Applying While Black: The Collateral Effects of Racial Differences in Work Histories

Abstract

It is well known that hiring practices that treat job seekers differently by race contribute to racial disparities in employment. Yet, practices that treat job seekers equivalently may also contribute to racial disparities if there are pre-existing racial differences among the applicants. We focus on employers’ prominent practice of using job seekers’ work histories to make inferences about their suitability for jobs. Scholars and practitioners alike have long assumed that work histories are race neutral because they result from job seekers’ strategic choices about where to apply and what jobs to accept. However, Black job seekers face structural constraints—namely, anticipating and experiencing racial discrimination—that restrict the job search strategies and resulting jobs available to them. As a result, they are less likely than their White peers to construct the work histories that employers value—those composed of prior experience closely related to the job at hand and specialized within a narrow domain of work. These differences in work histories contribute to the racial disparities that Black job seekers experience. We test and find support for this argument, using over 490,000 job applications for all 3,683 publicly posted jobs over seven years at two U.S. technology companies. This study contributes to the literature on racial discrimination and categorization in labor markets by uncovering a novel pathway through which race shapes employment.