Clocking Inequality: Understanding Economic Inequity, the Wage Gap, and Workplace Experiences of AANHPI women

Clocking Inequality: Understanding Economic Inequity, the Wage Gap, and Workplace Experiences of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Women, is a report that explores how historical shortcomings in data collection efforts have created a disconnect that prevents Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPIs) women and immigrants from achieving economic mobility.

Almost no research to date has explored the individual experiences of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) women and gender expansive people with the wage gap in the United States. Despite acknowledged and documented wage gaps for AANHPIs, individual experiences and barriers to equal pay remain poorly understood. 

The National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF) conducted key informant interviews (KIIs) with leaders of AANHPI community organizations and in-depth interviews (IDIs) with AANHPI women and gender expansive people to address this critical research gap. These KIIs revealed numerous barriers, including workplace discrimination, limited employee benefits, lack of access to necessary cultural and financial resources to promote financial stability, as well as broader issues related to the immigrant experience, unpaid labor for caregiving, and high living costs. These findings are particularly significant as they challenge the “model minority” myth and shed light on the often-invisible struggles of AANHPIs within aggregated economic datasets.

Overall, caregiving emerged as a key priority needed to improve economic outcomes for AANHPIs, especially for smaller Asian American communities, as well as Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, and Indo-Caribbean women. Protections and systems of support tailored to AANHPI immigrants in the workplace and at home, combined with adequate support writ large for all caregivers, will help equitably address the wage gap and advance economic mobility. 

Our policy recommendations emphasize the need for culturally informed solutions, targeted funding, and multi-sector collaborations – read more in the full report.