FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: lppipress@luskin.ucla.edu
UCLA Study Finds National Latina Wage Gap Has Narrowed Just Seven Cents Since 1990
Nationally, Latinas earned 64¢ for every dollar earned by white men in 2025; in California, the ratio was just 54¢.
LOS ANGELES (October 8, 2026) — Despite substantial gains in educational attainment and a growing presence in the U.S. workforce, Latinas continue to face one of the largest wage gaps among women in the United States and California, according to two new UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute (LPPI) data briefs examining national and California wage trends from 1900 to 2025.
The studies are being released on Latina Equal Pay Day as advocates across the nation draw attention to these disparities. The national study finds that progress toward wage parity has been modest. In 2025, Latinas earned 64¢ for every dollar earned by white men, up just seven cents from 57¢ in 1990. Latinas also had a median hourly wage of $20 in 2025, tying Native American women for the lowest median hourly wage among women in major racial and ethnic groups.
These disparities persist even as Latinas play an increasingly important role in the nation’s workforce and for their families. Nationally, Latinas now account for approximately one in five working-age women in the United States, more than double their share in 1990.
Among the national findings:
- The Latina wage gap has narrowed by just seven cents over the past 35 years. Latinas earned 57¢ for every dollar earned by white men in 1990 and 64¢ in 2025. As of 2025, Latinas, along with Native American women, continued to experience the largest wage gaps relative to white men among women in major racial and ethnic groups.
- Latinas with higher levels of educational attainment had higher wages in 2025 ($31 compared with $16 for Latinas without a high school diploma), but larger wage gaps were observed at higher levels of education. Latinas without a high school diploma earned 94¢ for every dollar earned by similarly educated white men in 2025, compared with 67¢ among college-educated Latinas.
- Union representation is associated with a narrower wage gap. Union-represented Latinas earned 77¢ for every dollar earned by white men in 2025, compared with 65¢ among nonunion Latinas. However, the share of Latinas covered by a union contract declined from 14% in 1990 to 10% in 2025.
- Progress toward wage parity varies considerably across occupations. Latinas working as nursing aides, cooks, and cashiers reached or nearly reached wage parity with white men in the same occupations. Progress was more limited among managers and administrators, where Latinas earned 72¢ for every dollar earned by white men in 2025.
A separate California companion study finds that the wage gap is even wider in the state, despite California Latinas earning higher hourly wages than Latinas nationally
In 2025, California Latinas earned 54¢ for every dollar earned by white men — 10¢ less than the national wage ratio — despite earning a higher median hourly wage than Latinas nationally ($22 compared with $20). California Latinas had the lowest median hourly wage among women in major racial and ethnic groups in the state.
The disparity carries particular significance in a state with the nation’s largest Latina population. Latinas accounted for 42% of California’s working-age women in 2025, up from 25% in 1990.
California findings:
- California’s Latina wage gap has improved only modestly since 1990. Latinas earned 46¢ for every dollar earned by white men in 1990, compared with 54¢ in 2025, leaving Latinas furthest from wage parity with white men among California’s racial and ethnic groups.
- Higher educational attainment does not translate into narrower wage disparities. California Latinas with a four-year college degree earned $34 per hour in 2025, nearly twice the $18 earned by Latinas without a high school diploma. Yet college-educated Latinas earned just 61¢ for every dollar earned by similarly educated white men, compared with 95¢ among Latinas without a high school diploma.
- Union-represented Latinas experience a substantially narrower wage gap. In 2025, union-represented California Latinas earned 69¢ for every dollar earned by white men, compared with 52¢ among nonunion Latinas. Unlike the national trend, union representation among California Latinas increased modestly, from 15% in 1990 to 17% in 2025.
Separate research from Hispanas Organized for Political Equality (HOPE) finds that in 2025, Latinas working full-time, year-round earn 60¢ for every dollar paid to non-Hispanic white men, while Latinas across all types of work earned 53¢. Additionally, Latina Futures 2050 Lab’s research, “Key Occupations That Narrow the Wage Gap for Latinas,” published today. You can find that research on the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center’s website, chicano.ucla.edu.
“Over the past 35 years, Latinas have made significant gains in education and expanded their presence across the U.S. workforce, but progress toward wage equity has been much slower,” said Jie Zong, co-author and senior research analyst at LPPI. “The findings show that greater educational attainment has not translated into comparable progress toward wage parity. These disparities are particularly pronounced in California, underscoring how the economic gains Latinas have made can coexist with persistent inequities in pay.”
Read the national brief.
Read the California brief.
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About the UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute
The UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute is a nonpartisan research institute that seeks to inform, engage and empower Latinos through innovative research and policy analysis. LPPI aims to promote equitable and inclusive policies that address the needs of the Latino community and advance social justice. latino.ucla.edu.
