AMEP Foundation

that that combines culturally ingrained elements with modern leadership skills to help Latina women excel personally and professionally. Participants will be paired with mentors to effectively develop their skills and learning. Latina women are crucial to the growth and vitality of our community. AMEP Foundation empowers young Latinas to pursue and create opportunities to advance their lives and careers. Latinas are paid 89% of what Latino men are paid, and only 53% of what white men are paid. Latinas in US are paid on average 54 cents for every dollar paid to white, non-Latino men. Texas is the second state with the largest population of Latinas working full time, where they are paid 45 cents for every dollar paid to white, non-Latino men. The gender-based wage gap harms Latinas, their families and the economy. When women lose income, their and their families’ economic security is diminished. The labor force participation rate of Latinas (59%) is similar to the participation rate for non-Latinas (61%). However, Latinas who work full time earn less than non-Latinas who work full time: a median of $460 per week, compared with $615 per week for non-Hispanic women, while immigrant women earn $400. Latinas are twice as likely as non-Hispanic women to live in poverty. The most common occupations of Latinas are office and administrative support positions. Latinas are more likely than non-Hispanic women to be employed in blue-collar occupations such as building, grounds cleaning and maintenance; food preparation and serving related jobs; production; and personal care and service occupations, which is a factor that contributes to keep them in poverty. Latinas are less educated than non-Latina women. Latina women are less likely to graduate from high school or college than their white peers. 36% of Latinas have less than a high school education, compared with 10% of non-Latina women. 49% of all Latina women immigrants have less than a high school education; 46% of native-born Latina women have some college education. Only 13.7% have a college education or above.

40% of all Hispanics in the United States are foreign born and thus face language challenges when it comes to employment. Only 76.8% of native born Latinos speak English fluently. However, Latinas are outpacing Latino males in their educational pursuits and career development, are overwhelmingly the decision-makers in household spending, have surpassed the proportion of non-Hispanic white families with children, and through their youth and increased incomes have become an attractive consumer segment who is being actively courted by marketers. Latina women are a key growth engine of the U.S. female population and are expected to become 30 percent of the total female population by 2060.