Erica Adams sits at her desk at Santa Monica College in Southern California, April 2026, where she works as a college administrator. She and 72 of her co-workers have received layoff notices. Their work ends June 2026. Photo provided by Erica Adams

by Katrina L. Spencer

Katrina L. Spencer began writing for Vinegar Hill Magazine in 2022 when she lived in Charlottesville. She left Virginia to pursue a master’s degree in journalism and media. Having completed her program, she now resides in Austin, Texas, and recruits freelancers to contribute to the publication.

At TJ Maxx, Chrystal Edney, 47, checks out customers as a cashier. She is required to ask each of them three times if they’re interested in opening new lines of credit at every transaction. The store is understaffed, she said, and the hours are long and sporadic. Standing on her feet is aggravating her sciatic nerve, yet she has already applied to hundreds of other jobs without success.

Edney didn’t aspire to work in retail. She moved from Atlanta, back home to Columbia, South Carolina, when her work opportunities thinned.

While she already holds a bachelor’s and a master’s degree, she has reluctantly been considering going back to school as she has been unable to secure a position in her former field of insurance for about 3 years. Pursuing further schooling causes her fear of entering a new cycle of educational debt, she said.

“I’ve kind of lost my hope,” she said.

Edney is not alone. Like many Black women across the United States, unemployment and underemployment have visited our doorsteps.

Chrystal Edney poses for her first day of work in insurance in 2001. The tides of the labor market have since forced her to move from Atlanta, Georgia, and to return home to South Carolina where she says there is not a “mindset of abundance.” Photo provided by Chrystal Edney

At the end of 2025, over 7% of Black women aged 20+ were unemployed, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The last time the numbers were that high was the summer of 2021 in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic. To complicate matters, some employers are reluctant in committing to new candidates.

“This is largely an employer’s market. Hiring parties currently hold more leverage and are using it to be highly selective, sometimes to the point of being unrealistic,” Sarah Morton, the executive director of Regional Workforce Board, Virginia Career Works Piedmont, wrote in an email. She has supplied a list of resources at the end of this article for people living in Virginia, where unemployment, as of April 2026, is up.

The topic has received wide coverage with some sources attributing parts of the decline in Black women’s employment to cuts to federal jobs that accompanied the introduction of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and the dissolution of many diversity, education and inclusion (DEI) programs. 

“Women of color are disproportionately represented in sectors that are often the first to experience layoffs when funding tightens or priorities shift,” Morton wrote. 

Some of the eliminations of this sort have the potential to contribute to a competitive job market at best and a hostile one for Black women at worst. And even as unemployment rates for Black women now begin to show modest signs of decrease nationwide, many have been obligated of late to pursue non-standard paths to wage earning to get by.

Ronchelle “Roni” Nelson, 34, lives in Denver, Colorado, and spoke on TikTok under the handle @heyy_roni about her job search. She has worked domestically and abroad, some of her professional choices made with the explicit goal of following musical artist Prince’s career across the nation and around the world. Her bachelor’s degree is in English.

“I have not used this degree,” she said. “It has not advanced me in any way.” 

While historically higher education within the Black community has been seen as a rung on a socioeconomic ladder that can offer some degree of protection from poverty to postsecondary graduates, the notion is being tested by fire.

“College degrees and certifications still matter, but in today’s job market, particularly in Virginia, they function as a starting point rather than a safeguard,” Morton wrote.

A return to school, then, aside from imposing likely financial encumberments, is not a guarantee of economic stability.

As Black women weather the storm of unemployment, some are obligated to lean even further into our creativity for income.

Among its many types, alternative employment can include apprenticeships, contract- or project-based roles and/or, consulting, Morton wrote.

Ronchelle “Roni” Nelson has taken a full-time, seasonal job with luxury train service Canyon Spirit. Her job is to “tell stories of the towns/scenery and serve food/drinks,” she wrote in a text message. The train travels from Denver, Colorado, to Salt Lake City, Utah. Photos provided by Ronchelle Nelson

In concert with that suggestion, Nelson is not committed to the ‘9 to 5, Monday thru Friday plus retirement contributions’ paradigm that is familiar to so many Americans.

“I’m a big advocate for seasonal work,” Nelson said, citing the fact that some positions provide housing and food stipends and can turn into year-round work.

Her variety of employment has included driving for Uber Eats and DoorDash, and in the past, she has secured work by using sites like giggs.live.com, which provides work associated with tours, production and merchandise. 

She also recommended coolworks.com, which allows job seekers to select the geographical sites around the nation where they are interested in working. Nelson, for example, has worked on Martha’s Vineyard, been a tour guide at musical artist Prince’s Paisley Park and just secured full-time seasonal work with a luxury train service after over a year of searching. Thinking outside the box has kept her earnings regular.

While some Black women are unable to find work despite their efforts, Myjah Guy, 25, who lives in Wisconsin, represents a subset of people who cannot work. She was born in Belize and though she has spent the majority of her life in this country, Guy is legally unable to work in the United States.

“I’ve been undocumented for 16 years,” she said. 

She holds an associate’s degree in nursing and is waiting on the government’s approval to make her next educational and professional moves. 

“Being unemployed made me face some of the fears I had surrounding money,” she said. 

Guy has several ideas for how others can make money in what might otherwise feel like a stagnant market. Eyebrow threading, cooking, baking and gardening were the first she listed. She also recommended writing on medium.com, setting up an Etsy shop to sell hair accessories and jewelry and doing affiliate marketing as an influencer on social media.

Yan Shanklin, 34, of Cleveland, Ohio, poses for a headshot. She has refused to be still during a period of unemployment in her life. Photo provided by Yan Shanklin

“Lean into the skills that you do have,” Guy said.

Yan Shanklin as well, 34, of Cleveland, Ohio, has refused stillness in this era of unemployment. Find her on TikTok with handle @callher_yan.

“You have the opportunity to go out and explore,” she said.

True to her word, she self-published a book titled Navigating Life In Uncertainty, took a role in a film called Deon’s Almost Famous and started shaping her content creation on social media. While she holds an undergraduate and a graduate degree in political science and financial management, her faith and artistry keep her spirits afloat.

Morton suggested that applicants be strategic in their applications and not reactive, applying indiscriminately. 

To make oneself more eligible for competition, Edney suggests learning as much about artificial intelligence as one can, and taking internships. In the meanwhile, exercise, journaling, spending time with loved ones and seeking therapy are helping her on her journey, she said.

Guy is hopeful. “I feel like things come around at the right time and when you need them.”

Executive Director Sarah Morton of Regional Workforce Board, Virginia Career Works Piedmont, shares Virginia-based employment resources 

  • Virginia Works – The Commonwealth’s workforce development agency offering job listings, career coaching, apprenticeships and sector-based training aligned with employer demand
  • Virginia Employment Commission – Resources for job seekers, workforce connection registration, job fairs, and unemployment support during transitions
  • Elevate Virginia – Tools for career readiness, credentialing and workforce navigation with a focus on skills-based employment pathways
  • Virginia Career Works Centers – Local, one-stop centers providing resume assistance, training referrals and employer connections across Virginia