrey Chan, Madonna P. Cadiz,
Romeo Hebron, Jr. (2022). “Filipino American Essential & Frontline Workers Battling Multiple Crises: COVID-19, Economic Inequality, and Racism.” UCLA Asian American Studies Center, Asian American and Pacific Islander Policy Initiative. Accessed December 11, 2024.
Collins, Brady, AJ Kim, Saba Waheed, Michele Wong (2023). “Overworked & Underserved: The Challenges of Koreatown’s Restaurant Workers.” UCLA Labor Center and Koreatown Immigrant Workers Alliance. Accessed December 11, 2024.
[5] This is true except for women who identify as non-Hispanic AIAN alone.
[6] Mefferd, Eve (2022). “The Wage Gap for Asian American and Pacific Islander Women by State.” Institute for Women’s Policy Research. Accessed January 8, 2025.